Cigna Comments On DOJ Position On Proposed Transaction With Anthem

(RTTNews) - Cigna Corporation (CI) issued response to the decision by the U.S. Department of Justice to challenge its proposed merger with Anthem, Inc. (ANTM).

"Today, the Department of Justice announced that it will challenge our proposed merger with Anthem. Given the nature of the concerns raised by the DOJ and the overall status of the regulatory process, which under the terms of the merger agreement was led by Anthem, Cigna is currently evaluating its options consistent with its obligations under the agreement.

In light of the DOJ's decision, Cigna said it does not believe the transaction will close in 2016 and the earliest it could close is 2017, if at all.

Separately, Anthem said that it is fully committed to challenging the DOJ's decision in court but will remain receptive to any efforts to reach a settlement with the DOJ that will allow the company to complete the transaction and deliver its benefits at a critical time when American consumers are seeking high quality healthcare services with greater value at less cost.

Anthem noted that the Department of Justice's action is an unfortunate and misguided step backwards for access to affordable healthcare for America. Access to health insurance saves lives, improves health and reduces the cost of care for all Americans. The DOJ's action is based on a flawed analysis and misunderstanding of the dynamic, competitive and highly regulated healthcare landscape and is inconsistent with the way that the DOJ has reviewed past healthcare transactions.