Watchdog group wants investigation into whether White House is interfering in Anthem merger

United to Protect Democracy is calling for an investigation into whether the Trump administration is trying to interfere with the outcome of the Anthem/Cigna appeals trial, which was scheduled to start today.

On its Twitter page, the watchdog group said there have been numerous reports of White House conversations with the Department of Justice that raise serious questions about whether there is interference with the traditional independence of those agencies.

[Also: Anthem/Cigna merger appeal set for March 24]

Ian Bassin, the executive director of United to Protect Democracy, wrote in a letter to Michael Horowitz, the inspector general for the Justice Department, that Anthem CEO Joseph Swedish talked with President Trump on the phone last week, The Washington Post reported.

Also, former Anthem lobbyist Makan Delrahim works as a senior official in the White House Counsel's Office and reportedly is Trump's pick to head the antitrust division at the Justice Department, The Washington Post said.

Swedish, in comments made on Anthem's website and in court records, has voiced optimism for a better outcome of the proposed $54 billion merger with Cigna under a new administration.

[Also: DOJ asks appeals court to block Anthem, Cigna merger]

A federal court ruled against the merger in February on the grounds of antitrust concerns raised by the DOJ, and anti-competitive concerns in the national market.

Twitter: @SusanJMorse