Blue Cross of Idaho signs on with Anthem's IngenioRx PBM

Anthem reported an 8% profit boost in the second quarter of 2019, citing growth in the insurer's membership in government plans and fully insured plans for the increase. 

In all, Anthem reported Wednesday it had profits of $1.14 billion on revenues of $25.5 billion in its second quarter. Fully insured membership grew by 1.1 million, or nearly 8%, in the quarter, and government plan enrollment increased by 1 million.

The total enrollment for the company was about 40.9 million members, according to the announcement.

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On the company's earnings call Wednesday morning, CEO Gail Boudreaux said Anthem believes that its enrollment in government plans will continue to grow, notably among Medicare and dual-eligible beneficiaries, and it is strengthening its capabilities in those areas.

Its acquisition of Beacon Health Options will be crucial to its Medicaid business, Boudreaux said.

"This acquisition is a significant milestone for growth in the diversified business group," she said.

Anthem expects its earnings for the year to reach the higher end of its forecasts, based on the early performance of its newly launched pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) IngenioRx.

It expects the PBM to generate between 70 cents and 90 cents in earnings per share and projects 2019 earnings to be greater than $18.34 per share.

"Given our growing confidence in this conversion, we feel much more confident about the high end of the range," Boudreaux said.

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Boudreaux said in the release that Anthem received transition approvals to IngenioRx from all 14 of its Blues plan states and from most states it serves in Medicaid. IngenioRx also signed its first pharmacy contract and will service Blue Cross of Idaho beginning in January, according to the announcement.

"I am excited about our future growth opportunities as we continue to leverage our growing suite of integrated solutions, including our recently announced acquisition of Beacon Health Options, to create greater value for the customers, members and care providers that we are privileged to serve," Boudreaux said in a statement.

Boudreaux said on the earnings call that Anthem is focused on moving its existing members to IngenioRx but it's "confident" that more plans will be interested in joining up with the PBM.