California joins growing opposition to insurer mergers

In a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the California Department of Insurance (CDI) Thursday urged the DOJ to block the Anthem-Cigna merger in California on the grounds that the merger would substantially lessen competition. The call for a block is a major development given that California has the largest health insurance market in the nation and the CDI is nationally known for its expertise in health insurance regulation. Why California said no The CDI based its conclusion on the information obtained in a March 29 public hearing that included testimony and written comments from the public, patient advocates, experts on health insurance mergers and both the AMA and California Medical Association (CMA). The AMA and CMA jointly filed a comprehensive, evidence-based analysis (log in) explaining why the merger should be blocked. Both organizations also testified in person at the hearing before Insurance Commissioner David Jones, and worked hand-in-hand in developing a survey to determine the effect the merger would have on physician practices and patients. “Based on the merger guidelines and data from California alone,” Jones said in the letter, “the proposed merger of Anthem and Cigna will substantially lessen competition in the most populous state containing four of the 20 largest MSAs [metropolitan statistical areas] in the country.” Premiums would increase Citing the AMA analysis, the CDI found that the Anthem-Cigna merger would likely enh...
Source: AMA Wire - Category: Journals (General) Authors: Source Type: news