Joseph Swedish, president
and CEO of WellPoint.

INDIANAPOLIS—Health insurance company, WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE:WLP) announced plans last week to change its corporate name to Anthem, Inc. WellPoint serves more than 37 million people in its affiliated health plans, and nearly 67 million people through its subsidiaries, some of which already carry the Anthem brand, such as Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield and Anthem Blue Cross.

The change will enable the company to create better alignment between its corporate and product brands and better reflect its purpose and strategy to help transform health care, according to a statement from the company. Pending approval from shareholders, the change is expected to take place by the end of 2014. Earlier this year, WellPoint restructured its specialty business leadership team, which includes its managed vision care products, as reported by VMail March 7, 2014.

“As consumer engagement is heightened, we recognize that brand—an indicator of trust and a predictor of willingness to engage—is going to be of increasing importance,” said Joseph Swedish, president and CEO of WellPoint. “We believe it is important to call ourselves by the name that people know best—Anthem. Brand is a significant driver of consumer purchasing decisions across our businesses. As we move closer to a consumer-centric marketplace, we believe Anthem is the best brand to lead our company forward to becoming a more consumer capable company.”