Comment: Cigna, Humana have limited opportunities to reduce regulatory risk
By Ilana Kowarski, Ben Brody and Flavia Fortes ( December 8, 2023, 17:51 GMT | Comment) -- Health insurers Cigna and Humana, which are reportedly contemplating a $140 billion merger, would have a hard time convincing antitrust regulators that any potential concerns with their deal could be resolved with remedies and that, because their businesses are complementary, the transaction would actually benefit consumers. Concerns around overlaps in pharmacy benefit management, Medicare Advantage insurance plans and home healthcare, in addition to monopsony worries, would likely require a robust remedy package plus finding a suitable divestiture buyer — which has been increasingly difficult to do — to persuade officials to clear transactions in highly concentrated markets. On the back of significant merger challenges involving insurance providers in the past decade, the rationale of industry consolidation will be a hard one to argue to a particularly skeptical enforcer.Health insurers Cigna and Humana, which are reportedly contemplating a $140 billion merger, would have a hard time convincing antitrust regulators that any potential concerns with their deal could be resolved with remedies and that, because their businesses are complementary, the transaction would actually benefit consumers....
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