Anthem, Blue Cross Hit With Alaska Air, FedEx Antitrust Claims

A group of large employers, including Alaska Air Group Inc. and FedEx Corp., sued the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Anthem Inc. and other insurance companies, alleging the defendants conspired to create “exclusive service areas” to limit competition over health insurance services.

The lawsuit, filed Sept. 4 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, said the alleged conspiracy resulted in higher costs for employers’ self-funded health insurance.

The defendants sold their “administrative services only” accounts nationally to large companies with more than 5,000 employees, including Alaska Air, FedEx, and Walgreens. These companies pay for their employees’ ...