Cory S. Capps, PhD

Cory Capps has 20 years of experience as an economist specializing in industrial organization, empirical methods, and antitrust, with a focus on the healthcare industry. He frequently advises and offers expert testimony on behalf of private firms and government agencies on market power and competition issues in the healthcare sector. He has also testified before the US Senate Antitrust Subcommittee on the competitive implications of vertical mergers in healthcare. Prior to joining Bates White, Dr. Capps was a Staff Economist at the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), where he concentrated on the analysis of competition in healthcare markets, including merger and civil non-merger investigations of health insurers and healthcare providers. Since 2012, Dr. Capps has been named to the Lexology Index (formerly Who’s Who Legal) list of leading competition economists and recognized as a Competition Thought Leader since 2021.

In addition to Dr. Capps’ broad healthcare experience, he has conducted economic analysis for investigations and cases involving a variety of industries such as airlines, software, semiconductors, cable TV and media, and online content providers. Dr. Capps has also provided economic consulting services to corporations on business and strategy issues.

Dr. Capps’ academic career includes professorships at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He has published widely in academic journals, including RAND Journal of Economics; Journal of Economics and Management Strategy; Journal of Health Economics; Antitrust Bulletin; and Health Affairs.

PhD, Economics, Northwestern University

BA, Economics, University of Texas at Austin

• Retained on behalf of defendants in In re Thomas Jefferson University and Albert Einstein Healthcare Network as the Federal Trade Commission sought to enjoin their proposed merger.
• On behalf of the defendant and the intervenor in 21st Century Oncology v. State of Florida and Dr. Michael Katin (US District Court for the Northern District of Florida), submitted expert reports regarding the economic literature on high concentration in the supply of physician services in geographic areas corresponding with or similar to counties.
• On behalf of UnitedHealth’s health services subsidiary Optum in its acquisition of DaVita Medical Group, assisted with presentations and submissions to the Federal Trade Commission and several state Attorney General offices addressing potential horizontal and vertical concerns arising from the proposed transaction.
• Testified before the US Senate Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy, and Consumer Rights on competitive implications of vertical consolidation in the healthcare industry.
• Retained by the Department of Justice to evaluate the competitive effects of Sinclair Broadcast Group's proposed acquisition of Tribune Media.
• Retained on behalf of Emory Healthcare to analyze potential competitive effects of its proposed acquisition of DeKalb Medical Center. 
• Retained on behalf of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center to assess likely competitive effects of its proposed acquisition of High Point Regional Health.
• Serving as the consulting expert to the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission (HPC), an agency created in 2012 to increase value and access in the delivery of healthcare.
• On behalf of Humana in connection with its proposed merger with Aetna, provided support with responses to the Department of Justice's second request, analyzed likely competitive effects and barriers to entry and exit in the sale of Medicare Advantage products, and analyzed likely competitive effects in the sale of individual health insurance on public exchanges.
• Worked on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission to support lead expert in analyzing the competitive effects of a Texas Medical Board rule requiring that physicians meet face to face with patients before offering certain services such as prescribing medication via telemedicine.
• Provided expert analysis on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission in its proceedings seeking to block Cabell Huntington Hospital’s acquisition of St. Mary’s Medical Center in Huntington, WV. 
• Served as testifying expert in relation to Highmark Inc.’s proposed acquisition of Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BCNEPA).
• In In re WellPoint, Inc. Out-of-Network “UCR” Rates Litigation, lead the team that supported the expert work of Dr. Eric M. Gaier on economic issues associated with class certification including ascertainability of the putative classes, identification and measurement of economic harm, and reliability of class-wide damages methodologies on behalf of defendant WellPoint in connection with alleged underpayment of out-of-network benefits associated with alleged violations of Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), California Unfair Competition Law, breach of warranty, and breach of implied covenant of good faith obligations.
• In United States ex rel. Chris McGowan v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, on behalf of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, provided expert analysis in connection with alleged False Claims Act violations concerning Medicare Advantage gain/loss bid margins. 
• Provided detailed analysis on behalf of McKesson Corporation in connection with its $2.1 billion acquisition of PSS World Medical Inc. 
• In Federal Trade Commission v. St. Luke’s Health System, Ltd., led the team that supported the expert work of Professor David Dranove on behalf of the FTC and the State of Idaho. 
• Provided expert support in In In re Delta/AirTran Baggage Fee Antitrust Litigation.
• Provided economic analysis of the likely competitive effects of UnitedHealth Group’s proposed acquisition of XL Health, an innovative provider of Medicare Advantage plans that focus on better coordinating care for seniors with chronic conditions.
• In In the Matter of OSF Healthcare System, a corporation, and Rockford Health System, retained as a testifying expert on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission to analyze the competitive effects of OSF Healthcare System’s proposed acquisition of Rockford Health System in Rockford, Illinois. 
• In United States and State of Texas v. United Regional Health Care System, retained as a testifying expert on behalf of Department of Justice to analyze the competitive effects of United Regional’s exclusionary contracts with health insurers.