UnitedHealth Group / EMIS merger inquiry
| Decision Date | 20 January 2023 |
| Date | 20 January 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Mergers |
| Court | Competition and Markets Authority (EW) |
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ACQUISITION BY UNITEDHEALTH GROUP
INCORPORATED OF EMIS GROUP PLC
SUMMARY
1. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UH) has agreed to acquire EMIS Group PLC
(EMIS) (the Merger). UH and EMIS are together referred to as the Parties, or for
statements relating to the future, the Merged Entity.
2. After examining a range of evidence, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
believes that the Merger, if carried into effect, will result in the creation of a relevant
merger situation, and meets the threshold for reference to an in-depth phase 2
investigation, giving rise to a realistic prospect of a substantial lessening of
competition (SLC).
3. The CMA is therefore considering whether to accept undertakings under section 73
of the Enterprise Act 2002 (the Act). The Parties have until 24 March 2023 to offer
an undertaking to the CMA that might be accepted by the CMA. If no such
undertaking is offered, then the CMA will refer the Merger pursuant to sections 33(1)
and 34ZA(2) of the Act.
The Parties and their products
4. EMIS is an established UK-based healthcare software business that provides a
range of IT solutions to the NHS, including a primary care electronic patient record
(EPR) system, EMIS Web. EMIS Web allows GPs to manage appointment
bookings, conduct patient consultations, and update, store and share patient
records. EMIS also offers EMIS-X Analytics (EXA), software which allows users to
conduct data analysis.
5. Every GP practice uses a primary care EPR system as it is an essential piece of
software for running a practice. Other software that GPs use may need to integrate
with the ERP system. At the moment, over half of GPs in the UK use EMIS Web as
their EPR system.
6. The primary care EPR system is also important because it holds all of the patient
data for the GP practice. There are strict data protection rules, but this data can
often be shared within the NHS (for example when patients are treated at different
care settings) and with certain approved suppliers who will use this data to provide
analytical tools to the NHS. Because of the important position of the primary care
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