Aetna CEO Warned DOJ Of Obamacare Withdrawal If Its Merger Was Blocked

[DonViejo]

Source: Talking Points Memo

Aetna, a major insurer that announced that it was significantly scaling back its Obamacare exchange participation this week, warned in a letter to Department of Justice sent in July that it would pull out of a significant portion of the marketplaces if its proposed merger with Humana was blocked. The letter was obtained and first reported on by the Huffington Post.

The department had asked how its decision whether to block the merger would affect the insurer's presence on the marketplaces. Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini responded that "if the DOJ sues to enjoin the transaction, we will immediately take action to reduce our 2017 exchange footprint." Bertolini said that, with a blocked merger, "we would need to take immediate actions to mitigate public exchange and ACA small group losses."

"It is very likely that we would need to leave the public exchange business entirely and plan for additional business efficiencies should our deal ultimately be blocked," he said. "By contrast, if the deal proceeds without the diverted time and energy associated with litigation, we would explore how to devote a portion of the additional synergies ... to supporting even more public exchange coverage over the next few years."

The Justice Department sued to block the Aetna-Humana merger in mid-July.

-snip-

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/aetna-department-of-justice-letter

[liberal N proud]

1. It's more about revenge politics than profits

[Spitfire of ATJ]

16. For some it's their philosophy....

They'll spend billions fighting to stop a few bucks from going to their lowest paid employees.

[ebbie15644]

2. Just another push to single payer

[Blue Idaho]

3. Extortion... nt.

[William Seger]

6. Yup

Making a business decision that that's what they would do is one thing; communicating it as a threat to influence the outcome of a decision is extortion.

[groundloop]

4. Bastards should be taken to trial for extortion

Yet another reason we need Single Payer.

[villager]

5. "Nice little exchange you got there."

"Be a shame if anything happened to it."

[PatSeg]

10. Exactly

Medical insurance is a racket.

[Botany]

7. Single payer

end of story

I got good insurance through United Health Care* and the exchanges but now they
too are pulling out of the exchanges.


* http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/4/9/1376712/-UnitedHealthcare-myUHC-CEO-Stephen-Hemsley-took-home-66-million-in-2014-102-million-in-2010

$66 million to the CEO last year

[turbinetree]

8. If, I were or you were, to "BLACKMAIL" anyone or company, or the government ------------------

which is you and me and everyone else

WE WOULD BE INDICTED AND CONVICTED AND GONE TO JAIL

"Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini responded that "if the DOJ sues to enjoin the transaction, we will immediately take action to reduce our 2017 exchange footprint." Bertolini said that, with a blocked merger, "we would need to take immediate actions to mitigate public exchange and ACA small group losses."

Single Payer Now ---------------------heath care is not for profit, heath care is a right, now it's being called a "footprint"

[KeepItReal]

9. He's pissed he won't get his post-merger bonus

The real joke is how they said a merger would allow them to EXPAND coverage.

When has a merger ever lead to INCREASED offerings?

They think we're stupid.

[cstanleytech]

20. No, they thought their attempt at extortion would work like Randall Stephenson the CEO for AT&T

tried when he threatened to halt expanding high speed internet because of rules relating to net neutrality.

[mackdaddy]

11. Single Payer "Medicare for All" and let all these bastards go broke!

It is what we should have done in the first place. All this subsidies to private insurance companies stuff was just a big wet kiss on the behind of companies exactly like this.

All these damn mergers across the board still piss me off. The Sherman anti-trust act is still in place as far as I know. Mergers and monopolies always only benefit "we the Oligarchy" and never "we the people".

[Moostache]

12. FUCK THAT!

Pain-profiteers need to be called to the carpet and have their sins made manifest upon them...I say its time to bring back the Stockades and televise these asshats when they are serving their sentence.

There is a great place for this to be carried out too....smack in the middle of Times Square, broadcast to the big screens downtown and simulcast on C-SPAN across the country.

Start with the Pain-Profiteers, then move on to the Banksters and Tax-cheating Hedge Fund Managers, finally, put the criminals in the GOP in as well. I figure if every scumbag Insurance and Banking and Government hack that are currently stealing from or hurting the public interest were sentenced to 48 hours in the stocks, we would have a non-stop supply through the entire next Presidential Administration!

[Auggie]

13. Good. Shoot yourself in the foot, just like the GOP.

More ammunition for the public option.

[relayerbob]

14. Extortion

[mjvpi]

15. The ACA needs to be reframed.

In return for all Americans being required to buy insurance, the insurance companies are required to provide consistent coverage based on certain criteria. This is supposed to bring out the best in free market capitalism. Apples to apples, who will provide the the agreed upon coverage for the best price. Private companies can do it more efficiently so the consumer wins, right? Push the ACA as the free markets last chance to prove that it can come through for the consumers. If the free market can't do that, then a public option is mandated. Legally, we have given them all of the customers. In return, they are expected to provide honest, easy to compare policies that puts the consumer in the drivers seat. Maybe one way that companies can be more competitive is to lower your profit margin and pass it on to consumers.

The ACA is free enterprises' last chance. If these companies can't make a living in this business, then maybe this business is no place for the free market. These companies inability to make it work mandates single payer.

[MichMan]

22. All Americans are not required to buy insurance

Last edited Wed Aug 17, 2016, 11:37 PM - Edit history (1)

Not sticking up for Aetna, but the problem with the ACA from the beginning was that way too few young healthy people have signed up. They would rather pay the fine and pay cash for minor issues or use the ER if they need care just like before the ACA.

The ACA cannot work if the sicker people are the only ones signing up or people are gaming the system.

Perhaps the fines aren't big enough?

[closeupready]

17. Isn't that racketeering?

At any rate, disgusting behavior.

[suffragette]

18. Corporate blackmailing leeches

It's time to send them off on Ark B (see Douglas Adams) and implement Single Payer here.

And while we're at it, regulate drug prices so the sick profiteers can't arbitrarily raise prices on a whim.

[cstanleytech]

19. Sounds like extortion to me. nt

[grahamhgreen]

21. Public option now! Cmon Hillary!