The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Friday said in a court filing that it will suspend its challenge of Amgen's $27.8 billion purchase of Horizon Therapeutics, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from the District of Columbia and Texas.

• District of Columbia: FTC on Friday said in a court filing that it will suspend its challenge of Amgen's $27.8 billion purchase of Horizon Therapeutics, which will give FTC time to consider a settlement that would allow the deal to close with certain conditions. FTC has argued in its suit that Amgen's acquisition of Horizon would prevent other medicines from competing with Horizon's Tepezza, a treatment approved by FDA for moderate to severe thyroid eye disease, and Krystexxa, a gout therapy. FTC has now decided to pause the case until Sept. 18, allowing the agency's three commissioners to determine whether it should settle the case. Amgen on Friday said it will renounce and future sales tactics that FTC deems illegal. "We would be pleased if our commitment were honored instead of going through a lengthy court process," Amgen said. "That said, we are prepared to demonstrate to the courts that there is no legal or factual reason to prohibit this acquisition of Horizon and to finally bring medicines to more patients suffering from rare diseases." (Michaels, Wall Street Journal, 8/26)
• District of Columbia: Documents and interviews from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) obtained by the Washington Post show the agency has been investigating almost 5,000 pilots who are suspected of falsifying medical records to conceal they were receiving benefits for mental health disorders and other conditions that would potentially make them unfit to fly. Specifically, the pilots being investigated are military veterans who informed FAA they're healthy enough to fly but neglected to report they were collecting veterans benefits for disabilities that could make them ineligible to fly, as they are legally required to do. FAA spokesperson Matthew Lehner in a statement said the agency has been investigating around 4,800 pilots "who might have submitted incorrect or false information as part of their medical applications." Lehner added the agency has closed around half of those cases, and around 60 pilots who "posed a clear danger to aviation safety" have been ordered to stop flying on an emergency basis while their records are being reviewed. (Rein/Whitlock, Washington Post, 8/27)
• Texas: The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas has ruled against certain regulations implementing the No Surprises Act. In the case, the Texas Medical Association alongside multiple air ambulance providers and supported by the American Hospital Association, argued the methodology for how insurers calculate qualifying payment amounts unfairly tips the arbitration process in the favor of the insurer. The court ruled that several regulatory provisions related to the QPA calculation would be disallowed, including provisions that could enable insurers to include contracted rates for services providers haven't provided in the calculation of QPAs. (AHA News, 8/25)