Court order filed to split Anthem/Cigna trial into two dates

U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson will split the Anthem/Cigna merger case into two dates, with the first to start on Nov. 21 and to finish by Dec. 2, according to the order issued. The first phase addresses the effect the $54 billion deal would have on the national health insurance market. The second phase is to focus on local markets. The Department of Justice is scheduled to present evidence of allegations concerning national accounts in the bench trial starting Nov. 21 at the federal court in Washington, D.C. Jackson said she would hear the defense of the insurers and then rebuttal, before turning to concerns of the local markets. Jackson gave no date for the second phase of the trial, but did give a date of Dec. 2, for the attorneys to file their findings of fact and conclusions of law for the first phase, signaling the end of the national proceedings.