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NYC Hospital Merger Raises Questions for Patients

Posted on Oct 26, 2011

Two major players in the NYC hospital industry expect to partner up in the near future, but controversy abounds over the potential near-monopoly problems which may arise.

Continuum Health Partners and NYU Langone Medical Center have yet to fully define their partnership, but it was confirmed by executives last week. Continuum's budget is $2.5B and NYU's is $2.7B. Continuum operates Beth Israel Medical Centers in Manhattan and Brooklyn, as well as St. Luke’s and Roosevelt Hospitals and the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary in Manhattan. Since St. Vincent's in Greenwich Village closed last year, Manhattan's Beth Israel has been picking up many of their patients and Continuum is experiencing a "moment of strength," allowing it to move ahead with this deal. Continuum represents 26% of all Manhattan inpatients, while NYU operates a smaller share, but its patients come from a wider geographic swath. Each also specializes in different medical sectors.

Medical institutions around the nation have been merging left and right in response to certain regulations of the national health law. Many are concerned that greater centralized market shares will lead to higher costs as more powerful health groups negotiate insurance prices up. This could also hurt smaller competitors. St. Vincent's, for example, closed partially because they were not able to negotiate higher prices. Recently, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has opened hearings on a merger in Ohio, while simultaneously investigating dozens of similar cases.

One patients' advocate expressed concern that lower-income patients might lose options. Today, "NYU is virtually inaccessible" to them, she claims. Concerns arise for nearby hospitals like Bellevue Hospital, which currently serve many low-income patients.

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