Michael Neidorff, chairman and chief executive officer of Centene Corp., listens during a Bloomberg Television interview at the Allen & Co. Media and Technology Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, U.S., on Wednesday, July 11, 2018. Photographer:Shareholders of Centene and WellCare on Monday gave their blessing to the merger of the two health insurers in a deal that will create a national player in administering government-subsidized health benefits for millions of Americans.
The shareholder approval by both companies at separate meetings is a big milestone for the deal given therewanted Centene to consider other options. Centene two months ago announced plans to buy WellCare for more than $15 billion in a deal that would expand the business of administering Medicaid benefits for poor Americans as well as private Medicare Advantage coverage.
The deal still has many hurdles to clear, including clearance by 26 state insurance regulators as well as necessary approvals by ."To date, all required Form As and Form Es have been filed, and conditional approvals have been obtained in four states—Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky and Missouri," Centene said.