HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Aetna Inc. (NYSE:AET) will sell a Missouri Medicaid business that manages care for more than 100,000 people to fellow health insurer WellCare Health Plans Inc. due to Aetna's pending acquisition of Coventry Health Care Inc.
Terms were not disclosed.
Aetna, based in Hartford, Conn., said Tuesday that Coventry operates a Medicaid plan in Missouri called Health Care USA, and that the Missouri plan has more than 250,000 members. A combination of that and Aetna's business, Missouri Care, would exceed membership limits set under the state's Medicaid contracts.
Medicaid is a state and federally funded program that provides medical coverage for needy people and people who need nursing home care and meet state eligibility requirements. Most states hire private health insurers to manage their Medicaid programs.
Aetna said in August it will spend $5.7 billion in cash and stock to buy Coventry, a Bethesda, Md.-based insurer.
