The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), joined by attorneys general from Maryland, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York, filed a lawsuit on Nov. 12 to block UnitedHealth Group’s proposed $3.3 billion acquisition of Amedisys Inc., a leading home health and hospice services provider.
According to a press release from the DOJ, the government alleges that the merger would eliminate competition between UnitedHealth and Amedisys, potentially harming patients, insurers, and health care workers in these critical markets.
“We are challenging this merger because home health and hospice patients and their families experiencing some of the most difficult moments of their lives deserve affordable, high quality care options,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said. “The Justice Department will not hesitate to check unlawful consolidation and monopolization in the healthcare market that threatens to harm vulnerable patients, their families, and health care workers.”
The complaint asserts that UnitedHealth and Amedisys are “fierce competitors” in providing home health and hospice services.
Eliminating this competition could lead to higher prices, reduced quality of care, and fewer choices for patients who depend on these services, the government alleges in the complaint.
The DOJ also argues that the merger would negatively impact home health and hospice nurses by reducing competition for their employment, potentially affecting wages and working conditions.
UnitedHealth’s acquired LHC Group Inc. in 2023, a competitor of Amedisys, which the DOJ said already positioned United as one of the largest providers in the industry.
The DOJ claims that the proposed merger with Amedisys would further consolidate the market, making it “presumptively illegal” in hundreds of local markets across 23 states and the District of Columbia.
According to the complaint, this could affect an annual volume of commerce exceeding $1.6 billion in home health care and $300 million in hospice care.
To mitigate competitive concerns, UnitedHealth proposed divesting certain facilities to VitalCaring Group.
The DOJ said this remedy is insufficient. According to the release, VitalCaring has “lower quality scores than either UnitedHealth or Amedisys” and faces financial challenges, including a potential legal judgment approaching half a billion dollars. The DOJ alleges that VitalCaring would not effectively preserve the competition lost by the merger.
The lawsuit also seeks civil penalties against Amedisys for allegedly violating the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. According to the release, Amedisys “falsely certif[ied] compliance” with its obligations by failing to produce millions of documents and not disclosing the deletion of other documents during the merger review process.
In response, Optum, a division of UnitedHealth Group, issued a statement defending the proposed acquisition.
“The Amedisys combination with Optum would be pro-competitive and further innovation, leading to improved patient outcomes and greater access to quality care. We will vigorously defend against the DOJ’s overreaching interpretation of the antitrust laws,” the company stated.
A spokesperson for Amedisys told The Epoch Times in an email, “We remain committed to the transaction, which we believe will create more opportunities to deliver quality, compassionate and value-based care to patients and their families. We look forward to supporting Optum in presenting our case.”
UnitedHealth Group is headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and offers insurance and health care services, reporting $372 billion in revenue in 2023.
Amedisys Inc., based out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is a provider of home health and hospice services, with nurses and health care professionals making 10.6 million patient visits in 2023 and earning $2.2 billion in revenue, according to the DOJ.
