USAP was created in 2012 by private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson and Stowe by acquiring multiple anesthesiology practices and bundling them into a single company. Over the next decade, USAP grew through the same practice, purchasing other groups to create a massive anesthesiology provider in 12 states and Washington, D.C.
Federal regulators have taken issue with that M&A strategy, which is called “roll-ups.” In its suit filed in September that focuses on USAP’s footprint in Texas, the FTC alleges USAP grew into a monopoly in the state before hiking its rates and making price-setting agreements with other independent practices.
