FTC Opposes Proposed Indiana Hospital Merger 

By Consumers for Quality Care, on September 25, 2024

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is calling on Indiana officials to block a proposed hospital merger which could result in less competition, higher prices, and worse patient care, according to Healthcare Dive. 

Two hospitals in Terre Haute, Ind., a community of 58,000, are considering a merger. Terre Haute residents, however, worry that a merger would reduce the services available at either hospital. They also worry that a merger would lead to high prices while hurting the quality of patient care.   

In 2021, Indiana enacted a Certificate of Public Advantage, or COPA law, allowing state regulators to approve hospital mergers that might otherwise have been blocked by the FTC as anticompetitive.  

Now, the FTC is simply asking the Indiana Department of Health to oppose the merger. The COPA law allows the state to approve a merger if it is believed that the benefits to consumers will outweigh any possible harms. In this case, the FTC believes this merger does not meet this threshold. “Any cost savings or quality benefits of the merger would need to be extraordinary in order to outweigh the significant competitive harm that is likely to result from the merger, and there is no indication that this is the case,” the FTC’s letter reads. 

Indiana already has some of the highest hospital prices in the country. Health care advocates fear that these mergers will eventually raise costs for consumers even more. 

Decreased competition hurts consumers, often leading to fewer options for care and higher out-of-pocket costs. CQC urges regulators and lawmakers to scrutinize mergers in the health care industry and work to ensure that consumers do not foot the bill for anti-competitive practices.