The 3 carriers are somewhat becoming the big 3 with healthcare insurance companies and 2 are down and 1 is up.  WellPoint said the enrollment of Small Businesses was down so it shows small business is still having a difficult time affording employer insurance.  On the other side UnitedHealthCare appears to perhaps have subsidiaries that contribute to their bottom line, such as this big contract awarded in the State of Washington.image

State of Washington Awards Contract to Ingenix (Subsidiary of UnitedHealthCare) 

They are also going to finance a huge Telehealth network across the US with Cisco and who knows once established could rent space out to others to use the network once completed, something like the wireless business does all the time. 

UnitedHealth To Spend Tens of Million of Dollars with Cisco to Build Nationwide Telehealth Network

Just from what I read in the news of late much of the profits could be derived from the data or Business Intelligence software side of the business rather than the core business of insurance with proprietary algorithms for decision making processes, all directed at cost savings.  BD 

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Shares of WellPoint Inc. tumbled Wednesday after the health insurer reported a second-quarter profit drop and enrollment that slid further than analysts expected.

WellPoint was hit particularly hard in its local group business, which consists largely of small businesses that are fully insured. Enrollment there fell by 734,000 people.

On Monday, Hartford, Conn.-based Aetna Inc. said its quarterly profit sank 28 percent as it saw higher-than-expected medical costs. It cut its 2009 profit outlook for the second time since June.

Competitor UnitedHealth Group Inc. said last week its second-quarter profit more than doubled compared to the same quarter last year, when legal charges weighed down the Minnetonka, Minn. insurer's performance.

WellPoint Profit Falls as Enrollment Tumbles - NYTimes.com

Related Reading:

Aetna and UnitedHealthCare to offer WhiteGlove House Call service to customers in Texas

Corporate Wellness Programs Still Remain Illusive – The Back Side of Business Intelligence for Profit?
UnitedHealth Ingenix's acquiring AIM Healthcare Services in Tennessee

United Health Care Says Cheaper Efficient Doctors and Reducing Hospital Visits by the Elderly Would Help Reduce the Cost of Healthcare
The Ingenix Inquisition – Hearing Requested by Senator Rockefeller

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