private equity

Systems are increasingly stretching a velvet rope, offering “concierge physician service” to an affluent clientele who pay a yearly fee. Critics say the practice exacerbates primary care shortages.

Lina Khan, chair of the FTC, says a recent lawsuit is meant to chill the consolidation of medical groups that results in higher prices for consumers. But it may be too late to curb price hikes.

Increasingly, private equity firms shape staffing decisions at hospital emergency rooms, research shows. One apparent effect: Hiring fewer doctors and more health care practitioners who earn far less.

Private equity groups are cashing in on rising rates of alcohol and drug addiction in the U.S. But they aren’t necessarily investing in centers with the best treatment standards, and they often cut extra services.

While some doctors seem eager for a huge payoff, others are warily watching what happens when private equity firms take charge of orthopedic practices.

Doctors, consumer advocates, and some lawmakers are looking forward to a California lawsuit against private equity-backed Envision Healthcare. The case is part of a multistate effort to enforce rules banning corporate ownership of physician practices.

A months-long examination found gaping holes and expansive gray areas through which banned individuals slip to repeatedly bilk Medicaid, Medicare and other taxpayer-funded federal programs.

Private equity-backed Headlands Research heralded its COVID vaccine trials as a chance to boost participation among diverse populations, then it shuttered multiple sites that conducted them.

Some credit cards advertised by hospitals lure in patients with rosy promises of convenient, low-interest payments on big bills. But interest rates soar if you can't quickly pay off the loan.

Private equity firms have shelled out almost $1 trillion to acquire nearly 8,000 health care businesses across the country - including Florida - in deals almost always hidden from federal regulators.