Dive Brief:
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Aetna is moving its corporate headquarters and 250 jobs to New York at the end of 2018.
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Founded in 1853 in Hartford, Conn., Aetna had been in negotiations with several states about moving its headquarters. Aetna leaving Hartford is the second big employer hit for Connecticut after General Electric announced last year that it was moving its headquarters from Fairfield, Conn., to Boston.
- Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin said Aetna’s news is a “powerful and clear message" that it is time to act quickly to improve the state’s fiscal shape. Aetna is moving 250 jobs to New York, but still plans to keep a presence in Hartford, which Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy called encouraging.
Dive Insight:
Aetna, which already has operations in Harlem, said its new corporate headquarters will be at 61 Ninth Ave., near Chelsea Market, in Lower Manhattan. The large payer with 22.4 million health insurance members said the decision to move to the Big Apple is a “meaningful investment in Aetna’s future, and a key step in evolving from an insurer to a health company focused on consumers and their communities.”
In announcing the move, Aetna Chairman and CEO Mark T. Bertolini called New York a “knowledge economy hub” and “a driver of the innovations that will play a significant part in our ongoing transformation.”
“Many of the roles in our new office will be filled by innovators from the area’s deep talent pool, which will be an invaluable resource as we consider additional investments in the city going forward,” he said.
Aetna said the move “will have minimal impact on Aetna’s Connecticut-based associates.” The company added that it’s committed to its Hartford campus and thousands of associates there.
“Several of Aetna’s key businesses will remain primarily based in Hartford, and the Consumer Health & Services team will continue to operate out of Wellesley, Mass.” according to Aetna.
Aetna's announcement comes as the Nutmeg State is in the middle of a fiscal crisis with a large budget gap that may lead to major budget cuts and/or higher taxes. Aetna said it hopes the state can turn around its fiscal issues.
Whether Aetna commits long-term and keeps its remaining offices open in Connecticut depends on the state’s “economic health,” said the payer.
“The company remains hopeful that lawmakers will come to an agreement that puts Connecticut on sound financial footing, and that the state will support needed reforms to make Hartford a vibrant city once again,” Aetna said.
In other recent Aetna news, the payer said it’s pulling out of its two remaining states in the Affordable Care Act exchanges -- Delaware and Nebraska. Aetna said its individual commercial products lost nearly $700 million between 2014 and 2015 and could lose another $200 million this year. Aetna said it lost $381 million overall in the first quarter of 2017.
Earlier this year, Aetna and Humana dropped merger plans. Aetna agreed to pay Humana a $1 billion contractual breakup fee after the $37 billion merger failed.