LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J., Sept. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- On September 1, 2004, Judge Linda Feinberg, Mercer County Superior Court, rejected a motion to dismiss the Medical Society of New Jersey's suit to stay the acquisition of Oxford Health Plans by United Healthcare. The judge has transferred the case to the Appellate Division, which she believes has jurisdiction of this matter. MSNJ maintains that this action continues the stay of the merger's approval, as provided by New Jersey State statute, N.J.S.A. 17:27A-12(b).
"United Healthcare is misleading patients, physicians and stockholders by proceeding as a merged entity," said MSNJ President S. Manzoor Abidi, MD. "The state of New Jersey is ignoring its own guidelines on the merger's anti- competitive implications and its potential damage to patients. MSNJ will continue to fight this merger because it is the responsible thing to do for a sound healthcare system."
A merged United Healthcare/Oxford would hold nearly a 20% statewide market share, although that figure would approximately double in several counties. During the regulatory approval process, MSNJ produced a report by noted healthcare economist Stephen Foreman PhD, JD, MPA, that the New Jersey healthcare market is already highly concentrated among few companies, with substantial barriers to entry for outside insurers. He also concluded that the merger would likely produce even higher health insurance premiums for employers and financial benefit for the insurance companies' senior management, while patient access to care and physician reimbursement would likely decrease.
Medical Society of New JerseyCONTACT: Matthew Stanton of MBI GluckShaw, for Medical Society of NewJersey, +1-973-735-0528, (cell) +1-973-699-3115
