Canada Life announced July 13 that is has reached an agreement to acquire ClaimSecure Inc., a healthcare management firm that provides health and dental claim management services to private and public businesses in Canada.

With this acquisition, Canada Life will expand its presence in providing third-party administrator (TPA) and third-party payor (TPP) services. The insurer says through this deal, “Canada Life will become the first major Canadian insurer to own and operate a pharmacy benefits manager with national claims-paying technology capabilities.”

This acquisition increases the number of plan members served by Canada Life by 1.25 million individuals, including plan members and their dependents, with annual claims payments of more than CAD$1.2 billion, says the insurer.

"The acquisition of ClaimSecure enhances our ability to provide leading workplace benefits solutions by extending our presence in a growing segment of the market," said Jeff Macoun, President and Chief Operating Officer, Canada, Canada Life. "This transaction aligns with our priority of building lifetime customer relationships with the workplace plan members we serve."

Brad Fedorchuk, Executive Vice-President, Group Customer, Canada Life, stated that during the past two years, the insurer has been strategically evolving its participation in the TPA and TPP business in Canada by creating a dedicated team. “Acquiring ClaimSecure is the next step in this evolution… ClaimSecure offers advanced technology, plan designs and approaches not previously employed by Canada Life. For both Canada Life and ClaimSecure, this acquisition provides new options to create innovative approaches in the TPA/TPP business," said Fedorchuk.

ClaimSecure's main operations centre will remain in Sudbury, Ontario and its head office will remain in Mississauga, Ontario. This transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals, is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021.