A federal judge has denied attorney fees to the state of Pennsylvania stemming from its involvement in a case over the proposed merger between Penn State Hershey Medical Center and PinnacleHealth System.

The state, along with the Federal Trade Commission, fought to halt the merger of the two largest health systems in central Pennsylvania until the FTC could complete an administrative review of the deal. Initially, a federal judge ruled against them, but the order was reversed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and the merger was put on hold.

However, in ruling on Pennsylvania's request for attorney fees, U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III of the Middle District of Pennsylvania said the state did not yet prevail in its case.