Walmart in Talks to Acquire Humana

Walmart Stores Inc. (Bentonville, Ark.) is said to be in discussions to purchase – among other options – health insurance company Humana (Louisville, Ky.).

The move represents a trend for both the retail and healthcare industries: Since Humana’s merge with Aetna (Hartford, Conn.) was denied by the U.S. Dept. of Justice due to antitrust concerns, insurers are seeking different types of mergers outside the insurance sector, reports CNN Money.

Walmart is just the latest to seek such a merger, which it could use to benefit its pharmacy business and in-store primary care clinics. Aetna and Woonsocket, R.I.-based CVS Health also recently announced a merger deal, and Amazon.com Inc. (Seattle) has teamed up with Berkshire Hathaway (Omaha, Neb.) and JPMorgan Chase (New York) to seek out a possible insurance partnership.