Wellpoint Says ObamaCare Enrollment Ahead Of Expectations

Despite problems with the rollout of insurance coverage below the Affordable Care Act, Wellpoint (WLP) Inc., 1 of the nation’s greatest insurers, said enrollment in well being programs it operates under the new health law is ahead of expectations.

Wellpoint, which operates Blue Cross and Blue Shield programs across the nation, said it expects to add much more than 1 million new customers this 12 months from across its personal overall health plan organization as nicely as insurance it gives to Americans covered by government packages like the expanded Medicaid insurance for the poor.

“We are encouraged by the sizable growth opportunities,” said Wellpoint chief executive Joe Swedish in an hour-lengthy conference contact with Wall Street analysts and investors.

However it is early in analyzing the data of new applicants for coverage, Wellpoint executives said “80 percent were not previously insured by Wellpoint,” executives explained on the contact this morning.

It’s unclear no matter whether they are newly insured or came from one more prepare, but executives stated they had been pleased the business was benefiting from new consumers.

The news comes despite the disastrous rollout of the healthcare.gov web site, which had myriad technical troubles in October and significantly of November slowed the enrollment approach. When fixed in December, the website caused a rush of individuals signing up just ahead of a Christmas Eve deadline for coverage that started this month.  The Obama administration has mentioned far more than two million individuals picked health insurance ideas via government marketplaces identified as exchanges.

Wellpoint CEO Joe Swedish stated 80 percent of new Wellpoint customers from the exchanges are new to the organization.

Wellpoint competes with other health strategies such as Aetna Aetna (AET), Cigna Cigna (CI), Humana Humana (HUM) and UnitedHealth Group UnitedHealth Group (UNH) and tends to have far more organization provided to men and women and these covered by Medicaid who would be newly insured under the overall health law.

Of the half million new members Wellpoint mentioned it has signed up so far, far more than 80 percent came by way of public exchanges and two-thirds of individuals have been “subsidy eligible.” Underneath the law, these eligible can get subsidies of up to $ 5,000 to buy coverage on government run marketplaces known as exchanges.

Wellpoint stated its fourth-quarter earnings fell 68 percent largely due to an impairment charge to $ 148.two million, or 49 cents per share. Income rose sixteen % to $ 17.four billion.

In 2014, Wellpoint mentioned it expects earnings per share to be “above $ eight per share.” In 2013, Wellpoint earned $ 8.20 per share, which included expenses of 32 cents a share due to different expenses.

“We are pleased with our performance in 2013, which came in stronger than we expected even as we prepared for the implementation of the Affordable Care Act,” Swedish explained. “We are encouraged by the trajectory of our membership, as we grew sequentially during the fourth quarter and expect to add over a million new consumers in 2014.”

Wellpoint Says ObamaCare Enrollment Ahead Of Expectations