A brand new investigation by KFF’s Kaiser Well being Information (KHN) lays naked the sizeable efforts by non-public fairness traders to take over massive and profitable elements of the U.S well being care system in recent times. KHN discovered that personal fairness companies have invested almost $1 trillion via hundreds of offers to amass hospitals and specialised medical practices over the past decade alone.
The offers, a lot of them unnoticed by federal regulators, sometimes end in a ratcheting up of suppliers’ pursuit of income – and better costs for sufferers, lawsuits, and complaints about high quality of care.
The investments vary extensively and embrace the acquisitions of doctor practices, dental clinic administration firms, firms that deal with autism, drug habit and different behavioral well being care, and ancillary providers reminiscent of diagnostic and urine testing labs and software program for medical billing. By means of different offers, firms tied to personal fairness have come to dominate specialised medical providers reminiscent of dermatology, gastroenterology, and anesthesiology in sure markets across the nation. All of it has come on prime of better-publicized takeovers of hospital emergency room staffing companies in addition to the shopping for up of whole rural hospital programs.
Federal regulators have been virtually blind to the incursion. KHN discovered that greater than 90 p.c of personal fairness takeovers or investments fell under the $100 million threshold that triggers an antitrust overview by the Federal Commerce Fee and the Justice Division.
Whistleblowers and injured sufferers, nonetheless, have turned to the courts to press allegations of misconduct or different improper enterprise dealings. KHN discovered that firms owned or managed by non-public fairness have agreed to pay fines of greater than $500 million since 2014 to settle not less than 34 lawsuits filed beneath the False Claims Act. More often than not, the non-public fairness house owners have prevented legal responsibility.
The newest story, printed in the present day in USA As we speak, is a part of a broader ongoing sequence, “Sufferers for Revenue: How Non-public Fairness Hijacked Well being Care” through which KHN has examined a variety of personal fairness’s forays into the well being care system. They embrace the advertising and marketing of America’s top-selling abortion capsule, the institution of “obstetric emergency departments” at some hospitals, investments within the booming hospice care business and even takeovers of funeral houses and cemeteries. The sequence features a video primer, “How Non-public Fairness Is Investing in Well being Care”.
KHN collaborates with many editorial companions, and media retailers can publish these and different KHN tales at no cost. KHN additionally will publish the tales on khn.org and promote them via its social media platforms. KHN journalists additionally can be found for interviews about their tales. Information organizations excited about working with KHN ought to contact the information service at KHNPartnerships@kff.org, and people excited about serving to to develop and enhance well being journalism across the nation ought to contact KFF at healthjournalism@kff.org.
About KFF and KHN
KHN (Kaiser Well being Information) is a nationwide newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about well being points. Along with Coverage Evaluation, Polling and Survey Analysis and Social Influence Media, KHN is without doubt one of the 4 main working applications at KFF (Kaiser Household Basis). KFF is an endowed nonprofit group offering info on well being points to the nation.