Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana has hit the pause button on its plan to sell to Elevance Health. This is the second time within a year that the $2.5 billion deal has been halted.
The announcement came late on Fat Tuesday and on the eve of a Louisiana insurance regulatory hearing that was slated to discuss the controversial sale and was subsequently canceled.
In a news release, Blue Cross indicates a desire to keep the deal alive while acknowledging “it is clear that our stakeholders need more time and information to understand the benefits of the changes we have proposed. This is why we have decided to again pause the process in our proposed transaction with Elevance Health.”
In addition to the Louisiana Department of Insurance canceling its hearing, Blue Cross is also canceling policyholder meetings and votes related to the process and withdrawing the sale filing with the state.
Last year, the office of the Louisiana attorney general opened an investigation into the deal, and current Attorney General Liz Murrill sent a letter to the state’s insurance commissioner questioning the deal’s effect on premiums and whether company officials are accurately representing the sale’s impact.
“Modifying the plan of reorganization falls outside the purview of my review,” Murrill wrote. “However, I am deeply concerned by the Senate report following the February 5 committee meeting, which noted the financial interests of BCBS board members in the transaction on which they voted and the bias favoring the transaction contained in information being distributed to policyholders. The law requires an honest assessment of the benefits and risks of the transaction (and of no transaction), not a sales pitch.”
Elevance also issued a statement echoing Blue Cross’ desire to continue exploring the partnership, though offered no details about a restructured deal or new timeline.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana serves 1.9 million customers in the state.
Evan joined TriMed in 2011, writing primarily for Health Imaging. Prior to diving into medical journalism, Evan worked for the Nine Network of Public Media in St. Louis. He also has worked in public relations and education. Evan studied journalism at the University of Missouri, with an emphasis on broadcast media.