Anthem Says Disappointed By U.S. Court's Decision To Block Anthem-Cigna Deal

(RTTNews) - Anthem Inc. (ANTM) said Thursday that it is significantly disappointed on the decision of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, which granted the Department of Justice's request to block Anthem's proposed acquisition of Cigna Corp. (CI).

Anthem said it promptly intends to file a notice of appeal and request an expedited hearing of its appeal to reverse the Court's decision so that Anthem may move forward with the merger, which was approved by over 99% of the votes cast by the shareholders of both companies.

"Anthem is significantly disappointed by the decision as combining Anthem and Cigna would positively impact the health and well-being of millions of Americans - saving them more than $2 billion in medical costs annually... Moving forward, Anthem will continue to work aggressively to complete the transaction while remaining focused on serving as America's valued health partner, delivering superior health care services to our approximately 40 million members with greater value at less cost," said Joseph R. Swedish, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Anthem.

Earlier today, Cigna noted that it intends to carefully review the opinion and evaluate its options in accordance with the merger agreement. Cigna remains focused on helping to improve health care by delivering value to customers and clients and expanding our business around the world.

On Wednesday, A federal judge blocked Anthem's $48 billion deal to buy Cigna Corp., ruling the deal between the insurance giants can't go forward because it would illegally hurt competition.