White & Chase and Cravath Advise $54.2 Billion Health Insurer Acquisition

Anthem Inc. is buying rival Cigna Corp. for $48 billion in a deal that would create the nation's largest health insurer by enrollment, covering about 53 million U.S. patients.

In just three weeks, starting with Aetna's $35 billion bid for Humana Inc. on July 3, the landscape of U.S. health care has been altered in a buyout frenzy that could transform five massive U.S. health companies into just three, including UnitedHealth Group (NYLJ, July 9).

Larger insurers have negotiating power to squeeze better rates from drug companies and healthcare providers. But the wave of consolidation could lead to fewer choices for consumers in certain markets. Regulators scrutinizing the two mega-deals will be trying to assess whether these combined companies would have so much power that they could dominate markets and drive already-high healthcare costs even higher.