Prime Healthcare Services, the parent company of Reno, Nev.-based Mary's Health Network, has filed a lawsuit against Reno-based Renown Health alleging monopolistic practices for cardiology services, according to a Dec. 11 report from the Reno Gazette Journal.
The lawsuit, filed Dec. 7, claims that Renown improperly ended an agreement to provide Saint Mary's access to cardiology specialists working with Renown.
The short notice for the termination left Saint Mary's "without an essential part of its cardiovascular program," according to the lawsuit.
This is not the first time the two groups have been entangled in legal action over cardiology services. In 2010 and 2011, Renown acquired two Reno-based cardiology practices, which accounted for nearly all of the cardiologists in the area.
In 2012, the Federal Trade Commission and the Nevada attorney general's office filed a complaint against Renown that the health system eventually settled with the agency and attorney general.
The settlement did not end the dispute between Renown and Saint Mary's, however. In 2013, Saint Mary's and eight cardiologists who worked with Saint Mary's sued Renown for refusing to provide information needed to contact and treat the cardiologists' own patients.
Both sides agreed to settle the case in 2015.
Becker's has reached out to Renown Health for comment.
"Renown Health’s Cardiothoracic Surgery Program has decided not to renew an expiring contract with St. Mary’s/Prime Healthcare, aligning with our commitment to our clinicians and to enhance patient care. As the region’s sole not-for-profit healthcare system, this decision reflects our unwavering dedication to maintaining the highest standards in healthcare while fostering a supportive environment for our healthcare professionals. We remain steadfast in our mission to provide exceptional and compassionate care to our community. Experienced cardiothoracic surgeons (Athan Roumanas, MD; Kimball Knackstedt, DO; and Katherine Jones, MD) will continue to offer assessment, diagnosis, complex surgery, and post-surgical care exclusively to patients at Renown’s Institute for Heart & Vascular Health and at Renown Regional Medical Center," a Renown spokesperson told 2News.