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Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is urging the Federal Commerce Fee to scrutinize CVS Well being’s planned acquisition of Medicare-focused major care supplier Oak Avenue Well being.
In a letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan and Commissioners Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Slaughter, the progressive senator wrote the deal might decrease high quality of care and hike prices.
She additionally pointed to different acquisitions – together with UnitedHealth Group’s buy of residence well being supplier LHC Group, Walgreens’ stake in major care firm VillageMD and its cope with CareCentrix, and Amazon’s acquisition of One Medical – as a part of a push towards vertical integration, “creating a number of giant healthcare conglomerates that management all facets of sufferers’ healthcare journeys.”
CVS additionally owns insurer Aetna and pharmacy profit supervisor CVS Caremark. Final 12 months, the corporate announced plans to buy residence well being platform Signify Well being.
Warren famous the expansion of value-based care preparations has the potential to enhance well being outcomes and reduce prices, however she added a lot of healthcare corporations see “a major money-making alternative,” particularly by buying major care or residence well being corporations that take Medicare Benefit plans.
“Given the potential threat that vertical integration might result in greater healthcare costs and decrease high quality of care, the Federal Commerce Fee (FTC) ought to rigorously scrutinize this deal, and others prefer it, and oppose any healthcare acquisition that may threaten competitors, enhance costs and cut back high quality of care,” Warren wrote within the letter. “The FTC also needs to retrospectively overview comparable consummated offers and problem in court docket any mergers which have diminished competitors in violation of antitrust legal guidelines.”
CVS didn’t reply to a request for remark.
THE LARGER TREND
After weeks of rumors, CVS confirmed it had signed a $10.6 billion deal to buy Oak Avenue in early February. It marked one other transfer into the first care area for a giant retailer, which has additionally seen exercise from corporations like Walgreens, Walmart and Amazon.
Specialists have famous the growth of retail healthcare might supply sufferers extra entry to care, as main retail pharmacies have areas throughout the U.S. Nevertheless it’s additionally mandatory for the businesses to build trust with patients as primary care providers and arrange better care coordination workflows.
“I believe that there is loads of positives to retail gamers when it comes to catering to shopper preferences and offering care in a extra handy method,” Sanjula Jain, senior vice chairman of market technique and chief analysis officer at Trilliant Well being, informed MobiHealthNews in December. “However for lots of complicated care, acute care – that each American goes to wish in some unspecified time in the future of their life – there’s a little bit extra fragmentation.”
Tracy Chu will supply extra element throughout her HIMSS23 session “Automation Improves Digital Schooling App Efficiency.” It’s scheduled for Wednesday, April 19 at 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. CT on the South Constructing, Stage 5, room S505.
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