The Justice Department is asking a Maryland federal court judge to appoint William Berlin as compliance monitor as part of the settlement agreement allowing UnitedHealth Group to acquire Amedisys.
UnitedHealth completed its acquisition of the home health and hospice provider in August after reaching a settlement agreement with the Justice Department and attorneys general in four states to resolve an antitrust lawsuit that had temporarily halted the merger.
Under the terms of the settlement, UnitedHealth and Amedisys were required to divest 164 clinics across 19 states. The divested clinics must remain viable and competitive businesses. The companies are also banned from reacquiring any of the divested assets without prior DOJ approval.
As part of the settlement, a monitor is to be appointed to investigate and report on UnitedHealth’s compliance with the agreement.
Mr. Berlin serves as the head of the antitrust and competition practice group for the law firm Hall Render Killian Heath & Lyman. The Justice Department said in a Nov. 3 court filing that he “well qualified” with significant monitoring experience.
“In addition to prior monitoring experience and healthcare antitrust experience, the team that Mr. Berlin identified includes members who have experience representing home health and hospice providers on licensing, regulatory, compliance, and reimbursement issues, and would include a member with experience in healthcare technology,” the Justice Department said in the filing.
UnitedHealth and Amedisys do not oppose the appointment, according to the filing.
