Anthem Agrees To Purchase WellPoint for $12B

Indiana-based Anthem has agreed to purchase California-based WellPoint Health Networks for more than $12 billion in stock and cash, a move that will "create one of the nation's biggest managed care companies," the Wall Street Journal reports. According to individuals familiar with the situation, the Anthem and WellPoint boards approved the agreement on Sunday and plan to make a formal announcement Monday. Under the agreement, Anthem will pay "mostly stock" for WellPoint, and the combined company will operate under the WellPoint name with headquarters in Indianapolis, according to people familiar with the deal, the Journal reports. Anthem Chair, President and CEO Larry Glasscock will serve as CEO of the combined company, and WellPoint Chair and CEO Leonard Schaeffer will serve as chair, the Journal reports. The agreement will combine two of the largest providers of Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in the nation, with about 26 million members, and will "transform the Blue Cross and Blue Shield name into a truly national brand for the first time," according to the Journal. In addition, the agreement "will be one of the year's largest mergers, and is likely to trigger other unions among providers of managed care," the Journal reports (Sidel/Rundle, Wall Street Journal, 10/27).