The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved an application by Community Health Systems (CHS) to sell Carolina Pines Regional Medical Center and its associated assets in Hartsville, South Carolina to Capella Healthcare, Inc.  The sale is one of two divestitures required by the FTC to settle allegations that CHS’s acquisition of Health Management Associates, Inc. (HMA) would likely be anticompetitive.

CHS is one of the largest publicly-traded hospital companies in the United States with over 200 hospitals in 29 states.  In January 2014, CHS announced its acquisition of HMA valued at over $3 billion.  The FTC challenged the acquisition, claiming the deal would eliminate price and quality competition in parts of Alabama and South Carolina.

In April 2014, the parties settled after CHS agreed to divest assets in those regions.  CHS’s application for the FTC to approve the sale of Riverview Regional Medical Center and its associated assets near Gadsden, Alabama to Prime Healthcare is currently available for public comment.

This case presents yet another example of the FTC’s renewed focus on health care transactions and the Commission’s impact on a health care system looking to integration as a means to achieve the goals of the Affordable Care Act.