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| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2003 WWW.USDOJ.GOV/ATR |
AT (202) 616-2777 TDD (202) 514-1888 |
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*** Note: Change in times, dates and locations in bold*** DOJ/FTC HEARINGS TO FOCUS ON HEALTH CARE
Agencies Release Revised Agenda for Several March-April, 2003 Sessions WASHINGTON., D.C. — Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission today released the revised agenda for several upcoming sessions of their joint hearings on health care and competition law and policy. Dates and locations are also provided for the March and April sessions. The first set of hearings, which was previously announced, will be held on February 26-28, 2003, at the FTC Conference Center at 601 New Jersey Avenue, N.W., Washington D.C. The February 28, 9:15 a.m. -12:30 p.m. session, "A Tale of Two Cities," which will focus on Boston, will proceed as originally scheduled. The 2:00 p.m. - 4:15 p.m. session, which was to focus on Little Rock, Arkansas, will not take place due to inclement weather, and will be rescheduled. The second set of hearings, focusing on hospital issues, will be held on March 26-28, 2003 and April 9-11, 2003 at the FTC Conference Center at 601 New Jersey Avenue, N.W., Washington D.C. On March 26, 2003, the hearings will examine product and geographic markets for hospitals. On March 27, 2003, the hearings will focus on single-specialty hospitals and hospital contracting practices. On March 28, 2003, the hearings will examine issues in litigating hospital mergers. On April 9, 2003, the hearings will explore horizontal networks and vertical arrangements. On April 10, 2003, the hearings will examine nonprofit status and joint ventures/joint operating agreements. On April 11, 2003, the hearings will focus on post-merger conduct. The third set of hearings, to be held April 23-25, 2003 and April 30-May 1, 2003, in the Great Hall at Main Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., will focus on issues involving health insurers. An agenda, specific times, and witnesses for each of these hearing days will be announced once such information becomes available. The fourth set of hearings, to be held during late-May, 2003, will focus on quality and consumer information. The fifth set of hearings, to be held during late-June, 2003, will focus on physician issues and non-price competition. A detailed agenda, specific dates and times, witnesses, and locations for each of these hearing days will be announced once such information becomes available, along with details regarding two additional sets of hearings, to be held during July 2003 and September 2003, which will cover a range of subjects. As noted in the Federal Register notice announcing this event, any interested person may submit written comments responsive to any of the topics to be addressed. Comments directed at a particular subject considered during a particular session of hearings must be submitted no later than 45 days after the date of that specific hearing session. Comments on broader subjects within the general scope of the hearings may be submitted at any time after the publication of this notice, but no later than November 28, 2003. Written comments should be submitted in both hard copy and electronic form. Six hard copies of each submission should be addressed to Donald S. Clark, Office of the Secretary, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580. Submissions should be captioned: "Comments Regarding Hearings on Health Care and Competition Law and Policy." Electronic submissions may be sent by electronic mail to healthcare@ftc.gov. Alternatively, electronic submissions may be filed on a 3-1/2 inch computer disk with a label stating the name of the submitter and the name and version of the word processing program used to create the document. Information about the health care hearings is available on the websites for the hearings, http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/hchearing.htm and http://www.ftc.gov/ogc/healthcarehearings/. DOJ MEDIA CONTACT:
DOJ STAFF CONTACT:
FTC MEDIA CONTACT:
FTC STAFF CONTACT:
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