Elevance Health acquires specialty pharmaceutical company BioPlus

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Elevance Health has completed the acquisition of BioPlus, a specialty pharmacy subsidiary of CarepathRx and a portfolio company of Nautic Partners, the insurer announced this week.

BioPlus provides a range of specialized pharmacy services for patients with complex and chronic conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, hepatitis C, autoimmune diseases and rheumatology. The company covers over 100 restricted drugs and has a presence in all 50 states.

Elevance expects this acquisition will help it meet customer needs for specialty products and shoppers with a more health-focused approach. This will be supported by Elevance Health and Carelon, Elevance’s health care brand. BioPlus will now operate as part of CarelonRx, Elevance’s Pharmacy Benefits Manager within Carelon.

WHAT IMPACT

Pete Haitayan, Elevance Health’s executive vice president and president of Carelon, said the move will improve end-to-end pharmacy services for consumers, “providing more affordable cost and access to critical medicines, as well as superior patient care.”

Elevance Health plans to expand BioPlus’s service models into more complex areas of disease management to facilitate things like more timely access to medicines and support services for providers and patients. According to the company, the goal is to provide members with a unique clinical experience and services.

The acquisition will also help Elevance achieve scale to meet the health care needs of members, starting with members of affiliated health plans, the company said.

This is the second acquisition Elevance has announced in the past few weeks. In late January, the insurer entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana, with BCBSLA joining Elevance Health’s Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield family of brands.

Both organizations said they are “combining a mission” to improve access, quality, and affordability for Louisiana residents.

BIG TREND

Elevance Health announced the launch of the Carelon healthcare brand in June 2022. Over the next two years, it will consolidate its existing broad portfolio of capabilities and services. Carelon’s services range from research to integrated care, pharmacy, behavioral health and digital solutions.

The previous acquisition Elevance announced was the purchase of BioPlus Specialty Pharmacy in November. BioPlus provides a range of specialized pharmacy services for patients with complex and chronic conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, hepatitis C, autoimmune diseases and rheumatology.

Elevance’s revenue grew over 9% in Q4 2022 to $39.9 billion from $36 billion in Q4 2021. But profits were down 16.5% year-over-year, dropping from $1.1 billion last year to $949 million in 2022. .

Growth in both the quarter and full year was driven by higher premium income due to growth in Medicaid enrollments, growth in Medicare Advantage, and higher premium rates to cover general cost trends, Elevance said.

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