WellPoint Inc.'s fourth-quarter net income sank 39 percent as medical claims increased, mostly because of a $50 million hit from the health insurer's Medicare Advantage business. But the company forecast earnings growth in 2012.
UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s fourth-quarter net income jumped 21 percent, but the insurer saw signs of health care use picking up and left its 2012 earnings forecast unchanged.
UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s fourth-quarter net income jumped 20 percent, but the insurer saw signs of health care use picking up and left its 2012 earnings forecast unchanged.
More companies are offering workers a form of high-deductible insurance called a consumer-directed health plan as they struggle with rising costs and prepare for coverage expansions under the health care overhaul, according to a survey from the benefits consultant Mercer.
Cigna Corp.'s third-quarter profit tumbled 35 percent due to a bigger hit from some discontinued businesses, but income from its main segments grew and it became the latest managed care company to forecast 2012 growth.
Aetna Inc.'s third-quarter net income slipped 1 percent on a charge for an early retirement program, but the performance trumped expectations and the health insurer raised its 2011 earnings forecast.
More employers are giving workers the option to tame health insurance costs for next year if they provide a blood sample and reveal details about their health habits.
Cigna Corp. will buy fellow health insurer HealthSpring Inc. in a $3.8 billion deal as it becomes the latest managed care company to snap up a bigger share of the fast-growing Medicare Advantage market.
UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s third-quarter net income edged slightly lower as medical costs climbed and some health care use picked up, but the insurer's revenue grew and it raised its 2011 earnings forecast.
Many workers will see their health insurance costs rise less next year than in more than a decade, partly because consumers are dialing back their health care use, a benefits consultant has found.