Indianapolis – WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP) is deeply disappointed with the legislation progressing in Congress. Both the bill proposed by the House of Representatives and the bill passed by the Senate HELP Committee miss the opportunity to address the underlying cost drivers in our health care system. These bills rely on price controls and government expansion rather than measures to improve the quality of health care received and access to care by the uninsured. This only serves to make health care more expensive and less accessible, threatening the stability of the coverage most Americans have today.
WellPoint has proposed a comprehensive set of recommendations to address the underlying cost and quality issues that are currently threatening our health care system. We urge Congress and the Administration to consider these recommendations and commit to continuing to work together on the path to achieve responsible, sustainable health care reform.
About WellPoint, Inc.
WellPoint works to simplify the connection between Health, Care and Value. We help to improve the health of our communities, deliver better care to members, and provide greater value to our customers and shareholders. WellPoint is the nation's largest health benefits company, with approximately 35 million members in its affiliated health plans. As an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, WellPoint serves members as the Blue Cross licensee for California; the Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee for Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area), Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (as the Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in 10 New York City metropolitan and surrounding counties and as the Blue Cross or Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in selected upstate counties only), Ohio, Virginia (excluding the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.), Wisconsin; and through UniCare. Additional information about WellPoint is available at www.wellpoint.com.
Media Contact:
Kristin Binns
212-476-1425
or
Cheryl Leamon
317-488-6748
