State Regulators OK Health Net Deal, Subject to Significant Conditions

Both regulators responsible for reviewing insurance mergers in California have now approved Centene Corp.’s $6.8 billion acquisition of Health Net, allowing the controversial deal to move forward.

The California Department of Managed Health Care approved the deal Tuesday morning, followed a few hours later by the state Department of Insurance. The DMHC imposed conditions with a total price tag of at least $340 million. The DOI also imposed what Commissioner Dave Jones called “strong conditions,” some of them overlapping with the DMHC’s list.