Jepsen
HARTFORD, Conn. (Legal Newsline) - Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen completed an antitrust review of proposed hospital merger on Friday and will not block the merger under the state's antitrust law.
Jepsen's review of the merger between the Yale-New Haven Hospital and The Hospital of Saint Raphael, coordinated with the Federal Trade Commission, was initiated to determine if Yale's acquisition of Saint Raphael would substantially lessen competition for medical services in the greater New Haven area.
"Based on the evidence developed during the investigation, and in light of the law applicable to these types of transactions - including taking into consideration St. Raphael's precarious financial condition and other expected efficiencies that will be realized through the acquisition - I have decided not to seek to block the merger under Connecticut's antitrust law," Jepsen said.
Yale separately agreed to Jepsen's request that current levels of charitable healthcare and financial assurance be maintained, and it will continue to provide the same level of service and assistance to patients receiving care at the St. Raphael campus.
"As a general proposition merger investigations are inherently complicated," Jepsen said. "This maxim applies even more so here given the breadth of antitrust issues analyzed and the complexity of the services offered."