Supplemental Disclosures
As previously disclosed, on February 7, 2023, Oak Street Health, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Oak Street Health” or the “Company”), entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”) with CVS Pharmacy, Inc., a Rhode Island corporation (“Parent”), Halo Merger Sub Corp., a Delaware corporation and a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent (“Merger Sub”), and for the limited purposes set forth therein, CVS Health Corporation, a Delaware corporation and ultimate parent company of Parent (“CVS Health”), pursuant to which Merger Sub will be merged with and into the Company, with the Company surviving as a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent (the “Merger”). On March 30, 2023, the Company filed a definitive proxy statement on Schedule DEFM14A (the “Definitive Proxy Statement”), as such may be supplemented from time to time, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) with respect to the special meeting of the Company’s stockholders to vote to adopt the Merger Agreement scheduled to be held on April 28, 2023 (the “Oak Street Health Special Meeting”).
Explanatory Note
In connection with the Merger, seven complaints have been filed as individual actions in United States District Courts. Five complaints have been filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and are captioned Ryan O’Dell v. Oak Street Health, Inc., et al., No. 23-cv-02029 (filed March 9, 2023), Elaine Wang v. Oak Street Health, Inc., et al., No. 23-cv-02076 (filed March 10, 2023), Stephen Bushansky v. Oak Street Health, Inc., et al., No. 23-cv-02709 (filed March 31, 2023), John Thompson v. Oak Street Health, Inc., et al., No. 23-cv-02766 (filed April 3, 2023), and Jeffrey Rubin v. Oak Street Health, Inc., et al., No. 23-cv-2838 (filed April 4, 2023). One complaint has been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County’s Chancery Division in Illinois and is captioned Margie Elstein v. Regina Benjamin, MD, et al., No. 2023CH03133 (filed March 30, 2023) (the “Illinois Action”). One complaint has been filed in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware and is captioned Michael Kent v. Oak Street Health, Inc., et al., No. 23-cv-00371 (filed March 31, 2023). The foregoing complaints are referred to as the “Merger Actions.”
The Merger Actions each name Oak Street Health and its directors as defendants, and in addition, the Illinois Action names CVS Health and Parent as defendants. The Merger Actions allege, among other things, that the defendants filed or caused to be filed a materially incomplete and misleading preliminary proxy statement or Definitive Proxy Statement with the SEC relating to the Merger in violation of Sections 14(a) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 78n(a), 78t(a), SEC Rule 14a-9, 17 C.F.R. 240.14a-9 and 17 C.F.R. § 244.100 and, in the case of the Illinois Action, Illinois state law. The plaintiffs seek, among other things, injunctive relief preventing the defendants from consummating the Merger unless and until additional disclosures are made, and an award of costs and disbursements, including reasonable attorneys’ and experts’ fees and expenses.
Additionally, Oak Street Health has received demand letters from nine purported stockholders of Oak Street Health seeking additional disclosures in the preliminary proxy statement or the Definitive Proxy Statement.
Oak Street Health believes the claims asserted in the Merger Actions and the demand letters are without merit but cannot predict the outcome of any such claims. Additional lawsuits and demand letters arising out of the Merger may also be filed or received in the future. If additional similar lawsuits and demand letters are filed or received, absent new or significantly different allegations, Oak Street Health will not necessarily disclose such additional lawsuits or demand letters.
While Oak Street Health believes that the disclosures set forth in the Definitive Proxy Statement comply fully with all applicable laws and denies the allegations in the pending Merger Actions described above, in order to moot plaintiffs’ disclosure claims, and avoid nuisance and possible expense and business delays, Oak Street Health has determined voluntarily to supplement certain disclosures in the Definitive Proxy Statement related to plaintiffs’ claims with the supplemental disclosures set forth below (the “Supplemental Disclosures”). Nothing in the Supplemental Disclosures shall be deemed an admission of the legal merit, necessity or materiality under applicable laws of any of the disclosures set forth herein. To the contrary, Oak Street Health specifically denies all allegations in the Merger Actions and the demand letters described above that any additional disclosure was or is required or material.
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