On May 6, 2024, Modern Healthcare quoted Ari Markenson regarding new state regulatory efforts that will help guard healthcare services against private equity healthcare deals.
According to the article, more than a dozen states have passed laws bolstering healthcare merger and acquisition notification and financial disclosure requirements, in some cases requiring clearance from state attorneys general when corporate investors are involved. New legislation is poised to further limit healthcare mergers and acquisitions, particularly smaller deals that fall outside of the Federal Trade Commission’s review process. The spate of new laws has spurred a debate over the potential pitfalls and merits of private equity, hedge funds, and real estate investment trusts in healthcare.
Asked what additional oversight might mean for the industry, Markenson told Modern Healthcare, “Sustainable healthcare requires a delicate balance between investment and patient care, and increased oversight can help maintain this balance,” Not all agree that stricter oversight will help. Focusing on piecemeal state laws distracts from systemic cost and quality issues in healthcare.
“This is not the answer to fixing the problems in the healthcare system,” Markenson further explained. “There are a lot of private investors that are doing some really amazing things in healthcare. The government isn’t necessarily putting in the capital to make structural changes to our system, and stopping private money from doing that doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense.”