The unfettered growth of hosptial-centric medicine, usually touted as bringing “better care,” “enhanced safety,” and “more efficiency,” often brings less caring care, hospital acquired infections, and . . . control over the market with its “efficient” byproduct, higher prices. The growth of hospital systems can be seen as a reaction to the fact that procedures…
Join Mark as he ponders the impact on your practice of antitrust enforcement against growing hospitals and chains.
Major League Baseball has an antitrust exemption. It also has a level playing field. The players, as employees, can collectively bargain.
If the hospital can, both through practice acquisition and the expansion of its system, acquire sufficient market power, it can also pressure insurers, individual consumers, and others paying for healthcare to pay more for the same services.
Health insurers have an antitrust exemption in respect of coordinated gathering of data for ratemaking. The playing field isn’t particularly level. Physicians can’t share pricing information or collectively bargain for payment rates.