Much of that could change under President-elect Donald Trump. Here are five things physicians need to know about what the FTC could look like under a new administration:
1. Under the Trump administration, the FTC will likely loosen scrutiny on mergers and acquisitions, according to Bloomberg Law. The FTC has killed a number of corporate mergers over the last four years, including a five-hospital sale between HCA Healthcare and Steward Health Care System in June 2022.
2. The FTC’s attempt to ban worker noncompete contracts are “in doubt,” according to Bloomberg Law. The ban was struck down in August by a federal judge in Texas, and Republicans within the FTC oppose the rule.
3. It is likely that Mr. Trump will appoint a new FTC chair after he takes office. Lina Khan, chair of the FTC, worked closely with Mr. Biden’s anti-trust agenda throughout his administration, according to The New York Times.
4. If Ms. Khan does resign after Mr. Trump is inaugurated, the commission will be headed by two Democratic and two Republican commissioners until a fifth member is confirmed, according to Quartz. It took six months to confirm Ms. Khan under Mr. Biden’s administration. If there is a lack of a tie-breaking vote, there could be delays in action by the FTC.
5. Possible candidates for the fifth committee member include: Gail Slater, an aide to Vice President-elect J.D. Vance and former executive of Roku and Fox Corp.; Mark Meador, a partner at antitrust law firm Kressin Meador and former FTC and Justice Department antitrust official; Todd Zywicki, a professor of law at George Mason University and Alex Okuliar, a partner at Morrison Foerster who helped lead the antitrust inquiry into Google under the former Trump administration, according to Quartz.
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