U.S. lawmakers are taking aim at private equity in health care. Here's what is happening in Canada
U.S. lawmakers are taking aim at private equity in health care. Here's what is happening in Canada
In the U.S., the growing role of private equity firms in health care is coming under heightened scrutiny, with Senate committee hearings and a cross-government public inquiry launched earlier this year.
In the U.S., companies backed by private equity firms manage emergency rooms and anesthesiology practices. Private equity firms are even buying whole hospitals in the U.S.
That's not happening in Canada, but private equity investment firms have bought up facilities outside of hospitals, starting about 25 years ago with long-term care homes. That arrangement didn't show up on the public radar until the COVID-19 pandemic emergency, which hit care homes exceptionally hard.
Canadian researchers have found a disproportionate number of deaths in long-term care residences owned by private equity firms and large chains.
As some provinces welcome private equity in public health care, the firms are increasingly involved in nursing homes and surgery clinics.
Seriously you guys, learn from our mistakes. Get private equity out of healthcare while you still can.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
In the U.S., the growing role of private equity firms in health care is coming under heightened scrutiny, with Senate committee hearings and a cross-government public inquiry launched earlier this year.
"When private equity firms buy out health-care facilities only to slash staffing and cut quality, patients lose out," said Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina M. Khan in a statement.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission and two U.S. departments are looking at whether consolidated ownership may sacrifice patient care and worker safety to generate profits for private-equity investment firms, while costing taxpayers.
The goal is to achieve economies of scale by, for example, purchasing medications in bulk or hiring a bookkeeping firm to manage multiple clinics — creating profits for shareholders.
Also, most provinces don't require facilities to report much on their ownership structure, so the extent of involvement in surgical services is unclear, said Andrew Longhurst, a health policy researcher at Simon Fraser University.
For Dr. Danyaal Raza, a family physician with Unity Health's St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto, it matters who owns long-term care homes in a way that doesn't apply to other businesses.
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