Vail Health Has Physical Therapy Monopoly, Antitrust Suit Says

Vail Health was hit with a lawsuit July 17 accusing it of monopolizing physical therapy services in Eagle County, Colorado.

The hospital controls more than 70% of physical therapy services in Eagle County’s Vail Valley, according to the complaint filed by Sports Rehab Consulting LLC and its founder, Lindsay Winninger.

According to the complaint, the physical therapy market in Vail Valley has naturally high barriers to entry, including entrenched referral networks and “extremely” expensive real estate. But Vail Health has done more than simply taken advantage of existing market conditions, the suit says.

The hospital has allegedly tried to “lock ...