INDIANAPOLIS, Dec. 7, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- WellPoint, Inc., (NYSE: WLP) today announced Douglas J. Wenners has been named the company's senior vice president for Provider Engagement and Contracting. Currently he serves as president and general manager for WellPoint's affiliated health plan in New Hampshire.
In his new role, Wenners will oversee provider relations, provider contracting, and network management for WellPoint, the nation's largest health benefits company by membership. Wenners assumes the position January 1, 2011 and succeeds WellPoint executive Bob McIntire, who previously announced his plan to retire at the end of the year.
Wenners began his career with WellPoint in 2001 as senior legal counsel. Since then, he has held a number of key leadership roles, most notably as vice president and general manager of WellPoint's health care management division for New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Maine, Virginia and Georgia. As such, he was responsible for overseeing WellPoint's provider contracting, provider relations, medical management and medical affairs for more than 700 hospitals and 40,000 physicians serving 12 million health plan members. Wenners was named president and general manager for WellPoint's affiliated health plan in New Hampshire in 2008.
"Doug brings strong leadership capabilities and a track record of success to this vital role at WellPoint as we continue to team with physician and hospital providers and advance innovative payment models that improve the quality and affordability of health care," said Sam Nussbaum, executive vice president of clinical health policy, chief medical officer, and interim president of comprehensive health solutions for WellPoint.
A New Hampshire native, Wenners holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Boston College, a Juris Doctor degree from Suffolk University Law School in Boston, and a Master's Degree in Evaluative Clinical Sciences from Dartmouth College.
Wenners is an active community volunteer. He holds leadership positions on a number of nonprofit boards including: the Business and Industry Association of New Hampshire; the Greater Manchester Family YMCA; Southern New Hampshire University; and the New Hampshire Business Committee for the Arts. He also served as statewide chair in New Hampshire for the American Heart Association's 2010 Start! Heart Walk.
About WellPoint, Inc.
WellPoint works to simplify the connection between Health, Care and Value. We help to improve the health of our communities, deliver better care to members, and provide greater value to our customers and shareholders. WellPoint is the nation's largest health benefits company, with more than 33 million members in its affiliated health plans, and a total of more than 69 million individuals served through all subsidiaries. As an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, WellPoint serves members as the Blue Cross licensee for California; the Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee for Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area), Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (as the Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in 10 New York City metropolitan and surrounding counties and as the Blue Cross or Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in selected upstate counties only), Ohio, Virginia (excluding the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.), and Wisconsin. In a majority of these service areas, WellPoint does business as Anthem Blue Cross, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield or Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield (in the New York service areas). WellPoint also serves customers throughout much of the country as UniCare. Additional information about WellPoint is available at http://www.wellpoint.com/.
SOURCE WellPoint, Inc.