Business
Big health plans mark a profitable year
■ An occasional snapshot of current facts and trends in medicine.
Quick View. Posted March 8, 2004
Large, publicly traded health plans had strong profit growth and revenue increases last year. Eight out of nine plans posted revenue gains over 2002, with a mean percentage increase of 11.5%. All nine plans posted increases in profits, with a mean percentage increase of 86.8%. The only plan with diminished revenue was Aetna, which continued to try to, in its words, "grow profitably" by reducing its customer base in some markets.
| Revenue | Change | Net income | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aetna* | $18 billion | -9.5% | $967 million | 137.0% |
| Anthem | $16.5 billion | 24.1% | $774 million | 41.0% |
| CIGNA | $18.8 billion | 2.9% | $668 million | 268.0% |
| Health Net | $11.1 billion | 8.8% | $324 million | 16.5% |
| Humana | $12.2 billion | 8.6% | $229 million | 60.0% |
| Oxford | $4.2 billion | 10.2% | $352 million | 58.5% |
| PacifiCare | $11 billion | 1.3% | $243 million | 132.0% |
| UnitedHealth | $28.8 billion | 15.2% | $1.8 billion | 35.0% |
| WellPoint | $20.4 billion | 21.0% | $935 million | 33.0% |
* Aetna posted a net loss of $2.5 billion in 2002 but attributed it to "noncash impairment of goodwill" relating to a change in accounting standards.
Source: Company financial releases
Copyright © 2004 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
