Kaiser Permanente Acquiring Seattle-Based Cooperative

Group Health Cooperative announced Dec. 4 it agreed to be acquired by Kaiser Permanente in a transaction valued at $1.8 billion.

Group Health Cooperative is a member-governed health plan that covers almost 590,000 people in Washington state and northern Idaho.

In a joint press release Dec. 4, 10.2-million-member Kaiser and Seattle-based Group Health portrayed the combination as a “natural fit” between two like-minded organizations, both founded in the 1940s with “a vision for health care in America that brings quality care and coverage at affordable prices.”

In the press release, Group Health Chief Executive Officer Scott Armstrong called the acquisition ...