SHELBY LIVINGSTON June 24, 2019
Shareholders
at Centene Corp. and WellCare Health Plans on Monday overwhelmingly approved
the health insurers' plans to merge.
Over 99%
of each companies' shareholders who voted opted to approve the $17 billion deal, which was first announced in
March. Combined, the companies would cover nearly 22 million people in Medicare
Advantage, Medicaid and health insurance exchange plans.
Shareholder
approval is just one hurdle the companies needed to clear before closing their
merger. Centene and WellCare said they are now working to obtain approvals from
insurance regulators in 26 states. They have already nabbed conditional
approvals in four states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky and Missouri,
the companies said. Missouri's approval requires the insurers to divest certain
Medicaid business in the state, but Centene and WellCare didn't disclose the
conditions imposed by the other three states.
The
merger must also be approved by the U.S. Justice Department. In May, the
companies disclosed that federal antitrust regulators asked for more information on their plans to merge,
which the companies said Monday "was not unexpected given the size of the
transaction."
Centene
and WellCare continue to expect the merger to close in the first half of 2020;
they said they do not plan to provide updates about the status of the deal's
regulatory approvals going forward.
"We
are pleased that Centene stockholders overwhelmingly support the recommendation
of the board of directors on the pending combination with WellCare and have
voted in favor of the transaction," Centene CEO Michael Neidorff said in a
news release announcing the voting results. "With the addition of
WellCare, we are creating a combined company that is better able to serve
members and help them achieve better health outcomes."
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