With patients in the US increasingly concerned about the cost of healthcare, the Department of Justice (DOJ) is taking on more health systems for allegedly engaging in anticompetitive practices that can lead to higher prices for care.

The DOJ has filed antitrust suits against two hospital systems so far in 2026—Columbus-based OhioHealth and New York City-based NewYork-Presbyterian—claiming both had been using their market power to negotiate payer contracts that raised healthcare costs for patients.

On March 26, the DOJ announced its lawsuit against NewYork-Presbyterian, alleging the health system was preventing payers from offering health plans that didn’t either include its facilities or put them in favored tiers.

“NewYork-Presbyterian even forbids payers from offering lower copays when patients chose to receive care at NewYork-Presbyterian’s—often lower-priced—rivals,” the DOJ press release stated, adding that the system’s actions limit competition and don’t allow patients to choose more affordable plans.

Angela Karafazli, a spokesperson for NewYork-Presbyterian, said in a statement that the health system believes the lawsuit is “without merit.”

Keep reading here.—MA

As the healthcare industry continues to face provider shortages—potentially short 81,180 physicians by 2035, for example—some hospitals are coming up with unique ways to address staffing issues.

Chicago’s Rush University System for Health is no exception. In March 2024, the hospital system incorporated new technology from LotusOne, which has a platform that tracks hospital staffing for 6,000+ facilities.

This tech led to a 40% decline in staffing spend, health system leadership said in a press release, and helped reduce Rush’s dependence on contract workers. During the Covid-19 pandemic, for instance, temporary staffing was a huge cost to health systems, which generally prefer permanent workers.

“We’ve been able to reduce our overall spend in contingent labor, which is really the highest form of premium labor expense,” BJ Krech, associate VP of talent strategy at Rush, told Healthcare Brew. “That’s probably the biggest benefit.”

See more on the partnership here.—CM

People who see primary care physicians on a regular basis tend to have lower overall health costs, but the number of doctors who provide these services has dwindled in recent years. Over 100 million Americans encountered challenges accessing primary care as of 2023, according to a report from the National Association of Community Health Centers, nearly double the share who faced these barriers in 2014.

Some employers are investing in on- or near-site primary care clinics to address this access gap. Pella Corporation, a window and door manufacturer based out of Pella, Iowa, is one such company.

“Many people actually don’t take advantage and have a primary care physician,” said John Bollman, Pella’s CHRO. “We’re making it convenient, easy for our team members to be able to take advantage” of these services, he told HR Brew.

Keep reading on HR Brew.—CV

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• Regional Clinical Director of Operations at 360 Behavioral Health, Inc
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• Chief Health Officer: Clinical Quality & Strategy at Health Delivery, Inc.