Healtheon to Buy Mede

Healtheon Corp., which processes health-care claims over the Internet, agreed to buy rival Mede America Corp. for about $460 million. Healtheon will exchange 0.6593 share for each Mede share, or about $30.14 a share, based on Tuesday’s closing share price. That’s a 37% premium on East Meadow, N.Y.-based Mede’s Tuesday closing price of $22.06. The move would extend the reach of Santa Clara-based Healtheon in two key markets--hospitals and pharmacies--where the fledgling company has little presence. On Nasdaq, Healtheon rose $1.72 to close at $47.44; Mede America rose $1.94 to close at $24.