ACCC not to oppose Healthscope's proposed acquisition of 14 hospitals from Ramsay
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has decided not to oppose Healthscope Limited's proposed acquisition of 14 hospitals from Ramsay Health Care, ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel, said today.
Eight of the hospitals to be acquired by Healthscope are in Melbourne, four are in Sydney, one is in Brisbane and one is in Perth.*
"The ACCC considered that Healthscope's current hospitals in Sydney and Brisbane are unlikely to be in the same local markets as the ones it proposes to acquire from Ramsay", Mr Samuel said. "The acquisition of a hospital in Perth will be Healthscope's first in that city.
"While Healthscope currently owns hospitals in the local markets in Melbourne in which it proposes to acquire hospitals, the ACCC concluded that competing hospitals in those markets were likely to constitute a sufficient competitive constraint", Mr Samuel said.
The proposed sale of 14 hospitals to Healthscope follows Ramsay's acquisition of Affinity Health in April 2005. At the time Ramsay acquired Affinity, it gave the ACCC an undertaking to divest 14 Affinity hospitals. Thirteen of these are now proposed to be sold to Healthscope. Healthscope is also acquiring one other hospital from Ramsay.
The ACCC has also agreed to Ramsay retaining North West Brisbane Private Hospital, the 14th Affinity hospital it undertook to divest. The ACCC did not consider that this would raise competition concerns as Ramsay does not own any other hospitals in northern Brisbane.
Ramsay is still required to divest five hospitals** pursuant to the undertaking it gave the ACCC in April 2005.
*The following hospitals were approved for sale to Healthscope:
Sydney
The Hills (185 beds), Lady Davidson (128 beds), Nepean Private (123 beds), Prince of Wales (196 beds).
Melbourne
Como (77 beds), Cotham (61 beds), John Fawkner (142 beds), Knox (175 beds), The Melbourne (126 beds), Ringwood (74 beds), Victorian Rehabilitation Centre Eastern Melbourne (55 beds), Victorian Rehabilitation Centre Northern Melbourne (27 beds).
Perth
Mount Hospital (90 beds).
Brisbane
Sunnybank (138 beds).
The 13 hospitals listed above in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth are hospitals Ramsay undertook to divest when it acquired Affinity. Sunnybank is not a hospital Ramsay undertook to divest when it acquired Affinity.
**Ramsay is still to divest the following hospitals:
