“Big data” has become one of the hottest subjects for antitrust enforcers around the globe. There is concern that large tech companies are amassing vast amounts of data and will use that data to entrench their dominant...more
In his 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump frequently expressed populist themes, rhetorically criticizing “big business” and “special interests,” and signaled an activist antitrust agenda with his comment in October 2016...more
Concluding one of the longest merger reviews in history, on September 4, Judge Richard Leon, District Judge for the District of Columbia, issued his final ruling in United States v. CVS Health, approving the proposed...more
Google will pay a “record $170 million fine and make changes to protect children’s privacy on YouTube” as part of a deal it reached this week with the FTC and NY AG’s office, both of whom had accused YouTube of “violating the...more
On June 4 – 5, 2019, Judge Richard J. Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia held an extraordinary and unprecedented evidentiary hearing to decide whether to enter the proposed Final Judgment in U.S. v....more
The District of Columbia District Court has again deferred its decision regarding whether to approve the merger between CVS Health and Aetna, a $69 billion transaction that was first announced back in December 2017. ...more
Pinterest has set a price range of $15 to $17 a share for its IPO roadshow today that “will value the company below its last private-market peg of $12 billion.” The company also plans to attempt “the sunset version of...more
Though the merger of CVS and Aetna received conditional approval from the DOJ’s Antitrust Division back in October, the road to final approval has been rocky as the court’s exasperation with the parties appears to grow....more
After two hearings over the last week, Judge Richard J. Leon of the District Court for the District of Columbia seems to have put the brakes on the well-publicized merger between health care giants CVS and Aetna. ...more
We’re glad the steak dinner went well, but we’re also still anxiously awaiting actual details about what exactly is covered by the pause in the US/China trade war....more
During a public hearing in New York City on Thursday, October 18, 2018, New York State regulators, including Superintendent Maria Vullo of the New York State Department of Financial Services (“DFS”), threatened to block CVS...more
The United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division announced on October 10, 2018, that it was conditionally approving the CVS/Aetna merger, a $69 billion transaction that combines the nation’s largest retail pharmacy...more
Markets took a beating yesterday, with investors apparently put off by tech stocks, tensions with China, a recent jump in interest rates and government bond yields, and a tightening Fed monetary policy....more
On Monday, September 17, 2018, the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) cleared Cigna’s proposed $67 billion acquisition of Express Scripts, the country’s largest pharmacy benefit manager....more
Historically, health plans and pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) have been uncomfortable neighbors. Plans provide drug coverage, but contract out the provision of such drugs to independent PBMs. PBMs in turn earn market...more
Deutsche Borse CEO Carsten Kengeter announced yesterday that he’ll step down in the wake of insider-trading allegations related to the exchange’s now-defunct merger with the London Stock Exchange Group....more
As reported in earlier blogs, the federal Department of Justice (DOJ) has been actively looking into potential abuses by Medicare Advantage (MA) Organizations as to allegedly improper risk adjustment claims submissions and...more
During the summer of 2015, within a matter of days, Aetna announced an intention to merge with Humana and Anthem announced an intention to merge with Cigna. The deals, among the largest insurance industry combinations ever...more
In July 2016, following a lengthy review, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ), together with several states, sued to block two proposed health insurer mergers: Aetna/Humana and Anthem/Cigna. On January...more
Securing the Safety Net for America's Vulnerable Populations - Editor's Note: America's population is aging rapidly. By 2029, 75 million baby boomers will have reached age 65 and older, and older adults will represent...more
On February 8, 2017, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia granted a request filed by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division for an injunction blocking Anthem, Inc.’s (Anthem) proposed $54...more
In the past month, the DOJ and several state governments scored two trial wins in their challenges to mergers among some of the country’s largest health insurers. First, Judge Bates of the District of Columbia blocked the...more
In a continuation of recent Department of Justice (DOJ) successes challenging mergers, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia recently enjoined two more proposed mergers brought and litigated under the Obama...more
On January 23, 2017, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia granted the Department of Justice, Antitrust Division’s (DOJ) request for an injunction to block Aetna Inc.’s (Aetna) proposed acquisition of...more
The District of Columbia federal court recently ruled that a proposed $37 billion merger between health insurance giants Aetna and Humana cannot proceed, granting the US Department of Justice’s bid to block the combination on...more