Payer

California's insurance commissioner asked the Department of Justice to sue to block CVS Health's $69 billion takeover of Aetna, according to an Aug. 1 announcement.

Humana will consider ways to expand its relationship with Walmart, the health insurer's CEO said during an Aug. 1 earnings call, according to Reuters.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina will eliminate a health plan affiliated with Durham, N.C.-based Duke Health and WakeMed Health & Hospitals in Raleigh, N.C., according to WRAL.

HHS issued a final rule on short-term health plans Aug. 1.

CMS Administrator Seema Verma approved Maine's Section 1332 waiver July 30, allowing the state to move forward with changes to its ACA individual marketplace.

Kaiser Permanente Colorado will no longer serve as a Medicaid provider in its northern, southern and mountain service areas of the state, effectively ending coverage for 2,500 patients, The Denver Post reports.

Health insurer Centene and St. Louis-based Ascension agreed to pursue a joint venture to create a Medicare Advantage plan.

UnitedHealth Group's Optum division is opening more urgent care centers in Texas, according to a Star Tribune report.

Several pediatric specialists in Austin, Texas, have notified managed care Medicaid members they cannot access services, claiming health insurers are failing to adequately reimburse them, according the Austin American-Statesman.

Pocatello, Idaho-based Portneuf Medical Center's emergency room physicians are out of network with the state's two largest health insurers after the ER physicians reorganized under a new group, according to the Idaho State Journal.