John Arnold antagonized public-employee unions and pharmaceutical firms with campaigns to reform government-funded pensions and bring down high drug prices. Now the Texas billionaire has a new foe: big-hospital monopolies.
A philanthropic organization founded by the ex-energy trader and his wife Laura is providing financial backing to three lawsuits against giant hospital systems in Wisconsin, Connecticut and North Carolina, alleging the systems used their market power to squash competition and illegally inflate prices. The systems say the lawsuits from employers and consumers are baseless.