May 2002

Anthem to Acquire Trigon Healthcare

New York, N.Y. - Health insurer Anthem, Inc., has announced it will buy Trigon Healthcare, Inc., for about $4 billion in cash and stock, to help boost its presence in the Southeast region of the United States.

The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) sued Trigon Blue Cross/Blue Shield in August 2000, alleging that the company pays chiropractors less than medical doctors for the same services.

Indianapolis-based Anthem owns Blue Cross and Blue Shield health insurance plans in eight states. The combined company will have over 10 million medical members, with assets of nearly $9 billion and operating revenues of $13 billion. UnitedHealth Group Inc. - the nation's largest HMO - has just over 16 million customers, followed by Aetna Inc., which has about 15 million customers. The deal is expected to close in three to six months.

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