HMA sued over contract review

Health plans in Hawaii charge that the medical association broke antitrust laws in its analysis of contract provisions.

By Tanya Albert, amednews staff. June 17, 2002.

If a lawsuit alleging antitrust violations against the Hawaii Medical Assn. is allowed to go forward, it could harm the ability of all medical associations to function, the American Medical Association said in a friend-of-the-court brief it filed in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

International Healthcare Management and the Hawaii Health Network sued the medical association and others saying HMA went too far in reviewing and analyzing contracts and violated antitrust laws. HMA says it evaluated specific terms of a physician provider agreement and issued a statement expressing concern about some aspects of the contract.

For example, HMA pointed out the contract did not give physicians a chance to comment on proposed fee changes before they became effective. But HMA said the group did not tell physicians whether they should sign the contract and left the decision to individuals.

In its brief, the AMA said medical associations often review contracts because they have access to the legal and consulting expertise that individual physicians do not.

"The antitrust laws do not prohibit a medical association from presenting its views to a payer regarding a proposed contract or from informing its members of the payer's response," the AMA stated in the brief. [...]

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» Judge favors physicians in Hawaii antitrust case Oct. 1, 2001
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