Under the proposal, Gov. Patrick’s administration would conduct a “cost and market power review” of physicians or hospitals it finds to be acting or planning to act in an anticompetitive manner. This review could include an analysis of how providers are attracting patients, recruiting providers and acquiring facilities.
If the review finds the provider has a dominant market share and “materially higher” prices than competitors, the administration will hand the case over to Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office for a formal probe.
The plan may be one strategy to abate the “hot potato” relationship between Gov. Patrick and the AG office, according to the report. The two have exchanged requests for each other to use their respective powers and tools to better keep providers’ market power in check.
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