Monopoly Busters Caucus Opposes DOJ Proposed Settlement Greenlighting UnitedHealth’s Roll Up of Home Health and Hospice Services
August 8, 2025 – The Monopoly Busters Caucus Chairs, U.S. Representatives Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Chris Deluzio (PA-17), Pat Ryan (NY-18), and Angie Craig (MN-02), released the following statement opposing the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) proposed settlement allowing UnitedHealth Group’s $3.3 billion acquisition of Amedisys, a provider of home health and hospice care. The divestiture of 164 facilities fails to curb UnitedHealth’s market dominance, threatening higher costs, reduced care access, and limited nurse employment options.
“We are unequivocally opposed to the DOJ’s proposed settlement, which fails to address the severe consequences of allowing UnitedHealth to acquire Amedisys. The healthcare system is already grappling with a crisis of corporate consolidation that drives up costs and limits access to care. Greenlighting UnitedHealth’s roll up of home health and hospice services will supercharge healthcare dysfunction and create more headaches for patients. It further reduces patient access to affordable care, particularly in rural areas, while limiting nurses’ employment options and suppressing wages.
“The DOJ’s proposed settlement won’t stop UnitedHealth from further consolidating its control over the healthcare system. Its weak and flawed remedy includes divesting some overlapping Amedisys health and hospice care providers to a private-equity-owned competitor with a history of predation and profiteering at the expense of the sick. The core issue isn’t just about overlapping markets but UnitedHealth’s broader strategy of taking over various parts of the healthcare chain, from insurance to data systems.
“When a company as powerful as UnitedHealth is allowed to continue buying up smaller healthcare corporations, it leads to a broken system where prices are high, competition is stifled, and patients and healthcare workers are the ones who pay the price. This settlement is a failure by the DOJ to do their job and protect Americans from the dangers of a monopolized healthcare system. It’s a clear signal that the system is rigged in favor of wealthy corporations, not the patients and workers who deserve affordable, quality care.”
Background
In June 2023, UnitedHealth announced its $3.3 billion acquisition of Amedisys, following its 2023 purchase of LHC Group for $5.4 billion, positioning it as one of the largest home health and hospice providers in the U.S. The DOJ, joined by Maryland, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York, sued to block the merger in November 2024, arguing it would eliminate competition between two of the nation’s largest providers, potentially controlling 30 percent or more of home health or hospice markets in eight states and adding nearly 500 locations across 32 states.
The lawsuit emphasized risks to patients through higher costs and reduced care quality, to insurers through diminished negotiating power, and to nurses through fewer employment options and suppressed wages. The proposed settlement, filed August 7, 2025, requires divestiture of 164 facilities across 19 states, representing $528 million in annual revenue, and imposes a $1.1 million penalty on Amedisys for Hart-Scott-Rodino Act violations. The settlement awaits final approval from a Maryland district court after a 60-day public comment period.
Issues: Science, Technology, & Antitrust