Private equity investment in the healthcare sector is booming, and Democratic lawmakers are concerned, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.
Private equity firms have been responsible for 56 percent of physician practice acquisitions since 2019, according to an American Hospital Association report, and PE firms are among the fastest-growing acquirers of healthcare groups. Bain & Co. reported private equity firms own at least 130 rural-serving hospitals.
When private equity firms invest in hospitals and physician practices, there are higher costs, according to research done by the University of Chicago and published in BMJ. The researchers examined 55 academic studies on private equity in healthcare and found that investment was associated with a 32 percent increase in costs for payers and patients.