North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper has said he will examine the use of antitrust law or new legislation to curb the state's artificially high healthcare costs, according to a Charlotte News & Observer report.
Mr. Cooper has said healthcare costs are high even without "artificial boosts that come from lack of competition," according to the report. The attorney general's office will examine whether antitrust laws are the proper tool for reducing healthcare costs or if newly created laws would be easier to enforce. Mr. Cooper's lawyers are prepared to speak with officials from the Federal Trade Commission, hospital industry representatives, insurance company officials and attorneys general in other states who have experienced similar situations.
The North Carolina Hospital Association has responded to the attorney general's concerns, saying consolidation is driven by an evolving regulatory and market environment and that the goals of healthcare reform can only be achieved "through economies of scale and greater efficiency among providers."
"North Carolina hospitals are committed to complying fully with federal and North Carolina antitrust laws and will pursue affiliations with other hospitals or physicians only within the confines of those laws," the statement said. "Additional legislation is not needed but could be harmful to advancing the goals of healthcare reform."
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Mr. Cooper has said healthcare costs are high even without "artificial boosts that come from lack of competition," according to the report. The attorney general's office will examine whether antitrust laws are the proper tool for reducing healthcare costs or if newly created laws would be easier to enforce. Mr. Cooper's lawyers are prepared to speak with officials from the Federal Trade Commission, hospital industry representatives, insurance company officials and attorneys general in other states who have experienced similar situations.
The North Carolina Hospital Association has responded to the attorney general's concerns, saying consolidation is driven by an evolving regulatory and market environment and that the goals of healthcare reform can only be achieved "through economies of scale and greater efficiency among providers."
"North Carolina hospitals are committed to complying fully with federal and North Carolina antitrust laws and will pursue affiliations with other hospitals or physicians only within the confines of those laws," the statement said. "Additional legislation is not needed but could be harmful to advancing the goals of healthcare reform."
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