Dive Brief:
- Anthem plans to change its name to Elevance Health, if the move is approved by shareholders, the company said Thursday.
- The new name is meant to reflect the company's offerings beyond traditional health insurance. "Elevance Health's companies will serve people across the entire care journey, connecting them to the care, support, and resources they need to lead healthy lives," Anthem CEO Gail Boudreaux said in a statement.
- Elevance was chosen as a combination of the words "elevate" and "advance." There will not be any changes to leadership or organizational structure accompanying the new name.
Dive Insight:
This is the second name change for Anthem in the past decade. Prior to 2014, the company was known as WellPoint, and was created by the merger of health benefits giants Anthem and WellPoint in 2004.
Shareholders will meet May 18 to vote on the name change. If approved, the Elevance name will start being used at the end of the second quarter of this year. Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans will still use the Anthem name.
Like most major payers, Anthem has been searching for opportunities beyond the usual health insurance offerings. It has been partnering with physician groups in its markets to move further into value-based care, taking a different tack than its peers, which tend to use acquisitions.
In May of last year, Anthem and Epic announced a data partnership intended to streamline administrative processes. And Anthem has pledged to invest at least $25 million in digital health company Sharecare, which tries to help patients manage various aspects of their care through a single platform. The company went public last year through a blank check deal.
In 2020, Anthem launched its own pharmacy benefit manager, dubbed IngenioRx. And last year, Anthem bought a New York long-term care plan that covers in-home care for adults with disabilities.
Anthem said the new name reflects the company's strategy going forward. "While the corporate name change is the first step, we are also focused on optimizing and streamlining our portfolio of brands over the next few years," according to the new Elevance website.