Aetna Inc. executives on Monday jousted with Justice Department lawyers over the health insurer’s reasons for sharply cutting its participation in Affordable Care Act exchanges, a potentially important issue in the antitrust trial over Aetna’s proposed merger with Humana Inc.
The Justice Department, which sued in July to block the $34 billion Aetna-Humana combination, argues the deal would suppress competition for private Medicare plans, as well as the sale of individual insurance policies on ACA exchanges in 17 counties covering three states: Florida, Georgia and Missouri.
Aetna in August pulled out of exchanges in 11 states, including the areas covered by the Justice Department lawsuit. The government argues Aetna withdrew solely in an attempt to avoid those antitrust claims, but the insurer says its decision wasn’t litigation-driven.
Aetna Chief Executive Mark T. Bertolini, in testimony that began late Friday and resumed Monday, said the company pulled back from its exchange presence for business reasons, namely accelerating financial losses that could reach $350 million for 2016. Three other high-ranking Aetna executives took the witness stand and said that if the decision had been up to them they would have withdrawn Aetna from the exchange business entirely. That business “has continued to deteriorate as the year has progressed,” said Jonathan Mayhew, who heads Aetna’s exchange business.
Date: December 12, 2016