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July 31, 2020   
Health Law Weekly

Legislation Could Give Unprecedented Power to the California AG to Delay or Block Certain Health Care Transactions

  • July 31, 2020
  • J. James Jenkins, Jr. , Bass, Berry & Sims
  • Lauren B. Huddleston , Bass, Berry & Sims

If signed into law, California Senate Bill 977 (SB 977) would significantly expand the California Attorney General’s (AG’s) ability to review and prohibit certain transactions by health care systems, academic medical centers (AMCs), private equity groups, and hedge funds. The pending legislation aims to combat anticompetitive practices and over-consolidation in the health care industry, which can lead to higher prices for consumers. SB 977 would create a process for AG review of certain types of acquisitions and change-of-control transactions, establish a multi-disciplinary Health Policy Advisory Board to analyze health care markets and assist the AG in reviewing the terms of health care transactions, and provide new enforcement tools for the AG to reduce anticompetitive behavior.
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