Voluntary Benefits

WellPoint Inc. said Tuesday it expects 2012 adjusted earnings at the high end or slightly above a range that the health insurer reaffirmed last month.

More and more employers this year will begin offering voluntary employee benefits to their workers in preparation for the real game changer in 2014the further implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

While poised to grow its Medicaid business, WellPoint will have to fight to retain a big chunk of customers, according to Credit Suisse, after the debut of government-run insurance exchanges next year that help people shop for coverage.

Major health insurance stocks largely lagged behind a broader market advance Wednesday after Congress reached a last-minute deal to keep the U.S. economy from hitting a so-called "fiscal cliff" of tax hikes and deep spending cuts.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. said Wednesday that it wrapped up the sale of three businesses.

What products do you sell when you offer voluntary products? For traditional benefit brokers, too often, the answer is the same products they sell to employers.