Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill in California that would increase scrutiny over private equity firms and hedge funds acquiring physician practices, Radiology Business reported Oct. 1.
Mr. Newsom vetoed the bill on Sept. 28. The bill would have given California's attorney general power to set conditions on the acquisition of physician groups and healthcare entities in cases where authorities believed a PE firm or hedge fund investment would have "anticompetitive effects or negatively impact the access or availability of healthcare services to the community," according to the report.
In his veto letter, Mr. Newsom said that the Office of Health Care Affordability was established in 2022 to review and evaluate healthcare transactions and determine their impact on market competition. The office cannot block proposed transactions, but it can coordinate with other entities to more deeply scrutinize them.
Assembly Member Jim Wood sponsored the bill, alongside Attorney General Rob Bonta, who expressed disappointment in the veto decision Sept. 30. Mr. Wood noted that the annual private equity investment in healthcare hit $83 billion three years ago, with $20 billion spent in California alone.