Judge Rejects Partners Merger Settlement
The Boston Globe reports that Partners HealthCare’s settlement with former Attorney General Martha Coakley that would have cleared the way for its acquisition of three eastern Massachusetts hospitals has been rejected in Suffolk Superior Court.
The state’s largest private employer planned to acquire South Shore Hospital and two Hallmark Health System hospitals in Medford and Melrose. Coakley’s office had reached an agreement with Partners that aimed to keep healthcare costs at bay once the acquisition happened.
Coakley’s successor, Maura Healey, said earlier this week that she had doubts the settlement would achieve those goals. In Healey’s court filing, she said that if the deal was rejected by Judge Janet Sanders, her office was prepared to spoil Partners’s plans on antitrust grounds.
“Should the Court decline to enter the settlement, my office will exercise its right … to void the agreement with Partners,’’ Healey said in the filing. “I anticipate we then would litigate to enjoin Partners’ proposed acquisition of South Shore Hospital and likely use additional time to further evaluate the proposed Hallmark transaction.’’
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