NorthShore University Health System will pay $55 million to settle a federal consumer class-action lawsuit, ending a 16-year legal battle over its 2000 merger with another area hospital, according to court documents filed Wednesday.
The agreement, subject to court approval, provides plaintiffs with cash in exchange for the litigation being dropped. The case was scheduled for trial Jan. 9, but the settlement was negotiated last month. NorthShore, now Endeavor Health, didn’t admit to any wrongdoing.
“The resolution of this matter allows us to continue focusing on providing exceptional care,” Endeavor Health said in an emailed statement.
Marvin Miller, the plaintiffs’ attorney, said in court documents that the case could’ve gone on for years, citing potential challenges to any decisions after a trial.
“The settlement is the result of 16 years of very contested litigation and extensive arm’s-length negotiations,” Miller wrote.
Filed in August 2007, the lawsuit claimed the merger between NorthShore and Highland Park Hospital allowed NorthShore to use its “illegal monopolization” of the market to unfairly raise prices on patients.
The complaint was filed shortly after the Federal Trade Commission reaffirmed a prior ruling that the merger was “anticompetitive and in violation of federal antitrust law.” The agency ordered NorthShore and Highland Park to create independent negotiating teams for both inpatient and outpatient services.
After attorneys’ fees and other costs related to the trial, the amount will be distributed proportionally to the plaintiffs, according to court documents.
NorthShore has until Wednesday to submit a list of patients who received inpatient care from the company from Feb. 10, 2000, through Dec. 31, 2015, filings showed.
Patients who paid a fixed co-pay, Medicare or Medicaid users, uninsured patients who didn’t pay their bill and those working for or related to those working for NorthShore aren’t eligible to receive money from the settlement.
