WellPoint Donates $50,000 to Feeding America -- Plus $1.3 Million Associate Giving Campaign Contribution

INDIANAPOLIS, Dec. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP) has donated $50,000 to Feeding America, the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, in the spirit of the holiday season. Randy Brown, EVP & Chief Human Resources Officer, and Linda Jimenez, Chief Diversity Office and VP, Diversity & Inclusion presented the check to Feeding America. (Photo available upon request.)

In the last three years, WellPoint and its associates have donated more than $3.5 million through the company's annual associate giving campaign and WellPoint Foundation donations. These donations helped provide more than 800,000 meals – and the gift of hope – to hard-working families who are struggling with the difficult decision of whether to pay the bills or pay for groceries.

Feeding America, a leading domestic hunger-relief organization, operates more than 200 regional member food banks nationwide and is one of the six designated charities for WellPoint's annual associate giving campaign.

WellPoint associates in Indianapolis and other company locations also joined together to assemble approximately 2,500 "BackSacks" for needy children, pack four tons of frozen meat and fill 325 boxes of food, providing 24,180 meals.

In addition, exemplifying its ongoing commitment to veterans and their families, WellPoint has donated $50,000 to the USO. The USO donation will provide care packages and other support services to deployed military personnel, lifting the spirits of America's troops and their families during the holiday season.

"Our goal is to be good corporate citizens and to reach out to help those who need it during this holiday season," said Ms. Jimenez. "I am proud to be part of an organization that really stands behind its mission: To improve the lives of the people we serve and the health of our communities."

About WellPoint, Inc.
WellPoint works to simplify the connection between Health, Care and Value. We help to improve the health of our members and our communities, and provide greater value to our customers and shareholders. WellPoint is one of the nation's largest health benefits companies, with 34 million members in its affiliated health plans, and a total of more than 66 million individuals served through its 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's plans do business as Anthem Blue Cross, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia, Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, or Empire Blue Cross (in the New York service areas). WellPoint also serves customers throughout the country as UniCare. Additional information about WellPoint is available at http://www.wellpoint.com/. For more information about WellPoint's diversity and corporate responsibility efforts, see the company's Corporate Responsibility Report.

SOURCE WellPoint, Inc.