Court rejects North Texas Specialty Physicians’ appeal of FTC ruling

A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling by the Federal Trade Commission that North Texas Specialty Physicians, a group of about 600 doctors, engaged in unlawful price-fixing in its negotiations with various health insurers. In September 2003, the FTC issued a complaint accusing the doctors group of anti-competitive practices that raised the price of healthcare in the region. The commission argued that the North Texas doctors had broken the law by negotiating contracts collectively and by inappropriately polling participating physicians ahead of time about what fees they deemed acceptable.