California blasts Anthem-Cigna merger, calls on feds to block it
Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Modern Healthcare Metrics
MDHC_Logotype_white
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Register
  • Login
  • News
    • This Week's News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition
    • MACPAC thinks HHS needs new measures for Medicaid payment errors
      CMS to repay hospitals for doctor's visits
      Community Health Systems' CFO to retire at end of year
      Chart reviews boost Medicare Advantage payments by $6.7 billion, OIG finds
    • HealthPartners sheds more than 400 jobs across three rounds of cuts
      Kaiser Permanente seeks to address trauma in 25,000 schools by 2023
      KPC Group misses key deadline on Verity hospitals purchase
      Not-for-profit hospitals stabilized by Medicare pay raise, DSH cut delays
    • Michigan Blues makes deals with seven health organizations aiming to bend cost curve
      ACA exchange enrollment lags as deadline nears
      Plan members unlikely to benefit from Supreme Court risk corridor battle
      Joan Budden
      Q&A: Priority Health CEO eager to share best practices with Total Health Care
    • CMS to repay hospitals for doctor's visits
      Capitol Building with pills
      Week Ahead: House to vote on drug bill; SCOTUS hears risk-corridor case
      MedPAC thinks hospice payments are too high
      MedPAC says ambulatory surgical centers don't need a pay raise
    • Analysts to CommonSpirit Health: Show us the savings
      Smallest hospitals saw biggest earnings gains last month
      Sutter Health postpones financial filing
      doctor helping patient stock image Sandoz
      Sponsored Content Provided By Sandoz
      As hospital executives look to reduce costs, biosimilars offer a compelling option
    • astronaut
      Astronauts developed bloodstream issues in space
      Sponsored Content Provided By ABM Healthcare
      Protecting and Maintaining Medical Devices
      human hand robotic hand stock image
      Sponsored Content Provided By Deloitte
      The Health System of the Future: How Digital Health Technology is Transforming Care
      EHR
      EHR vendors most in-use throughout Medicare incentive program
    • Hospitals need more than HCAHPS to measure patient experience, report says
      Promising greater safety, a tiny widget creates chaos for tube feeders
      IHI releases principles for improving patient safety measures
      MRIs of dense breasts find more cancer but also false alarms
    • Community Health Systems' CFO to retire at end of year
      Kaiser Permanente names Gregory Adams CEO
      Google Health hires AliveCor's chief medical officer
      Trinity Health appoints new COO: Ben Carter
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Special Features
    • Best Practices
    • InDepth Special Reports
    • Innovations
    • Chest x-ray from a patient with a vaping-related lung injury
      Vaping-related cases lead to care guidelines from Intermountain
      Arkansas Children’s was a founding partner in Solutions for Patient Safety.
      Children's hospitals collaborate rather than compete on patient safety
      Peer recovery specialists at St. Barnabas Medical Center work with nurse Brenna Zarra.
      Peer recovery helping patients with addiction seek treatment
      UNC Health Care trains staff to treat dementia patients
    • Linda Kenney
      Patient advocate recalls two medical errors that nearly killed her
      Doctors and nurse with patient
      20 years after 'To Err is Human,' hospital care quality measures are still of little use
      Dr. Christine Cassel
      To err is human. That’s still true 20 years later, but some solutions to the problem aren’t helping
      Leah Binder, CEO of the Leapfrog Group, with her grandmother, Estelle Greifer.
      With no national reporting system, volume of medical errors is still unknown
    • Randy Oostra, CEO of ProMedica
      HCR ManorCare deal laid foundation for ProMedica’s growth
      Advanced ICU Care
      Telemedicine helps rural hospitals meet intensivist shortage
      Paging Dr. Robot: Artificial intelligence moves into care
      A child being screened for vision problems using a smartphone.
      App screens kids for eye problems before they can talk
  • Transformation
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • ProMedica doubles down on social needs data analysis
      Amazon taps first pharmacy for Alexa Rx management
      Trump administration unveils new price transparency rules
      A child being screened for vision problems using a smartphone.
      App screens kids for eye problems before they can talk
    • Health systems weigh return on investment as they ramp up tech
      VA dives into artificial intelligence R&D
      Home health to pare down therapy services, up telehealth offerings
      Amazon launches medical transcription service
    • Chest x-ray from a patient with a vaping-related lung injury
      Vaping-related cases lead to care guidelines from Intermountain
      Advanced ICU Care
      Telemedicine helps rural hospitals meet intensivist shortage
      Peer recovery specialists at St. Barnabas Medical Center work with nurse Brenna Zarra.
      Peer recovery helping patients with addiction seek treatment
      UNC Health Care trains staff to treat dementia patients
    • CMS to repay hospitals for doctor's visits
      Chart reviews boost Medicare Advantage payments by $6.7 billion, OIG finds
      Value-based pay still struggles to improve costs, quality
      Hospitals sue HHS over negotiated price disclosure rule
  • Data/Lists
    • Rankings/Lists
    • Data Points
    • Modern Healthcare Metrics
  • Op-Ed
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
    • Randy Oostra, CEO of ProMedica
      HCR ManorCare deal laid foundation for ProMedica’s growth
      Steve Strongwater
      How Atrius Health stayed independent by not shying away from risk
      Why moving the VA to a new EHR was a pivotal decision
      Why AdventHealth's rebrand was more than a name change
    • Terry Shaw
      A diverse and inclusive culture should empower others
      Paving the path to diversity and inclusion
      The next step in healthcare evolution
      Breaking Bias: A road map to boost women and minorities into healthcare leadership
    • Dr. Richard Snyder
      Outdated privacy laws hinder coordinated care, especially in the fight against addiction
      David Dill and Keith Myers
      Healthcare partnerships are a proven path to better care, healthier communities
      Health systems need to devote more resources to caring for the caregivers
      Chip Kahn and Alan Morgan
      Rural healthcare needs innovation, policy changes to survive
    • Letters: Let’s keep humanity in discussions about patient safety
      Hospital with money
      Letters: Let providers set their prices,
 and then publish them all
      Letters: Ambulatory surgery centers aren't getting a break on regulation
      Letters: Rising Medicaid spending isn't a windfall for providers
    • Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      How blockchain could ease frustration with the payment process
      Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      Three steps to better data-sharing for payer and provider CIOs
      Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      Reduce total cost of care: 6 reasons why providers and payers should tackle the challenge together
      Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      Why CIOs went from back-office operators to mission-critical innovators
  • Awards
    • Nominate
    • Award Programs
    • Previous Award Programs
    • Other Award Programs
    • Nominations Open - Top 25 Minority Leaders
      Nominations Open - Health Care Hall of Fame
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top 25 Innovators
    • Top 25 Minority Leaders
    • Top 25 Women Leaders
    • Excellence in Nursing Awards
    • Design Awards
    • Top 25 COOs in Healthcare
    • 100 Top Hospitals
    • ACHE Awards
  • Events
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Webinars
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Healthcare Transformation Summit
    • Critical Connections: Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Workplace of the Future Conference
    • Strategic Marketing Conference
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Top 25 Minority Leaders Gala (2020)
  • MORE +
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Newsletters
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Finance
June 16, 2016 01:00 AM

California blasts Anthem-Cigna merger, calls on feds to block it

Bob Herman
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Jones

    California's top insurance regulator has urged the U.S. Justice Department to kill the pending $53 billion transaction between health insurance titans Anthem and Cigna Corp. over concerns of higher prices and lower quality plans.

    California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, a regulator known not to mince words, said Anthem has made “vague, speculative and impossible-to-verify assertions” related to the benefits of the deal.

    “Anthem and Cigna failed to provide details to support their claim of $2 billion in savings, and they refused to guarantee consumers and businesses will see the benefit of any potential savings in reduced prices,” Jones said in a statement. “More competition in California's consolidated health insurance markets is needed, not less.”

    In a 22-page letter (PDF) to top Justice Department leaders, Jones said the “most extreme” example of where Anthem's deal would lessen competition is the self-insured employer market. Anthem and Cigna control a combined 61% of that market. Many large, self-insured companies have expressed similar concerns over Anthem's acquisition.

    Jones is the first state regulator to take such an aggressive stance toward the pending healthcare mergers. Missouri has labeled Aetna's acquisition of Humana as anti-competitive, but officials there said divesting some health plans could possibly fix some of their concerns.

    Investment bank Leerink Partners took a bearish view of California's opposition, saying Thursday the decision is “material to the broader antitrust scrutiny” even though Jones doesn't have the authority to overturn the merger.

    During public meetings, Jones repeatedly peppered Anthem officials with questions about whether the supposed cost savings resulting from the merger would be passed on to consumers in the form of lower insurance premiums. Anthem executives could not guarantee there would be lower prices, arguing that assumptions surrounding “underlying medical costs” make up most of the premium totals and are out of their control.

    Last September, members of the Senate grilled Anthem CEO Joseph Swedish and Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini about that same issue. Both executives hedged on their answers. Bertolini ultimately said savings would be passed on through the company's products. Swedish gave a more nebulous answer, saying: “We are committed to driving affordability for all of our customers.”

    Anthem said in a statement that it disagreed with Jones' analysis and that California's Department of Managed Health Care holds oversight of the transaction.

    “We do not believe that the California Department of Insurance's opinion is based on the true merits of this transaction,” Anthem's statement read.

    California held up the recent deal between Centene Corp. and Health Net, two large Medicaid insurers, but Jones never advocated for the federal government to kill that deal.

    CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect the individual stance Jones has taken on the merger.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    Sponsored Content
    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up for free enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today

    The weekly magazine, websites, research and databases provide a powerful and all-encompassing industry presence. We help you make informed business decisions and lead your organizations to success.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS
    • Instagram

    Stay Connected

    Join the conversation with Modern Healthcare through our social media pages

    MDHC_Logotype_white
    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2019. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • This Week's News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition
    • Special Features
      • Best Practices
      • InDepth Special Reports
      • Innovations
    • Transformation
      • Patients
      • Operations
      • Care Delivery
      • Payment
    • Data/Lists
      • Rankings/Lists
      • Data Points
      • Modern Healthcare Metrics
    • Op-Ed
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Awards
      • Nominate
      • Award Programs
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top 25 Innovators
        • Top 25 Minority Leaders
        • Top 25 Women Leaders
      • Previous Award Programs
        • Excellence in Nursing Awards
        • Design Awards
        • Top 25 COOs in Healthcare
      • Other Award Programs
        • 100 Top Hospitals
        • ACHE Awards
    • Events
      • Conferences
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Healthcare Transformation Summit
        • Critical Connections: Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
        • Workplace of the Future Conference
        • Strategic Marketing Conference
      • Galas
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Top 25 Minority Leaders Gala (2020)
      • Webinars
    • MORE +
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Newsletters
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing