On Tuesday, July 8, the DOJ Antitrust Division announced a first-of-its-kind Antitrust Whistleblower Rewards Program (the “Program”). But the Program’s fine print suggests it may not be as lucrative for whistleblowers as it appears at first blush.Continue Reading New DOJ Antitrust Postal Whistleblower Rewards Program: A Look Under the Shiny Hood
Judge Lewis Liman in the Southern District of New York recently dismissed antitrust complaints brought by direct and indirect purchasers against six major suppliers of concrete admixtures, cement additives, admixtures for mortar, and related products (“CCAs”), alleging that the suppliers conspired to fix prices.[1] Specifically, plaintiffs alleged that between 2017 and present, defendants agreed to raise the prices of CCAs, including through surcharges and price sheets. In addition to these allegedly “parallel” price increases, plaintiffs further alleged:Continue Reading Cement and Concrete Admixture Price Fixing Conspiracy Allegations Not Strong Enough to Survive Motion to Dismiss
As we predicted before the inauguration, Trump 2.0 antitrust enforcers have shown continued support for the pro-worker, anti-tech antitrust agenda that has permeated recent antitrust enforcement through the last two administration changes. This time around, President Trump appointed competition agency leaders in Chair Ferguson at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and AAG Slater at the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) who identify with a brand of conservative populism coalescing around many of the same policies and priorities as Biden-appointed competition leaders like FTC Chair Lina Khan. For example, since the inauguration, antitrust agencies under their leadership have forged on with antitrust cases against Big Tech, backed the Biden-era revisions to the merger and labor guidelines, and doubled down on efforts to use antitrust laws to protect American workers.Continue Reading Red Tape Rollback: DOJ’s Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force
The number of U.S. states implementing or considering new antitrust laws (or supplementing existing laws) targeting proposed transactions continues to grow. As detailed in our healthcare merger matrix, many states have focused their attention on the healthcare industry, and that continues to be the case, for example, in New York, where a broad range of proposed transactions involving health care entities could be subject to filing requirements and suspensory rules before they can close.Continue Reading State Antitrust Enforcement Roundup: New Laws; New Potential Legislation; and New (and Broader) Areas of Focus
On August 1, 2023, the New York State’s Department of Health (the “DOH”) began implementation of Public Health Law Article 45-A, the State’s new statutory requirement for advance notice and public disclosure of certain material healthcare transactions (the “Material Transactions law”). Now, in response to questions from the healthcare community regarding the reporting requirements and statutory interpretation, the DOH has released a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to clarify the scope and application of the Material Transactions law.Continue Reading New York State Releases Much Anticipated Guidance on Reporting Requirements for Material Healthcare Transactions as Budget Negotiations Near Conclusion, Potentially Expanding Law to Include Pre-Closing Review
State legislatures on the West Coast are intensifying their focus on private equity and management service organizations (MSOs) in healthcare, introducing new regulatory measures that could significantly reshape investment strategies, ownership structures, and operational matters in the healthcare space in these states. As state legislatures respond to growing concerns about the role of non-licensed entities in healthcare decision-making, recent proposals reflect a heightened focus on transaction scrutiny, ownership structures, and the autonomy of licensed providers.Continue Reading Major Regulatory Updates from the West Coast: New California and Washington Approaches to Healthcare Private Equity and MSO Regulation
Four days before President Trump took office, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) (together, “the Agencies”) under the Biden administration released their “Antitrust Guidelines for Business Activities Affecting Workers” (“The Guidelines”). These Guidelines replace and expand upon antitrust guidance for HR professionals that the Obama administration issued in 2016. The new Guidelines aim to clarify how the DOJ and FTC “identify and assess business practices affecting workers that may violate the antitrust laws.”Continue Reading DOJ and FTC Issue Antitrust Guidelines for Business Activities Affecting Workers
The outlook for federal antitrust enforcement remains murky, at best, with uncertainty about whether the new federal HSR rules, merger guidelines, and existing enforcement actions.Continue Reading Navigating the Matrix of State Healthcare Approvals
A proposed amendment to New York’s Donnelly Act, introduced earlier this month, would significantly broaden the scope of the antitrust statute enacted in 1899. New York Senate Bill 335, titled the “Twenty-First Century Anti-Trust Act” seeks to modernize the State’s antitrust laws to address “New York’s great concern with the growing accumulation of power in the hands of dominant corporations that undermines the power of workers, consumers, and small businesses.” If passed, it would be one of, if not the most, aggressive set of state antitrust laws to date, and arguably more akin to antitrust jurisprudence in the European Union than the United States under the Sherman Act.Continue Reading Amending New York’s Donnelly Act: If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try, and Try Again
On January 8, 2025, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey signed House Bill 5159 (“H.5159”) into law, marking a notable expansion of the regulation of private equity investments within the Massachusetts healthcare sector. The legislation, set to take effect on April 8, 2025, introduces new measures to enhance transparency and accountability in healthcare transactions, focusing specifically on private equity firms, real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), and management services organizations (“MSOs”). This development also reflects a broader trend across the nation of increasing scrutiny of healthcare transactions and investments by private equity firms and other investors, as highlighted in our previous blog series on California’s Assembly Bill 3129.[i]Continue Reading Massachusetts Expands Oversight of Private Equity Investment in Healthcare: Key Takeaways from House Bill 5159 Signed into Law by Governor Healey
President Trump was sworn into office on Monday, promising swift action on several fronts. There is already a new Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) Chair, Andrew Ferguson, with former FTC Chair Lina Khan expected to step down shortly. At the Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (“DOJ”), proposed AAG Gail Slater will need to be confirmed by the Senate before she can take the helm.Continue Reading Looking Back and Looking Forward: Healthcare Antitrust in a New Administration: What Stays the Same and What Changes?