Healthcare Providers and Insurers: DOJ Approach in Insurer Mergers and Acquisitions

Summary

This practice note explains how antitrust enforcers, primarily the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ), analyze health-insurer mergers. The DOJ, joined by several states, recently challenged and obtained injunctions blocking two major health-insurer mergers, and for years, the DOJ has required divestitures as a condition of settling other insurer mergers. This practice note explains the legal authorities and framework for antitrust analysis in health-insurer mergers and provides guidance about potential ways to identify and mitigate antitrust risk in these mergers.