Experts Say Timing Is Right for Cigna to Get Out of Medicare Market

February 2

Capping off months of rumors that such a deal was brewing, The Cigna Group on Jan. 31 said it has agreed to sell its Medicare business to Health Care Service Corp. (HCSC). Industry observers say that given the near-term headwinds Medicare Advantage is facing, it’s wise for Cigna to leave a market in which it struggled to compete and focus on more promising growth opportunities.

The $3.7 billion purchase will transfer nearly 600,000 Medicare Advantage members, more than 450,000 Medicare Supplement lives and 2.5 million Medicare Part D lives from Cigna to HCSC, the companies said. The Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee will also acquire Cigna’s CareAllies business, which offers “management services to support value-based care arrangements” and works with providers to form accountable care organizations and independent physician associations.

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Health Plan Weekly

Leslie Small

Leslie has been working in journalism since 2009 and reporting on the health care industry since 2014. She has covered the many ups and downs of the Affordable Care Act exchanges, the failed health insurer mega-mergers, and hundreds of other storylines spanning subjects such as Medicaid managed care, Medicare Advantage, employer-sponsored insurance, and prescription drug coverage. As the managing editor of Health Plan Weekly and Radar on Drug Benefits, she writes and edits for both publications while overseeing a small team of reporters who also focus on the managed care sector. Before joining AIS Health, she was a senior editor for the e-newsletter Fierce Health Payer, and she started her career as a copy editor at multiple local newspapers. She graduated with a dual degree in journalism and political science from Penn State University.