Article Abstract:
The federal government dropped criminal antitrust charges against Arizona dentists Lanoy Aaron Alston, Ronald Walker and Richard Meyer and the professional corporations of Alston and Walker. A plea of no contest by Alston's corporation to one charge of price-fixing was settled by a $5,000 corporate fine and 250 hours of community service by Alston. The Justice Department accused the dentists of conspiracy to raise the co-payments of an Arizona prepaid dental plan. Lawyers said they hope possible future charges of unfair competition will be tried not as criminal but as civil matters.
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Article Abstract:
The Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals did not reinstate price-fixing convictions against three Tucson, AZ, dentists, Aaron Alston, Ronald Walker and Richard Meyer, who asked for higher patients' co-payments in a prepaid health plan. Ruling that the dentists should be tried on civil rather than criminal charges, the appeals court upheld an order for a new trial for Alston and sent back to district court a motion for new trials for the other two defendants. The case demonstrates that health providers can be tried for price-fixing.
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Article Abstract:
Federal and state officials have ordered the dissolution of Physicians Group Inc, an allegedly anticompetitive physician network based in Danville, VA. The FTC and the Virginia attorney general contended that the independent practice association, through activities such as colluding to fix prices, violated federal and state antitrust laws. PGI accepted a consent agreement under which the group will pay $170,000 in fines and disband.
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