Washington state insurance regulators endorsed Kaiser Permanente's proposed acquisition of Seattle-based Group Health Cooperative in a hearing before Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler Jan. 4, The Seattle Times reports.
The Office of the Insurance Commissioner's chief reviewer Ronald Pastuch said investigators determined the proposed deal would not hamper competition in Washington state nor negatively impact public interests.
Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente disclosed its intentions to buy Group Health in December 2015. Under terms of the deal, Kaiser Permanente will pay $1.8 billion to establish a nonprofit Group Health Community Foundation and spend another $1 billion over 10 years to expand Group Health facilities, staff, technology and research.
Group Health is comprised of about 600,000 members in Washington and northern Idaho, and is valued at $3.5 billion.
Stakeholders expect Dr. Kreidler to make a decision by the end of the month.