The Justice Department, alongside Attorneys General from Maryland, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York, has filed a civil antitrust lawsuit to block UnitedHealth Group’s $3.3 billion acquisition of Amedisys, a rival home health and hospice provider. Filed in the District of Maryland, the lawsuit alleges the merger would eliminate vital competition between two of the largest home health and hospice service providers in the U.S., harming patients, insurers, and healthcare workers. The complaint emphasizes that the merger would create illegal monopolies across hundreds of markets, with a combined annual volume exceeding $1.6 billion in home health care and $300 million in hospice care, affecting thousands of nurses and over 200,000 patients annually. Proposed divestitures to VitalCaring Group, a company facing financial and operational challenges, fail to address these competitive concerns adequately.
UnitedHealth, a vertically integrated healthcare giant generating $372 billion in revenue in 2023, acquired competitor LHC Group in 2023. Amedisys, a leading home health and hospice services provider, reported $2.2 billion in revenue in 2023 from over 10 million patient visits. The Justice Department also seeks penalties against Amedisys for violations of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, alleging failure to disclose critical documents. This case underscores the DOJ’s focus on preventing consolidation in healthcare markets to protect patients and maintain fair competition.
