$50 million lawsuit against Palmetto Health nixed by federal judge

A federal judge has dismissed 11 federal antitrust claims against Columbia hospital giant Palmetto Health and approved the sending of nine other claims to state court.

“The remaining state law claims should be dismissed without prejudice so that they may be refiled in state court and presided over by a state official,” wrote Judge Joe Anderson in an order released Friday.

Anderson’s order ends the federal part of a $50 million lawsuit against Palmetto Health brought last August by Sisters of Charity, the foundation that once owned the former Providence Hospital of Columbia.

In the lawsuit, Sisters of Charity alleged that Palmetto Health “secretly and illegally conspired” to take from Providence the immensely profitable Moore Clinic, an orthopedics practice with 330 employees. Orthopedics is one of modern medicine’s biggest money makers.

The alleged conspiracy took place several years ago when Providence was in the process of being bought by a hospital chain, LifePoint. After losing Moore Clinic to Palmetto Health, Providence had to accept a $50 million reduced purchase price from LifePoint, the Sisters of Charity lawsuit alleged.

A statement issued Friday afternoon by Palmetto Health hailed Anderson’s decision and correctly noted, “All federal antitrust counts brought against Palmetto Health were dismissed in their entirety.”

At this point, several things could happen: the lawsuit could be settled out of court, Sisters of Charity could drop the matter, the group could file a new lawsuit in state court, or appeal Judge Anderson’s decision to the U.S. fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Sisters of Charity lawyer John Moylan said in a statement, "This is one step in a very long process. We are in the early stages of this litigation."

This story was originally published February 24, 2017 at 6:23 PM with the headline "$$50 million lawsuit against Palmetto Health nixed by federal judge."