Current Month (July 2026)
Antitrust Law
DOJ Settles Challenge to OhioHealth Care System’s Insurance Contracting Practices
By Barbara Sicalides, Daniel Anziska, Erin Whaley, and Samantha Weber, Troutman Pepper Locke
The Department of Justice and Ohio’s attorney general settled an antitrust lawsuit against OhioHealth Corp., alleging the system’s anti-steering and gag-rule contract provisions violated Section 1 of the Sherman Act and Ohio’s Valentine Act.
The complaint alleged that OhioHealth, in combination with at least two other competing health care systems, accounts for at least 85 percent of the commercial health insurance business in the Columbus area despite a pleaded market share for OhioHealth of only approximately 35 percent.
The settlement voids and prohibits contract provisions that restrict insurers’ ability to steer volume to other providers or that require prior approval for new health plans, while still permitting OhioHealth to negotiate for most-preferred tier participation on equal terms with competitors.
The settlement signals that health care providers with market shares as low as 30–35 percent should review historically lawful contracting strategies, including anti-steering and most-favored-tier provisions.
For more information, see Business Law Today’s forthcoming full-length article on this subject.
A Cautionary Tale: FTC Obtains $12M Settlement for Hart-Scott-Rodino Act Failure to File Violation
By Barbara Sicalides, Daniel Anziska, and Julian Weiss, Troutman Pepper Locke
The Federal Trade Commission imposed $12 million in penalties against Edwards Lifesciences Corp. and Genesis MedTech Group Ltd. for closing a July 2024 acquisition without required Hart-Scott-Rodino Act premerger notification.
The FTC alleged the parties intentionally structured the deal—including a contemporaneous $25 million purchase of nonvoting securities—to keep the voting securities valuation below the $119.5 million HSR threshold. HSR Act regulations prohibit devices employed to avoid filing obligations, and allocation of purchase price to nonvoting securities solely to avoid an HSR filing is not permitted.
As part of the settlement, Edwards must provide prior HSR notice for certain U.S. acquisitions for five years and maintain an antitrust compliance program.
Sellers, not just buyers, face risk when agreeing to structures that appear to avoid an HSR filing, particularly where the transaction raises substantive antitrust concerns.
For more information, see Business Law Today’s forthcoming full-length article on this subject.
Government Affairs Practice
New York Governor Issues Executive Order Banning Large-Scale Data Centers
By Amy Kellogg and Caiti Anderson, Harter Secrest & Emery LLP
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has issued Executive Order 62, which established a one-year moratorium on large-scale data centers, allowing the state to develop higher standards for data center development. Developing these standards is intended to help support localities as they review the demand for data center construction in their communities, manage increased power demand, and develop policies and procedures for future siting of data centers in New York. It is also intended to mitigate the cost to New Yorkers and ensure environmental quality, including energy, water, air, noise, and lighting use management.
The moratorium applies to discretionary permits, approvals, licenses, and similar authorizations by the Department of Environmental Conservation related to the construction or expansion of data centers that consume 50 megawatts or more of energy. Moreover, it does not apply to approvals at the local level. It exempts facilities that are “primarily used for manufacturing, research (including but not limited to quantum computing research or biomedical research), education (including but not limited to such facilities used by accredited colleges and universities in New York State, to the extent such colleges and universities are engaging in academic research, and the Empire AI consortium, or the institute, as defined in section three hundred sixty-one of the Economic Development Law), or the provision of medical care.”
Per Executive Order 62, the moratorium will be in place until the Department of Public Service (“DPS”) submits a report on the final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (“GEIS”) and associated findings statement. During the development of this GEIS, which will take up to a year, the moratorium will be in place, and the Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) will not issue any discretionary permits not already deemed complete. The moratorium will not apply to projects that were completed by the DEC before July 14, 2026. It is in the DEC’s discretion to determine when an application is complete.
In addition to the moratorium, Executive Order 62 expanded on Governor Hochul’s directive to DPS earlier this year to begin the Energize NY proceeding, which will require data centers to either pay more for their energy or supply their own, and directs Empire State Development (“ESD”) to issue a community investment framework within sixty days, which, according to a press release, will provide guidance to local governments “to help them negotiate community benefits as part of any large-scale data center deal, including local infrastructure improvements, child care investments, and direct financial support for their community.”
While these initiatives are proceeding, Governor Hochul directed DPS to consider creating a New York Grid Acceleration Fund to, as the press release put it, “require data centers to invest in the state’s aging grid infrastructure and energy needs so all New Yorkers benefit from responsible development.” Additionally, Governor Hochul will pursue legislation to repeal sales tax exemptions for “massive” data centers across the state.
