Anthem to rebrand as 'Elevance Health'
The company hopes that the new name will better reflect its broad range of health care products.
BUCAH.
It started out as industry shorthand to describe the major players in the health insurance market, and the acronym has stuck around, despite mergers and acquisitions that have complicated the market. Now, the “B,” which actually stands for “Anthem” (following its acquisition of Blue Cross Blue Shield) is getting yet another update.
The insurer has announced plans to change its name to Elevance Health Inc.–a combination of “elevate” and “advance.”
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“We believe this name much better reflects the business,” Anthem Chief Executive Gail Boudreaux said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. “It’s saying, look, health care is more than just health benefits.”
The company hopes that the new name will better reflect its broad range of health care products. Its Anthem BCBS health insurance business will retain its name under the larger Elevance Health umbrella. Other brands include Anthem’s IngenioRx pharmacy benefits manager; recently acquired behavioral health company Beacon Health Options; and home-health company myNEXUS.
“Improving health means more than just treating what ails us. We must address whole health and the physical, behavioral, and social drivers that impact it,” Boudreaux said. “This need has driven our transformation from a health benefits organization to a lifetime, trusted health partner. Our commitment to always expect more from ourselves has led us to reimagine the way we operate and take a more holistic approach to health. As Elevance Health, we will continue to work toward a health care system that better serves the needs of our consumers, care providers, communities, partners, and associates.”
The move by Anthem is just the latest in a health insurance market rife with acquisitions aimed at diversifying services beyond traditional insurance products to include health care providers, virtual services, data analytics, pharmacy benefits and more.
The “Anthem” brand itself has only been around since 2014, following a rebrand of the company’s previous iteration, Wellpoint. The current change will have to be approved by shareholders.
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