Under North Carolina’s Certificate of Need process, any entity that wants to open a new hospital must genuflect before the state. Cone Health did so in order to gain approval for its proposed hospital in Mebane instead of Duke Health and Novant.
The corrupt local media reported that Cone won the battle because it already had operations in Alamance County. Here is the problem, however. By permitting the same entity to operate two hospitals in the same county, Governor Josh Stein’s administration is intensifying monopoly conditions that are supposed to be illegal.
Why was this certificate really granted? I wonder whether Stein had some other reason to feel affinity for Cone over Duke Health and Novant.
I hope the decision will be appealed.
Cone health is a bully. You raise a good point above Stein’s decision, TC.
Thanks, Fred. This is clearly wrong. Maybe the federal government needs to step in.