Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/568709
47 PAYER ISSUES PAYER ISSUES AHA, AHIP Square Off Over Insurer Mergers By Molly Gamble T he American Hospital Asso- ciation submitted a letter to the Department of Justice in August requesting vigorous review of the proposed Anthem-Cigna and Humana-Aetna deals. e AHA stated that proposed mergers between four of the five largest U.S. health insurance companies present "fundamental- ly different" antitrust issues than hospital mergers. "e size, scope and enduring impact of the announced deals far surpass any hospital merger," Melinda Reid Hatton, senior vice president and general counsel for AHA, wrote to the DOJ's antitrust division. Attached to her letter was an analysis of the proposed merg- er between Anthem and Cigna. Because "the size and scope of the proposed acquisitions is so enor- mous," the AHA is addressing each deal separately in letters. She said mergers and acqui- sitions in the hospital sector are driven by the need to take on risk, offer integrated care and/ or find financial stability. Despite these pressures, growth in hospi- tal spending has reached historic lows, she said. "[Insurers] will no doubt argue that the transaction would pro- duce offsetting efficiencies, but this is not likely," Ms. Reid Hatton wrote. "And it is even less likely that the combined companies would 'pass through' any cost sav- ings to consumers. As numerous economists have found, demand for health insurance is inelastic, which reduces the incentive for large health insurance companies to pass through cost savings." America's Health Insurance Plans responded to the AHA, according to e Hill, arguing that insurers want to maintain afford- able coverage by negotiating lower medical bills and shiing to more value-based reimbursement mod- els. e trade group also said hos- pital consolidation — not insurer consolidation — is undermining progress toward high-value care. "e drive to deliver better val- ue for patients is being undercut by years of anticompetitive hospi- tal consolidation that [has] forced patients to pay higher healthcare costs, increased premiums and limited their healthcare choices," Beth Leonard, executive vice pres- ident of public affairs for AHIP, said in a statement. n Becker's Hospital Review 4th Annual CEO Roundtable + CFO/CIO Roundtable Delos "Toby" Cosgrove, MD - President & CEO CLEVELAND CLINIC Barry S. Arbuckle, PhD - President & CEO MEMORIALCARE HEALTH SYSTEM Steven I. Goldstein - President & CEO STRONG MEMORIAL HOSPITAL A. Hugh Greene, FACHE - President & CEO BAPTIST HEALTH William B. Leaver - President & CEO UNITYPOINT HEALTH And the list goes on and on... WITH 165+ SPEAKERS , 45 LEADING HOSPITAL & HEALTH SYSTEM CEOS & 38 CFOS & CIOS November 18-19, 2015 Ritz Carlton, Chicago For more info, visit www.beckershospitalreview. com/november-ceo- roundtable-conference/