Medical waste company settles antitrust issue

Two major medical waste treatment companies, including one with operations in Springfield, have settled potential antitrust issues with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Missouri and Nebraska attorneys general, giving them the go-ahead for a potential merger.

Stericycle Inc. (Nasdaq: SRCL), which operates a medical waste management facility on West Olive Street as well as operations nationwide and in seven other countries, had previously announced plans to acquire MedServe Inc., which provides similar services, in a $185 million transaction.

Missouri AG Chris Koster joined a lawsuit with the federal justice department and the state of Nebraska, citing the monopoly that a merger would create in much of Missouri.

Under the agreement announced Monday, Stericycle will divest certain assets it will acquire from MedServe in Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma, including transfer stations and several large customer accounts. Stericycle would be prohibited from reacquiring those assets for at least 10 years.

The assets would be sold to a third party to maintain competition; that sale would be subject to DOJ and state approval.

"My office ... concluded that without these divestitures, customers in this region would have been harmed by a reduction in competition for medical waste collection and treatment," Koster said in a news release. "This remedy ensures that the benefits of competition - namely lower prices and better service - will be preserved in Missouri."

The settlement of the suit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, is subject to final approval by the court following a 60-day comment period.

Shares of Stericycle Inc. closed Monday at $54.73, compared to a 52-week range of $44.36 to $57.15.