Separate managed-care deals ordered for Illinois hospitals

Though Highland Park (IL) Hospital is owned by Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, the Federal Trade Commission has ordered Evanston and Highland Park Hospital to contract with managed-care plans separately. The FTC said the two parties are required to "establish separate, independent negotiating teams" to allow health insurance companies to "negotiate separately again for those competing hospitals, thus re-injecting competition between them for the business of the [managed-care organizations]."