The Medical Center at Elizabeth Place filed the complaint, which claims Premier along with Catholic Health Initiatives, MedAmerica Health Systems Corporation, Atrium Health System, Samaritan Health Partners and Upper Valley Medical Center colluded to cut off MCEP’s access to insurers’ networks. Premier was formed in 1995 out of a joint operating agreement that involves the other defendants and providers named in the lawsuit. Those entities all operate hospitals in Ohio.
A series of insurers (representing roughly 70 percent of the insured people in the Dayton area) are listed in the complaint but are not defendants in the suit.
The complaint also claims the defendants used punitive financial consequences to threaten physicians who affiliated with the hospital and paid physicians if they agreed to not work with MCEP.
A Premier spokesperson has said all the defendants “strongly deny the allegations” and will be defending themselves, according to the report.
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