Anthem

Anthem-Cigna, Aetna-Humana Mergers, Split Regulators

Submitted by Carmen Balber on Sun, 06/26/2016 - 13:09

Last week, the California Department of Managed Health Care approved the merger of Aetna and Humana. The move seemed unlikely after a hearing at which DMHC Director Shelley Rouillard expressed skepticism about how the deal could benefit consumers, noting especially Aetna’s history of serial unreasonable rate hikes ($39 million in excessive rates in just 8 months).

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Is Aetna Lazy, or just Greedy?

Submitted by Carmen Balber on Wed, 04/27/2016 - 12:19

The Department of Insurance held a hearing this morning into the proposed $37 billion merger of health insurance giants Aetna and Humana. Aetna is seeking to expand its market share the lazy way by buying up competitors instead of gaining customers the old-fashioned way: by having the best product. 

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Execs Can't Explain How Consumers Benefit From Anthem-Cigna Merger

Submitted by Carmen Balber on Thu, 03/31/2016 - 13:14

Yesterday in San Francisco, Anthem VP Jay Wagner and Cigna’s Tom Richards refused to commit to price reductions for California consumers if the $54 Billion deal for Anthem to buy Cigna is approved.

In fact, Anthem and Cigna’s executives could not provide any concrete examples of how the Anthem-Cigna merger would benefit consumers at the four-hour hearing into the merger I attended at the Department of Insurance.

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Was Health Net-Centene Merger Approval A One-Off, Or Tone-Setting for Anthem, Aetna Deals?

Submitted by Eddie Barrera on Thu, 03/24/2016 - 11:50
Did California regulators' approval of the Centene and Health Net merger give a preview of how reviews of Anthem's proposed consolidation with Cigna will go down? Let's hope not. Conditions for Health Net were a world away from what regulators will find in the Anthem-Cigna deal. (More on those hearings here.)  
 

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Will CA Regulators Protect Anthem And Cigna Or Consumers?

Submitted by Eddie Barrera on Fri, 03/04/2016 - 16:02
Considering Anthem and Cigna's past behavior, California consumers better prepare themselves for the worst if state regulators don't do the right thing on their proposed merger. 
 

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Capitol Watchdog: Upcoming Meetings to Watch

Submitted by Eddie Barrera on Mon, 02/29/2016 - 11:52

The Department of Managed Health Care will be reviewing Anthem's proposed acquisition of Cigna. While Cigna's footprint is small in California, it continues the rapid consolidation of the health insurance industry.

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