35-24-104. Application for exception; contents; notice; joint application; filing fee; confidentiality of trade secret information; extension of time limitations.

(a) An application for approval of an antitrust exception shall include to the extent applicable:

(i) A descriptive title;

(ii) A table of contents;

(iii) Exact name of each party to the application and the address of the principal business office of each party;

(iv) The name, address and telephone number of the persons authorized to receive notices and communications with respect to the application;

(v) A verified statement by a responsible officer of each party to the application attesting to the accuracy and completeness of the enclosed information;

(vi) Background information relating to the proposed arrangement, including:

(A) A description of the proposed arrangement, including a list of any services or products that are the subject of the proposed arrangement;

(B) An identification of any tangential services or products associated with the services or products that are the subject of the proposed arrangement;

(C) A description of the geographic territory involved in the proposed arrangement;

(D) If the geographic territory described under subparagraph (a)(vi)(C) of this section is different from the territory in which the applicants have engaged in the type of business at issue over the last five (5) years, a description of how and why the geographic territory differs;

(E) Identification of all products or services that a substantial share of consumers would consider substitutes for any service or product that is the subject of the proposed arrangement;

(F) Identification of any services or products of the proposed arrangement which are currently being offered, capable of being offered, utilized or capable of being utilized by other providers or purchasers in the geographic territory described under subparagraph (a)(vi)(C) of this section;

(G) Identification of necessary action for other parties to enter the territory described under subparagraph (a)(vi)(C) of this section and compete with the applicant under current market and regulatory conditions;

(H) A description of previous dealings between the parties to the application;

(J) A detailed explanation of the projected effects including expected volume, change in price and increased revenue of the arrangement on the current business of each party;

(K) The present market share of the parties to the application and of others affected by the proposed arrangement and projected market shares after implementation of the proposed arrangement;

(M) An explanation of why the projected levels of costs, access or quality could not be achieved in the existing market without the proposed arrangement.

(vii) A detailed explanation of the effect of the transaction on quality, access, containment of health care costs and the promotion of a comprehensive health care system in the state, which shall to the extent applicable, address the factors specified under W.S. 35-24-111(c) through (g).

(b) In addition to the information required under subsection (a) of this section, the application shall contain a written description of the proposed arrangement for purposes of publication. The applicant shall also provide notice to the public and all interested persons making timely request for advanced notice of applications under this section. The notice shall be approved by the director, shall include sufficient information to advise the public of the nature of the proposed arrangement and enable the public to provide comments concerning the expected results of the arrangements and shall advise that any person may provide written comments to the director, with a copy to the applicant, within thirty (30) days of the date of publication. If the director determines that the submitted notice does not provide sufficient information, the director may after consultation with the applicant and the applicant agrees with the amendment, amend the notice before publication or disapprove the application.

(c) For a proposed arrangement involving multiple parties, one (1) joint application shall be submitted on behalf of all parties to the arrangement.

(d) An application shall be accompanied by a filing fee to be determined by the department based upon the estimated cost of investigating, analyzing, reviewing and processing the application, including any contested case proceeding or appeal, in accordance with this chapter. The fee structure shall include a sliding scale based upon revenue generated by the parties applying for the exception during the preceding year. The annual renewal fee shall not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00). Any unused portion of the fee shall be refunded to the applicant. All fees collected by the department under this subsection and W.S. 35-24-112(d) shall be deposited into a separate account and will be available to reimburse department start-up costs prior to submittal of the application. Expenditures from the account shall be for expenses incurred by the department in administering this chapter.

(e) Trade secret information including information provided as part of the application process and ongoing supervision, shall be protected from disclosure in accordance with W.S. 16-4-203(d)(v). An applicant shall designate the information provided in the application which it considers to be protected from disclosure in accordance with W.S. 16-4-203(d). The director shall deny public access to any information so designated, subject to the right of a person denied inspection to appeal to the district court in accordance with the provisions of W.S. 16-4-203(f). Any information not so designated shall be available for public inspection in accordance with the provisions of W.S. 16-4-201 through 16-4-205.

(f) Upon a showing of good cause, the director may extend any of the time limits prescribed under W.S. 35-24-106 through 35-24-110 at the request of the applicant or another person.