FTC Reaches Settlement in Antitrust Case Against Welsh Carson

The Federal Trade Commission announced a settlement agreement in an antitrust action against the private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson, and Stowe and its affiliates (Welsh Carson).

This administrative FTC case against Welsh Carson was about use of a company in its portfolio, U.S. Anesthesia Partners (USAP), to make anticompetitive acquisitions of anesthesia firms across Texas. This put a damper on competition and drove up prices for anesthesia services across the state.

In the settlement, a proposed consent order will require Welsh Carson to “limit its involvement with USAP and notify the FTC of specified future acquisitions and investments in anesthesia and other hospital-based physician practices.”

The administrative case was brought after Welsh Carson successfully got district court to dismiss the initial September 2023 federal court case. In that case, FTC accused Welsh Carson of using USAP to conduct a “roll-up scheme” in which it bought and merged almost all large anesthesia practices in Texas. The resulting company dominated its market in the state, allowing it to push prices up in the absence of significant competitors. Dismissal was based on Section 13(b) of the FTC Act, on the grounds that the complaint did not allege Welsh Carson was currently violating the law.

It is common for companies to seek escape from FTC lawsuits in this way, but federal court is not the only tool at the FTC’s disposal.

Click here for more details in the FTC announcement of the settlement.