RWJBarnabas Health called off its deal Tuesday to acquire St. Peter’s Healthcare System in New Brunswick, N.J., not even two weeks after the Federal Trade Commission filed suit to block the proposed transaction.
Following the FTC’s move to stop the deal, the Catholic hospital said it will not move forward with the proposed transaction.
According to Saint Peter’s the decision was a mutual one made by the leadership of both organizations.
State officials had approved the merger in May. In approving the transaction under New Jersey’s Community Healthcare Assets Protection Act (“CHAPA”), Superior Court Judge Lisa Vignuolo said at the time, “The applicant has met the requirements necessary…[and the transaction between RWJBH and Saint Peter’s] will serve in the public interest and the public good resulting in the creation, the hopeful creation and anticipated creation, of the premier New Jersey academic medical center which would benefit the citizens of this state.”
However, the FTC said the RWJBarnabas-Saint Peter’s merger would create an entity with a grasp on 50% of the acute care market in Middlesex County. “Saint Peter’s University Hospital is less than 1 mile away from RWJ in New Brunswick, and they are the only two hospitals in that city,” FTC Bureau of Competition Director Holly Vedova said in statement at the time. “There is overwhelming evidence that this acquisition would be bad for patients, because the parties would no longer have to compete to provide the lowest prices and the best quality and service.” Read more.
