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Centene Corp. on Thursday said it agreed to buy Health Net Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $6.3 billion, as health insurers increasingly look for tie-ups that can help them cut costs and grow scale. St. Louis-based Centene, a Medicaid-focused health insurer, expects the deal to boost its presence in California and other western states, while allowing for $150 million a year in synergies in the second year after closing. (Dulaney, 7/2)

Centene has jumped into the mix of managed-care companies scrambling to bulk up as the health care overhaul changes their business with a $6.3-billion bid for fellow insurer Health Net. The deal announced Thursday gives St. Louis-based Centene a chance to expand in two hot growth areas for health insurers, the state- and federally-funded Medicaid program for the poor and people with disabilities; and the federally-supported Medicare Advantage program, which has seen its overall enrollment triple over the past decade. (Murphy, 7/2)

The consolidation steamboat that's charging its way through the health care insurance industry added another target as St. Louis-based Centene Corp. agreed to acquire Los Angeles-based Health Net in a deal valued at $6.8 billion. The companies said Thursday that they expect to achieve $150 million in synergies — which typically means cost cuts or savings from improved operations — within two years of the deal's completion. (Bomey, 7/2)