The Untamed Rise Of Hospital Monopolies
The children's hospital wing of the University of Mississippi Medical Center, left, and the neighboring Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson, Miss., merged some functions under an agreement approved in 2014. Hospital mergers and monopolies are increasingly the norm in the United States — which drives prices. Rogelio V. Solis/AP hide caption
The children's hospital wing of the University of Mississippi Medical Center, left, and the neighboring Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson, Miss., merged some functions under an agreement approved in 2014. Hospital mergers and monopolies are increasingly the norm in the United States — which drives prices.
Last month, Michigan's two largest hospital systems, Spectrum Health and Beaumont Health, announced they wanted to become one. The $12.9 billion "megamerger" would create a health industrial complex spanning 22 hospitals, 305 outpatient facilities, and an insurance company. It would employ 64,000 people, making it the largest employer in Michigan. Local newspapers had expected the merger to "sail through" government approval. But now they're not so sure.
