UnitedHealth Group's Optum division for health care services is acquiring a Michigan-based specialty pharmacy company that also provides infusion services for patients.
According to deal terms announced Monday, UnitedHealth is paying $4 per share for Diplomat Pharmacy Inc. while also assuming the company's debt.
The acquired pharmacy business would be part of Optum's pharmacy division called OptumRx, which is one of the nation's largest pharmaceutical benefits managers (PBM). The deal is expected to close early next year.
"This combination will expand the innovative specialty pharmacy and infusion solutions OptumRx can offer to the consumers and clients we serve," said John Prince, chief executive of OptumRx, in a statement.
The deal is the latest of several by UnitedHealth to expand the PBM business, which manages the pharmacy benefit portion of health insurance coverage.
In October 2018, UnitedHealth announced the acquisition of a Phoenix-based specialty pharmacy called Avella, but did not disclose financial terms. The announcement came one month after UnitedHealth said it was acquiring Genoa Health, which runs pharmacies in behavioral health clinics, for a reported $2.5 billion.
