Anthem said its total health plan membership
is up more than 1 million Americans amid open enrollment for Medicare Advantage
and as private employers allow workers to change their benefits for 2020 as
well.
The nation’s second-largest health insurer
said its total medical enrollment was 41 million as of Sept. 30, the end of the
third quarter thanks largely to “fully insured” enrollment that benefits health
plan premium revenues.
Anthem, which operates Blue Cross and Blue
Shield plans in 14 states, is finding success administering health plans for
state Medicaid programs and, like other health plans, is pushing deeper into
Medicare Advantage, which allows health insurers to contract with the federal
government to administer health benefits for seniors. Anthem’s Medicare
Advantage enrollment was up 21% to 1.2 million in the third quarter and the
insurer expects that to increase in 2020.
“We remain confident we will continue to
outpace the market,” Anthem chief executive Gail Boudreaux said of future
Medicare Advantage growth during a Wednesday morning call to discuss earnings
with analysts.
The larger pool of health plan subscribers in
any health insurance business is good because it allows insurers to spread
rising medical costs across more people and their premium dollars. Higher
medical costs at Anthem and other health plans have been a concern of late by
Wall Street and other health insurance industry observers.
But Anthem’s third-quarter profits were ahead
of analysts expectations. Anthem’s net income jumped 23% to $1.18 billion, or
$4.55 per share, in the third quarter. That compares to $960 million, or $3.62
per share, a year earlier.
Revenues, meanwhile, rose nearly 15% to $26.7
billion. Premium revenue was up 11% to $23.8 billion
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