(a)The office shall monitor cost trends, including conducting research and studies on the health care market, including, but not limited to, the impact of consolidation, market power, venture capital activity, profit margins, and other market failures on competition, prices, access, quality, and equity. In a manner supportive of the efforts of the Attorney General, the Department of Managed Health Care, and the Department of Insurance, as appropriate, the office shall promote competitive health care markets by examining mergers, acquisitions, corporate affiliations, or other transactions that entail a material change to ownership, operations, or governance structure involving health care service plans, health insurers, hospitals or hospital
systems, physician organizations, provider
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(a)
The office shall monitor cost trends, including conducting research and studies on the health care market, including, but not limited to, the impact of consolidation, market power, venture capital activity, profit margins, and other market failures on competition, prices, access, quality, and equity. In a manner supportive of the efforts of the Attorney General, the Department of Managed Health Care, and the Department of Insurance, as appropriate, the office shall promote competitive health care markets by examining mergers, acquisitions, corporate affiliations, or other transactions that entail a material change to ownership, operations, or governance structure involving health care service plans, health insurers, hospitals or hospital
systems, physician organizations, providers, pharmacy benefit managers, and other health care entities. The office shall prospectively analyze those transactions likely to have significant effects, seek input from the parties and the public, and report on the anticipated impacts to the health care market. The role of the office is to collect and report information that is informative to the public.
(b)
This article does not apply to an exempted provider unless that provider is being acquired by, or affiliating with, an entity that is not an exempted provider. If an entity that is not an exempted provider is acquiring or affiliating with an exempted provider, the entity that is not an exempted provider shall meet the requirements of this article.
(c)
(1)
A
health care entity shall provide the office with written notice of agreements or transactions that do either of the following:
(A)
Sell, transfer, lease, exchange, option, encumber, convey, or otherwise dispose of a material amount of its assets to one or more entities.
(B)
Transfer control, responsibility, or governance of a material amount of the assets or operations of the health care entity to one or more entities.
(2)
(A)
A noticing entity shall provide the office with written notice of agreements or transactions between the noticing entity and a health care entity or management services organization, or an entity that owns or controls the health care entity or management services organization
that do either of the following:
(i)
Sell, transfer, lease, exchange, option, encumber, convey, or otherwise dispose of a material amount of the health care entity’s or management services organization’s assets to one or more entities.
(ii)
Transfer control, responsibility, or governance of a material amount of the assets or operations of the health care entity or management services organization to one or more entities.
(B)
In addition to reporting obligations under subparagraph (A), a management services organization shall provide the office
with written notice of any agreement or transaction that is described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (A) between the management services organization and any other entity.
(C)
The office shall adopt regulations to eliminate duplicative reporting if a noticing entity or health care entity is required to submit notice to the office under more than one provision in subdivision (c).
(3)
Written notice pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be provided to the office at least 90 days prior to entering into the agreement or transaction. If the conditions in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 127507.2 apply, the office shall make the notice of material change publicly available, including all information and
materials submitted to the office for review with regard to the material change.
(4)
The office shall adopt regulations for proposed material changes that warrant a notification, establish appropriate fees, and consider appropriate thresholds, including, but not limited to, annual gross and net revenues and market share in a given service or region.
(d)
The requirement to provide notice of a material change pursuant to subdivision (c) does not apply to any of the following:
(1)
Agreements or transactions involving health care service plans that are subject to review by the Director of the Department of Managed Health Care for cost impact or market consolidation under the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan
Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of Division 2).
(2)
Agreements or transactions involving health insurers that are subject to review by the Insurance Commissioner under Article 14 (commencing with Section 1091) of Chapter 1 of Part 2, of Division 1 of the Insurance Code.
(3)
Agreements or transactions where a county is purchasing, acquiring, or taking control, responsibility, or governance of an entity to ensure continued access in that county.
(4)
Agreements or transactions involving nonprofit corporations that are subject to review by the Attorney General under Article 2 (commencing with Section 5914) of Chapter 9 of Part 2, Division 2 of Title 1 of the Corporations Code.
(e)
Agreements or transactions exempted under subdivision (d) from the requirement to provide a notice of material change may be referred to the office for a cost and market impact review by the reviewing authority.
(f)
This article does not limit the Attorney General’s review of the conversion or restructuring of charitable trusts held by a nonprofit health facility or by an affiliated nonprofit health system or the Attorney General’s review of any health care agreement or transaction under any state or federal law.
(g)
This article does not narrow, abrogate, or otherwise alter the corporate practice of medicine doctrine, which expressly prohibits the practice of medicine or control of medicine, medical corporations,
medical partnerships, or physician practices by entities or individuals other than licensed physicians and surgeons.
(h)
For purposes of this article, “noticing entity” includes all of the following:
(1)
A private equity group or hedge fund.
(2)
A newly created business entity created for the purpose of entering into agreements or transactions with a health care entity.
(3)
A management services organization.
(4)
An entity that owns, operates, or controls a provider, regardless of whether the provider is currently operating, providing health care services, or has a pending or suspended
license.