The Justice Department's suit filed Thursday to block Aetna from buying Humana may have unintended consequences for President Obama's Affordable Care Act exchanges.
Hours before the suit was filed, Humana, in releasing its second-quarter results, said it is likely to leave eight of the 19 state health exchanges it now operates in because they are money-losers.
Such a move will be a blow towards the president's state-focused Obamacare.
Some saw the threat to depart the state exchanges like a direct challenge towards the administration and it is move to block the merger.
Aetna also offers a large presence on the Obamacare exchanges. It said in May it planned to retain its presence the coming year in the same states that currently operates.
“But which was then, and this is now,” a source close to the situation said, implying that Aetna, with no financial benefits of the merger, could also decide to exit exchanges in states where it's taking a loss.
Aetna reports second-quarter results Aug. 2.
The two insurers together represent a couple of million of the 18 million people being insured through Obamacare, Charles Gaba, founder of ACASignups.net, told The Post.
Justice sued because it feels the $37 billion merger would decrease health insurance competition and raise prices.
Health insurance costs this season overall rose by a highly effective 8 percent, Gaba says, greater than previously couple of years.
A Humana spokesman said the exchange announcement was outside of its plans to fight the DOJ suit.
Aetna declined comment.
