After
a
multi-year
battle,
the
$3.3
billion
acquisition
of
home
health
provider
Amedisys
by
UnitedHealth
Group’s
Optum
may
finally
go
through.
The
Department
of
Justice
(DOJ)
has
reached
a
proposed
settlement
with
UnitedHealth
Group
and
Amedisys
over
the
deal,
the
agency
announced
on
Thursday.
The
proposed
settlement
still
has
to
be
approved
by
a
judge.
It
would
require
UnitedHealth
and
Amedisys
to
divest
164
home
health
and
hospice
locations
across
19
states
to
BrightSpring
Health
Services
or
The
Pennant
Group,
which
are
both
home
health
companies.
This
accounts
for
about
$528
million
in
annual
revenue,
and
would
be
the
largest
divestiture
of
outpatient
healthcare
services
for
resolving
a
merger
challenge,
according
to
the
DOJ.
“In
no
sector
of
our
economy
is
competition
more
important
to
Americans’
well-being
than
healthcare.
This
settlement
protects
quality
and
price
competition
for
hundreds
of
thousands
of
vulnerable
patients
and
wage
competition
for
thousands
of
nurses,”
said
Assistant
Attorney
General
Abigail
Slater
of
the
Justice
Department’s
Antitrust
Division,
in
a
statement.
UnitedHealth
may
also
be
required
to
divest
eight
more
facilities
if
it
can’t
secure
approval
for
selling
related
assets.
In
addition,
the
deal
also
installs
a
monitor
to
oversee
the
divestiture
process
and
ensure
compliance.
And
Amedisys
will
pay
a
$1.1
million
penalty
and
train
its
leadership
on
antitrust
rules
after
falsely
certifying
it
had
fully
responded
to
federal
document
requests.
UnitedHealth
Group’s
Optum
first
announced
plans
for
the
deal
back
in
2023,
but
the
DOJ
filed
a
lawsuit
in
November
to
block
the
acquisition,
arguing
that
it
would
remove
competition
between
UnitedHealth
and
Amedisys
due
to
UnitedHealth’s
previous
acquisition
of
home
health
and
hospice
company
LHC
Group.
UnitedHealth
and
Amedisys
have
made
other
divestitures
in
the
past
in
hopes
of
getting
the
deal
through
—
including
a
deal
to
VitalCaring
Group
—
but
they
weren’t
enough.
In
response
to
the
proposed
settlement,
an
Optum
spokesperson
said
the
company
is
“pleased
to
have
reached
a
resolution
and
are
grateful
for
the
Department
of
Justice’s
cooperation.
With
Amedisys,
we
look
forward
to
continuing
meaningful
improvements
in
the
home
health
and
hospice
care
space,
a
vital
part
of
our
value-based
care
approach.”
A
spokesperson
for
Amedisys
noted
that
the
merger
with
Optum
“will
mark
a
significant
milestone
in
the
continued
growth
and
evolution
of
Amedisys.
This
strategic
alignment
represents
an
important
step
forward
in
our
mission
to
deliver
exceptional
care
and
innovative
solutions
within
the
home
to
even
more
patients
and
families.”
While
UnitedHealth
and
Amedisys
seem
pleased
with
the
proposed
settlement,
others
are
concerned
about
the
impact
on
hospice
patients
and
nurses.
This
includes
the
American
Economic
Liberties
Project,
a
nonprofit
that
combats
monopolistic
corporations.
The
organization
argues
that
the
divestitures
to
BrightSpring
and
Pennant
create
a
new
set
of
problems.
BrightSpring
is
owned
by
private
equity
firm
KKR,
which
is
currently
dealing
with
a
separate
antitrust
lawsuit
from
the
DOJ.
In
addition,
inspections
of
its
group
homes
for
people
with
intellectual
and
developmental
disabilities
found
serious
violations
involving
abuse,
neglect,
and
understaffed
caregivers.
One
of
the
Pennant
Group’s
owners
is
health
system
Ascension,
which
previously
settled
with
the
DOJ
over
immigration-related
discrimination.
“This
settlement
…
caves
to
UnitedHealth
Group,
one
of
the
most
dangerous
monopolists
in
American
health
care,”
said
Emma
Freer,
senior
policy
analyst
for
health
care
at
the
American
Economic
Liberties
Project.
“It
claims
to
divest
home
health
and
hospice
care
providers
in
overlapping
markets
but,
in
actuality,
cedes
them
to
similarly
conflicted
buyers,
including
a
highly-leveraged
private-equity
firm.
As
a
result,
Big
Medicine
will
profit
at
the
expense
of
vulnerable
hospice
patients,
some
of
whom
will
pay
with
their
lives,
and
the
workers
who
care
for
them.”
Photo:
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Getty
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