Aetna

Aetna, Inc.(NYSE: AET) is an American diversified health care benefits company, providing a range of traditional and consumer directed health care insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life, long-term care, and disability plans, and medical management capabilities. it is a Fortune 100 member.

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History

  Aetna is the direct descendant of Aetna Insurance Company, of Hartford, Connecticut, which issued its first life insurance policy in 1850.

In 1867, Aetna issued its first farm mortgage loan. By 1924, Aetna had $94 million, representing 43 percent of its assets, invested in farm mortgages. It ended this line of business in 1947.

In 1960, the company expanded outside the U.S., buying a Canadian company, Excelsior Life Insurance Company. In 1968, it bought a majority interest in Producer's and Citizen's Cooperative Assurance Company, of Sydney, Australia. In 1981, it bought a 40 percent interest in two Chilean companies, and soon thereafter invested in ventures in England, Spain, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Indonesia and Korea.

In 1998, Aetna bought NYLCare Health Plans for $1.05 billion, adding 2.2 million members,[1]. The next year, it bought Prudential HealthCare for $1 billion, making it the largest provider of health benefits in the U.S., with more than 21 million members.

In 2000, Aetna sold its financial services and international businesses to ING for $7.7 billion, spun off its health business to its shareholders, thus focusing its business as an independent health and group benefits company,

In 2002, Aetna agreed to streamline communications, reduce administrative complexity, and improve the quality of the health care system, ending litigation between Aetna and 700,000 physicians and medical societies. The agreement also resulted in establishment of an independent foundation (Physicians’ Foundation for Health Systems Excellence) to focus on critical health care issues [2] and a physicians’ advisory board.

Operations

In 2005, the company had $1.1 billion in earnings.

Members

Aetna provides health care, dental, pharmacy, group life, disability, and long-term care insurance and employee benefits, primarily through employer-paid (fully or partly) insurance and benefit programs, and through Medicare. Membership numbers: [3]

• 15.8 million — medical members
• 13.185 million — dental members
• 10.586 million — pharmacy members
• 13.68 million — group insurance members
• 700,000+ — health-care professionals
• 418,000+ — primary-care doctors and specialists
• 4,231 — hospitals

Evaluations by others

Aetna received a 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index in 2002, the first year of the survey, as did 11 other companies. It has maintained this rating in 2003 and 2004.

Key people

It was announced on January 4 2006 that Mr. Ronald Williams would succeed Dr. John W. Rowe as CEO as of February 14, 2006. Dr. Rowe remained Executive Chairman until he retired at the end of 2006. [4]

On July 24, 2007 it was announced that Mark Bertolini, Executive Vice President of Business Operations, would serve as President of Aetna.

• Ron Williams - Chairman and CEO
• Mark T. Bertolini - President
• Meg McCarthy - Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer
• William H. Donaldson - Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

See also

• Managed health care