Anthem is the consumer brand of Elevance Health, the largest Blue Cross Blue Shield company and the second-largest health insurer in the country by medical membership. Elevance covered 44.9 million people at the end of September 2026 and reported $199.1 billion in revenue for 2025 company results.
Anthem holds the Blue Cross Blue Shield license in 14 states, including California (Anthem Blue Cross), New York, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana and Virginia. Elevance also sells Medicaid and Medicare plans under the Wellpoint name and runs Carelon, its health services and pharmacy benefit business (CarelonRx).
Updated November 2026. This profile draws on company filings, federal data and Health Plan News analysis. It is independent of Anthem; for questions about your coverage, call the number on your member ID card.
Anthem at a Glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Parent company | Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE: ELV) |
| Headquarters | Indianapolis, Indiana |
| CEO | Gail K. Boudreaux |
| Insurance brands | Anthem Blue Cross, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Wellpoint |
| 2025 revenue | $199.1 billion |
| Medical members | 44.9 million (September 30, 2026) |
| Medicare Advantage | 1.9 million members; 5% of national enrollment (KFF) |
| ACA Marketplace | 18 states in 2026 and 2027; 1.35 million members |
| Medicaid | 8.2 million members; 22 states plus D.C. and Puerto Rico in 2025 |
| Pharmacy benefit manager | CarelonRx |
Where Anthem Is the Largest Insurer
Anthem is the largest commercial health insurer in nine states in the AMA’s 2024 data, with its biggest share in Kentucky, at 76% of the commercial market. It also leads the ACA exchange in six states, including Colorado, Kentucky, Virginia and Wisconsin. See every state on our market share by state page.
Employer, Individual and Medicare Coverage
Most Anthem members get coverage through work: 21.0 million in self-funded employer plans Anthem administers and 3.4 million in fully insured group plans. Anthem also covers 1.35 million ACA Marketplace members in 18 states, a footprint it is keeping for 2027, with 24 counties added.
In Medicare Advantage, Elevance has 1.9 million members and about 5% of the national market. It is trimming plans for 2027, cutting its county footprint by about 5%, and its average star rating fell to 3.51. Elevance sued the federal government in 2026 over its star ratings; a judge denied emergency relief in August (source).
Medicaid
Elevance is one of the largest Medicaid insurers, with 8.2 million members. It left the District of Columbia’s Medicaid program on August 1, 2026, and its CEO told investors the company expects to exit more Medicaid markets over the next 12 to 18 months as margins stay negative (source).
Anthem by the Numbers: Health Plan News Data
- Commercial (employer and individual) market: largest insurer in 9 states (Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio and others) and second-largest in 5, based on 2024 AMA data.
- Aca exchange market: largest insurer in 6 states (Colorado, Kentucky, Maine, New Hampshire, Virginia, Wisconsin) and second-largest in 4, based on 2024 AMA data.
- Medicare advantage market: largest insurer in 0 states and second-largest in 3, based on 2024 AMA data.
- Claim denials: its HealthCare.gov plans denied 8.3% of in-network claims in 2024 across 5 states, compared with 18.7% for all HealthCare.gov insurers (federal Transparency in Coverage data compiled by KFF).
Compare insurers in every state on our health insurance market share by state page and our claim denial rates by insurer report.
Recent Anthem News
- Risk adjustment settlement: Elevance refunded more than $342 million in May 2026 to settle CMS allegations about unsupported Medicare Advantage risk adjustment data, and recorded a $935 million accrual tied to a CMS notice. (source)
- Star ratings lawsuit: Elevance’s lawsuit over 2026 star ratings, with about $115 million in quality bonuses at stake, is ongoing. (source)
- 2026 results: Third-quarter 2026 operating revenue was $50.4 billion with a 90.6% benefit expense ratio; Elevance raised 2026 adjusted earnings guidance to at least $29 a share. (source)
How To Contact Anthem
| Purpose | Contact |
|---|---|
| Members | Number on your member ID card |
| Anthem contact page (Medicare) | 844-404-2165, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET |
| Website | anthem.com |
For profiles of other carriers, see our List of Health Insurance Companies and follow our Health Insurance Companies hub.
Sources
Anthem Contact Us; Becker’s Payer Issues; Becker’s Payer Issues, 8 things to know about 2027 Medicare Advantage star ratings; healthcaredive.com, 2027 MA star ratings winners and losers; Becker’s Payer Issues, How insurers’ ACA footprints are changing in 2027; Becker’s Payer Issues, Medicare Advantage insurers ranked by county entries, exits in 2027; Becker’s Payer Issues, The rise of Elevance Health; Chartmill; Elevance Health 2025 Form 10-K; Elevance Health Q3 2026 earnings release (Form 8-K, SEC); Elevance Health Q3 2026 earnings release (Form 8-K, SEC); healthcaredive.com; American Medical Association, Competition in Health Insurance (2025 update); KFF, Medicare Advantage in 2026; CMS Transparency in Coverage public use file (2024, via KFF).