Mark Bertolini, CEO of Aetna Inc., announced Jan. 12 that the company expect to close its $37 billion acquisition of Humana Inc. this year, though the deal is being reviewed by the U.S. Department of Justice to gauge how it would affect the country’s consumers.
Aetna stated that it expects the regulators assessing the deal to finish their document requests by next month. Aetna will discuss with regulators if it has to alter its operations following the merger.
Both Aetna and Humana offer health plans for individuals and Medicare Advantage plans for seniors. Although Humana’s assets will be claimed by Aetna, the former’s operations will not overlap with the latter’s corporate business.
Another merger worth $47 billion between Anthem Inc. and Cigna Corp is also in the pipeline. The two mergers of four of the country’s largest health insurers have alarmed critics who say the deals could lead to higher prices for customers.
To date 15 state attorneys have joined the Department of Justice’s investigation of both insurance mergers. In response to the criticism, the insurers involved reassured observers that the mergers will give them greater leverage to control mounting healthcare prices.
The country’s antitrust regulators have recently stopped a number of large mergers in a variety of industries. Due to this, investors were concerned whether Aetna’s and Anthem’s acquisitions would be consummated.
