In 2018, Aetna was acquired by CVS Health for a deal valued at about $69 billion.
CVS announced the transaction in December 2017, offering roughly $207 per Aetna share in a mix of cash and CVS stock. The deal was intended to combine Aetna’s health-insurance business with CVS’s pharmacies, pharmacy-benefits manager CVS Caremark, and retail clinics. It closed on November 28, 2018, after regulatory review.
Aetna’s roots reach back to 1853, when it began as the Aetna Life Insurance Company in Hartford, Connecticut. After the purchase, Aetna continued as a major CVS Health business rather than disappearing as a consumer-facing insurance brand.
A common mix-up is confusing this transaction with other large health-insurance deals, such as Cigna’s acquisition of Express Scripts or CVS’s separate purchase of Omnicare. The $69 billion figure refers specifically to CVS Health’s acquisition of Aetna.