A large merger of private physicians in central Idaho has been undone by a federal appeals court on grounds it would limit health care competition. Nampa Idaho's only hospital, Saint Alphonsus, and the state of Idaho filed suit three years ago against the largest doctors' group in the area, Saltzer Medical Group with 16 primary care doctors.
When the Saltzer group hooked up with Saint Lukes hospital of Boise, which operated an emergency clinic in Nampa, Saint Alphonsus officials realized the hospital would lose patients - and income - to the new partnership.
Although a trial judge found that the Saltzer group intended to improve health care in the area by moving away from the traditional fee-for-service payment model, he also ruled that the Saltzer group would have a virtual monopoly on the adult primary care market. Thus, the merger violated anti-trust laws and IDaho's Competition Act.
Appeals court judges were reluctant to challenge the idea that the merger would improve health practices and delivery, but they also cited an aphorism attributed to Yogi Berra - it's tough to make predictions, especially about the future.
In the end, they ruled the saint luke's merger with the doctors' group was anti-competitive and could lead to higher health care costs in the region.
The case attracted the interest of dozens of state attorneys general, including Washington's Robert Ferguson.
