Sutter Health agrees to settle antitrust case

In recognition of the effects of concentrated market power, Kaiser Health News reported on an agreement between Sutter Health and California, in which Sutter agreed to pay $575 million to settle an antitrust case. The agreement comes with certain stipulations, such as offering stand-alone pricing where insurers can choose specific hospitals, rather than being required to either consider all of Sutter as in-network, or none of their facilities.

In northern California, Sutter Health is a very large provider, having merged many previously separate healthcare facilities. Such concentration in one company can give that firm tremendous power over its suppliers and customers.