Suffolk Superior Court Judge Janet L. Sanders dove deep this morning into the details of a negotiated antitrust settlement agreement between Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office and Partners HealthCare, as Partners seeks to add two hospitals, one on the North Shore and one on the South Shore, to their already expansive statewide network.
Sanders probed lawyers from the AG’s office and Partners about concerns raised by a coalition of competing hospitals and the state’s Health Policy Commission who say that the settlement will do little to control Partners’ already high costs — and their outsized influence in the market. The agreement includes price caps on Partners for six and a half years, and puts some limits on their ability to negotiate their prices with providers for ten years. Shortly before a 1 p.m. recess, Coakley, who is attending the hearing, asked to address the court and defended the settlement.
“My only goal as an attorney general, a constitutional officer, is to do what’s in the best interest of the commonwealth of Massachusetts,” Coakley told the court.
The court will resume session at 3 p.m. It’s unclear whether a final ruling will be made today.
