Blue Shield and its affiliates will now serve enrollees of Medicaid and Medi-Cal, the state’s version of the federal Medicaid program for low-income enrollees. In addition, the acquisition will cause increased Medicare membership and coverage.
The acquisition follows a lengthy approval process from the California Department of Managed Health Care, which affirmed Blue Shield’s fair purchase price and status as a nonprofit. Manatt, Phelps & Phillips represented Blue Shield of California and Foley & Lardner represented Care1st.
Although Care1st has a small presence in Arizona and Texas, it mainly serves residents in southern California. Anna Tran, CEO of Care1st, will continue to lead the company until Blue Shield creates an integration plan.
More articles on payer issues:
Health insurers in the news: Week in review Oct. 2-8
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BCBS of Texas drops individual PPO plans
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