In response to concerns about “corporate greed” in healthcare, the Biden administration is introducing new officials in the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to investigate price-gouging. The move aims to enhance coordination among these agencies and address anti-competitive practices and the impact of private equity in the healthcare sector.
The newly appointed officials will focus on two specific areas: investigating private equity’s influence in healthcare and examining anti-competitive practices, such as consolidations that do not meet antitrust thresholds. The announcement follows reports, including those from STAT, highlighting private equity involvement in controversial areas like autism therapy and travel nursing.
The three agencies, FTC, DOJ, and HHS, plan to collaborate on training employees, sharing data, and developing policy initiatives related to these issues. Antitrust experts anticipate that the new roles will formalize existing communications between the FTC and DOJ, which traditionally focus on different aspects of the healthcare industry. The evolving landscape, where transactions involve various entities across the healthcare ecosystem, underscores the importance of effective communication and coordination.
While the DOJ has historically concentrated on health insurance activities and the FTC on providers such as hospitals, the blurring of these lines necessitates greater collaboration. Involving HHS, particularly its subagency the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is seen as valuable in understanding ongoing dynamics in healthcare, even though HHS is not typically involved in antitrust investigations.
Experts suggest that the Counsel for Health Care at the FTC may primarily serve in a policymaking role, identifying trends and practices that warrant guidance or enforcement. In contrast, the DOJ’s Counsel for Health Care may have a more hands-on role in day-to-day investigation and enforcement matters.
The announcement is seen as a proactive move by the agencies, shifting from a reactive stance to providing clearer guidance and regulations. The hope is that the new positions, coupled with requests for information about the impact of private equity, will bring more transparency and data to the healthcare sector.
Despite the prevailing perception that all private equity ownership is negative, experts suggest that having more data could challenge this assumption. The key question remains whether the officials appointed to these positions will be able to form independent opinions, given their background and previous job mandates