Fresh Details Of Behind-The-Scenes Rift Between Anthem, Cigna Revealed
Unsealed testimony from a court hearing on the companies' proposed merger show that Cigna officials questioned Anthem’s post-acquisition plans, while Anthem executives tried to move forward unilaterally when Cigna ceased cooperating with them on various deal-related issues.
The Wall Street Journal:
Testimony Shows Anthem And Cigna At Odds Over Proposed Merger
Newly unsealed court testimony shows health insurers Anthem Inc. and Cigna Corp. have significant disagreements about their proposed merger, offering fresh details about a rift that is highly unusual for two companies seeking to press ahead with such a deal. A trial on the planned merger began last week after the Justice Department decided to challenge it on antitrust grounds. (Kendall and Wilde Mathews, 11/28)
Bloomberg:
Anthem-Cigna Deal Seen By U.S. Economist As Risk To Competition
Anthem Inc.’s proposed $48 billion merger with Cigna Corp. could give the insurer the power to raise prices for employers both in the 14 states where it does business, as well as across the country, according to a witness in the U.S. government’s lawsuit to block the deal. “The merger will harm competition in the market for national accounts” as well as in states where Anthem operates, said David Dranove, a health-care economics professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in Evanston, Illinois. Dranove told U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson that the combined company could impose a price increase in the range of five percent to 10 percent without losing business simply because there would be one less option available. (Harris, 11/28)
