Healthcare delivery transformation

As large hospital systems have amassed greater power in their markets through mergers, developing regional integrated delivery networks and starting ACOs, health plans and providers have had to re-think the old oppositional relationship between payers and providers. The last decade’s evolution...

With the Department of Justice giving its official sign-off, Cigna’s $52 billion purchase of Express Scripts, which is the last remaining large stand-alone PBM in the country, is on its way to completion by the end of the year. Likewise, CVS’ acquisition of Cigna’s rival, Aetna, is...

Amazon has finally entered the market by taking a small share of the $560 billion U.S. prescription drug industry. Pillpack, a small online drug supply company, confirmed its acquisition by Amazon. The deal, estimated at $1 billion, shook the entire healthcare industry, and shares of CVS,...

Anyone could be forgiven for thinking the healthcare initiative convened by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase was all bark and no bite. Anyone touting sweeping changes to lower healthcare costs should be greeted with skepticism. But the companies’ choice of leader leaves no doubt...

Partners, Harvard Pilgrim Negotiations Underscore Growing Trend Amid continued merger mania in the U.S. healthcare industry, the news that integrated delivery titan Partners HealthCare is exploring a merger with innovative New England insurer Harvard Pilgrim Health Care stands out. The deal would...

The transformation of the healthcare delivery model and the reinvention of the PBMs will have implications for payers - what are the threats and opportunities? The below post is an excerpt from our white paper Beyond the PBM: A New Order for Healthcare Delivery.  Vertical integration giving...

There are changes being brought because of the partnerships and mergers in the healthcare value chain- what are the threats and opportunities for patients? The below post is an excerpt from our white paper Beyond the PBM: A New Order for Healthcare Delivery.  In recent months, there has been...

In December 2017, CVS Health announced plans to purchase Aetna for $69 billion, followed by speculation that a Walmart-Humana deal would be next. Both mergers would create unprecedented opportunity for retail healthcare to gain favor with new consumers, especially among older individuals who...

When The Wall Street Journal first broke the news that retail titan Walmart is talking with Humana about possible acquisition, it seemed a bit far-fetched. Sure, the two market a profitable co-branded Medicare Part D plan in which Walmart’s stores serve as the preferred pharmacy network. And...

Amidst mergers, alliances and increased scrutiny, PBMs face a season of change With 2017 receding into the rearview mirror, the road ahead for PBMs will have more than its share of twists and turns as the industry segment comes to terms with shifting alliances, potential mergers and the potential...

The last pharmacy benefit management giant waiting for a potential suitor is off the board now that Cigna and Express Scripts plan a $67 billion merger. For Express Scripts, the last of the large independent PBMs, a merger with Cigna makes sense. Express Scripts was in a bind. After an ugly...

PBM evolution and vertical integration will have significant implications for pharma - what are the threats and opportunities? The below post is an excerpt from our white paper Beyond the PBM: A New Order for Healthcare Delivery. The U.S. healthcare delivery model is undergoing dramatic changes...

The U.S. healthcare delivery model is undergoing dramatic changes - how should pharma plan for the changes ahead? The below post is an excerpt from our white paper Beyond the PBM: A New Order for Healthcare Delivery. The turn of the year highlighted the rapid transformation and stakeholder role...

On Feb. 20, food giant Albertsons announced plans to acquire the remaining Rite Aid stores not included in the watered-down Walgreens-Rite Aid deal of last year. Under Amazon’s threat to rule the consumer goods and healthcare kingdom, the Albertsons-Rite Aid deal is nothing short of a strategic...

American employers experimenting with direct provider contracts usually do it on a small scale, but Walt Disney World Resorts in Orlando is fully committing with provider HMOs that insure most of the company’s Orlando workforce. With a possible 70,000 Orlandoans receiving care solely from the...

Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase Collaboration Points to Disruption in Healthcare Industry   It’s the business equivalent of a superhero movie when Warren Buffett (The Oracle of Omaha), Jeff Bezos (Amazon), and Jamie Dimon (JPMorgan Chase) unite to form a new healthcare...

While every insurer plays catch-up with UnitedHealth Group, UnitedHealth stays several steps ahead of the pack. Word of the proposed CVS Health-Aetna merger was still fresh when Optum announced plans to acquire the medical practice arm of dialysis giant DaVita Inc. for $4.9 billion. After a...

Proposed merger could be major disruptor for payers and pharma The proposed $69 billion merger of CVS and Aetna would create an interesting new vertical in the healthcare industry – one that can offer potential cost savings to employers and convenient retail access to basic care for consumers...

Emerging soup-to-nuts model of healthcare provision opens up opportunities for remote care and digital adherence support, DRG Digital's Manhattan Research data show   New York, December 7, 2017 – A merger of CVS and Aetna...