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Commission approval of order dismissing administrative complaint – The Commission has approved an order dismissing its administrative complaint against Inova Health System Foundation (Inova) and Prince William Health System, Inc. (PWHS) without prejudice, as the respondents publicly announced their mutual decision to terminate the proposed acquisition agreement. Accordingly, the most important elements of the relief sought by the Commission have been accomplished without the need for further administrative litigation.

As detailed in the order – a copy of which can be found on the FTC’s Web site and as a link to this press release – on May 8, 2008, the FTC issued an administrative complaint in this matter, charging that Inova’s acquisition of PWHS, if consummated, would be anticompetitive and in violation of Section 7 of the Clayton Act, as amended. Complaint counsel and the respondents have now filed a joint motion to dismiss the complaint, on the grounds that the respondents abandoned the transaction and withdrew their Hart-Scott-Rodino notification and report forms. The joint motion was served to the Commission by Commissioner J. Thomas Rosch, who was designated as the Administrative Law Judge in this matter.

The FTC vote approving the dismissal of the complaint was 3-0, Commissioner Rosch not participating. (FTC Docket No. 9326; the staff contact is Matthew J. Reilly, Bureau of Competition, 202-326-2350; see press release dated May 9, 2008)

Copies of the documents mentioned in this release are available from the FTC’s Web site at http://www.ftc.gov and from the FTC’s Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580. Call toll-free: 1-877-FTC-HELP.