A Delaware judge ruled Thursday that Cigna may walk away from its proposed $48 billion merger with Anthem, declining to force Cigna to push through with the deal.
Cigna has been trying to get out of the insurance companies’ merger since February, and the judge’s ruling could result in Anthem paying Cigna $1.85 billion in break-up fees, as well as $13 billion in damages. Anthem has until noon on Monday to decide whether it will pursue an appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court.
Anthem also has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider taking up the case and overturn two lower court decisions.
A lower court blocked the merger between the two insurers on antitrust grounds more than three months ago. The lawsuit was brought by the Department of Justice under the Obama admnistration, which also succesfully halted a planned merger between Aetna and Humana.
Anthem has been unable to convince judges that its merger with Cigna would allow the companies to offer cheaper prices to customers. The companies had planned to combine their approaches to cost savings, with Cigna putting forth higher up-front costs for wellness and Anthem negotiating lower payments to medical providers.
