(Updates with details from the report in subsequent paragraphs)
Aug 30 (Reuters) - U.S. health insurer Centene is selling its chain of GP clinics and the largest private hospital group in the UK as it drops plans to make inroads into Britain's healthcare system, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.
The company has launched a sale process for its chain of nearly 60 Operose GP surgeries in the UK, the report said, citing three persons close to the process.
The deal is expected before Christmas, the newspaper said, without mentioning details about the deal value or potential buyers.
On Monday, Centene
announced
a $1.2 billion sale of its British hospital operator Circle Health Group to United Arab Emirates-based PureHealth.
The report further said the twin disposals signal an abandonment of Centene's UK strategy, meant to create a seamless pathway to private healthcare by buying up taxpayer-funded GP services and encouraging doctors to refer patients to its chain of 53 Circle or BMI hospitals in England.
NYSE-listed Centene has decided to focus on the U.S. market after facing increasing operating costs in the UK, the report added.
Centene did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
(Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Sohini Goswami)
