Elevance Health and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana are pressing pause on $2.5 billion merger plans as state regulators raise concerns about the impact it could have on local competition.
In a joint statement to Fierce Healthcare, the insurers maintained that the deal "remains the right partnership at the right time for the best health outcomes that Louisianians need and deserve" but did acknowledge the political and regulatory pressures.
"One theme continues to emerge, and that is our key stakeholders would like more time for questions to be addressed about the plan of reorganization," they said. "Since we are committed to making sure these questions are answered, BCBSLA and Elevance Health do not believe it is the right time to hold public hearings and a policyholder vote."
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, who's the odds-on favorite to win the governor's seat, has urged the two companies to delay, saying the deal should not move forward until a new governor and insurance commissioner take office, as the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.
“To make one of the biggest changes in the private insurance healthcare market and not give the people who are going to be tasked with overseeing this a seat at the table, I think, is problematic,” Landry said last week, according to the newspaper.
He added that he is not necessarily opposed to the deal going through at some point but that there remain many concerns about the impacts it could have on BCBSLA's members and plan sponsors.
The merger was previously delayed in August to an early October closing after an independent adviser raised several actuarial concerns and legislators pressed executives at the Blues plan for hours over the deal's provisions, though they do not play a role in approving it, according to the report.
The $2.5 billion merger was first announced in January, and, at the time, the companies said joining forces would provide BCBSLA access to additional resources, like Elevance's Carelon subsidiary, that it can use to improve access and care for its 1.9 million members. The two jointly own Healthy Blue, a Medicaid and dual-eligible plan.
In the statement, the partners reiterated that belief and said they "remain committed to refiling the plan of reorganization and acquisition application" and will continue to answer questions and concerns from regulators, employers, members and other stakeholders.
"We believe that our partnership can best preserve BCBSLA as a vibrant, local company long into the future. It’s clear that policyholders, brokers, providers and members trust and appreciate BCBSLA," the insurers said. "That’s why this transaction remains the right step that will ultimately result in more advanced capabilities and services for customers and partners than BCBSLA could develop on its own."