Antitrust practitioners, enforcers and industry professionals came together in Washington, D.C. for the 64th installment of the ABA Section of Antitrust Law's annual Spring Meeting. The Spring Meeting provides a look at the...more
In North Carolina State Board of Dental Examiners v. FTC, 135 S. Ct. 1101 (2015), the Supreme Court held that the North Carolina Board of Dental Examiners (“Board”), a state agency, was not exempt from federal antitrust laws...more
Phoebe Putney: A Collision of Federal Antitrust and State Certificate of Need Laws - On March 31, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had entered into a consent agreement with Phoebe Putney Health...more
On March 31, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) entered into a settlement with Phoebe Putney Health System, Inc. (Phoebe Putney), the Hospital Authority of Albany-Dougherty County, and HCA Inc., finally resolving the...more
Nearly four years after the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) first challenged the combination of the only two hospitals in Albany, Georgia, the FTC, Phoebe Putney Health Systems, Inc. (“Phoebe Putney”), Hospital Authority of...more
Almost one year ago, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) agreed to settle its antitrust challenge of Phoebe Putney Health System’s (Phoebe Putney) acquisition of Palmyra Medical Center (Palmyra) without requiring divesture or any...more
The Supreme Court has a renewed interest in the state action doctrine. After declining to clarify what types of state action are exempt from federal antitrust scrutiny for years, the Supreme Court agreed to hear its second...more
After running the table in the Supreme Court with a unanimous decision and then convincing a district court judge in Georgia to halt further consolidation of Phoebe Putney Health System (Phoebe Putney) and Palmyra Medical...more
On August 22, 2013, the FTC accepted, subject to final approval, a Consent Agreement Containing Order from Respondents Phoebe Putney Health System, Inc., Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, Inc., Phoebe North, Inc. (collectively...more
After running the table in the Supreme Court with a unanimous decision, which we covered, and then convincing a district court judge in Georgia to halt further consolidation of Phoebe Putney Health System (“Phoebe Putney”)...more
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Phoebe Putney Health System settled the FTC’s complaint that the health system’s merger with Palmyra Park Hospital violated the antitrust laws. Unique state statutes and...more
In this Issue: - Focus On The Federal Trade Commission - Supreme Court Decision in FTC v. Actavis Provides Guidance on Pay-for-Delay - DOJ Prevails on Liability in eBooks Antitrust Case in the Southern District...more
In an opinion that has implications for the health care industry and beyond, the Supreme Court, in Federal Trade Commission v. Phoebe Putney Health System, Inc., last month clarified the standard for exempting “state-action”...more
Last week a unanimous Supreme Court issued its highly anticipated opinion in FTC v. Phoebe Putney Health System, Inc., addressing the "State action" exemption from application of the federal antitrust laws for the first time...more
The U.S. Supreme Court on February 19th scaled back the "state action immunity" doctrine, siding with the Federal Trade Commission on an issue that had divided the lower courts and holding that a county Hospital Authority's...more
On February 19, 2013, the Supreme Court unanimously held that the effective acquisition of Palmyra Medical Center (“Palmyra”) by Phoebe Putney Health System, Inc. (“PPHS") in Southwestern Georgia was not immune from antitrust...more
In This Issue: Implementation of the Affordable Care Act; Other HHS and Federal Regulatory Initiatives; Other Congressional and State Initiatives; Other Health Care News; and Hearings and Mark-Ups Scheduled. Excerpt...more
On February 19, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision, found that a merger of two Georgia hospitals was not immune from federal antitrust laws under the "state-action" exemption, reversing a decision of the...more
On Tuesday, the United States Supreme Court reined in the state action immunity doctrine, which exempts municipalities from scrutiny under the federal antitrust laws when they act pursuant to a “clearly articulated state...more
In a unanimous opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court this week tightened the standard for state action immunity under federal antitrust laws in a case involving a hospital merger. This decision arguably tightens the reins on the...more
Recent major regulatory and technological developments have brought forth historic changes to the health care market. Health care providers have responded to these developments in several ways. One such mechanism, hospital...more
Holding in Phoebe Putney case narrowly construes state-action exemption to antitrust laws. On February 19, in Federal Trade Commission v. Phoebe Putney Health System, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously reversed a...more
On February 19, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that state-action immunity does not protect a state-created hospital authority from antitrust scrutiny over a proposed hospital merger where the anticompetitive...more
In a unanimous decision issued on February 19, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the state-action doctrine did not immunize Phoebe Putney Health System’s acquisition of Palmyra Park Hospital in Albany, Georgia.1 The...more
In one of the most closely watched healthcare antitrust cases in years, the Supreme Court issued its decision in the FTC merger challenge to a Georgia hospital merger, Phoebe Putney Health System’s acquisition of Palmyra...more