WellPoint Named One of 100 Best Companies by Working Mother Magazine

INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP) has been selected as one of the nation's top companies in Working Mother magazine's 2011 Working Mother 100 Best Companies. For the third consecutive year, WellPoint has received this commendation for supporting the advancement of women in the workplace.

WellPoint supports the hiring and advancement of women – including working mothers – and is dedicated to creating an environment where every associate can succeed. "As the mother of three young adults, I know firsthand the importance of work-life balance in managing a successful career and a family," said Angela Braly, WellPoint's chair, president and CEO.

"Women make 80 percent of health care decisions for American families, and we are proud that our workforce reflects the working mothers in our membership," said Ms. Braly.  "Strong female representation at all levels of our organization helps us anticipate and respond to the unique and changing health care needs of women and their families."  

Women's advancement and success at WellPoint is supported by career and leadership development opportunities and, most importantly, a workplace culture that encourages flexibility, inclusion, wellness and work-life balance. WellPoint's competitive benefits package includes numerous work-life benefits, many geared specifically to working parents, who comprise the bulk of the workforce.

According to Linda Jimenez, WellPoint's chief diversity officer and vice president, diversity & inclusion, "The company's success is a direct reflection of our ability to attract the best talent. Women make up more than 76 percent of our workforce and more than one third of our executive leadership positions."

The Working Mother 100 Best Companies are judged on answers to 650 questions, including data on the access and usage of flexible work arrangements, parental leave, childcare, health and wellness support, and the advancement of women to all levels of management.

"WellPoint's proven commitment to work-life balance is a cornerstone of their company culture. I am proud of CEO Angela Braly and the work she has done to support employees," said Carol Evans, president of Working Mother Media. "We are pleased to welcome WellPoint back to our list of distinguished honorees again for the third year."

While WellPoint and all the Working Mother 100 Best Companies continue expanding their family-friendly benefits and programs, those at many companies across the nation are lagging. Just 44 percent of American companies offer telecommuting (vs. 100 percent of the 100 Best), 17 percent offer formal mentoring (vs. 95 percent of the 100 Best), and 37 percent offer health insurance for part-timers (vs. 100 percent of the 100 Best). In contrast, all of the 100 Best Companies identified offer paid maternity leave, lactation rooms, flextime, mental health consultations and elder-care resources. Ninety-eight percent of these companies offer health screening and wellness programs — particularly significant in a stress-inducing, weak economy.

The 100 Best Companies, as well as national comparisons, are profiled in the October issue of Working Mother and at workingmother.com/bestcompanies. Working Mother is a division of Bonnier Corporation.

Methodology:

Companies were selected for the 2011 Working Mother 100 Best Companies based on an extensive application with more than 650 questions that surveys the usage, availability and tracking of programs, as well as the accountability of managers who oversee them.  Seven areas were measured and scored for the 2011 initiative: workforce profile, benefits, women's issues and advancement, child care, flexible work, parental leave and company culture.  For this year's 100 Best, particular weight was given to benefits, flexibility and parental leave.  

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 the nation's largest health benefits company in terms of medical membership, with 34 million members in its affiliated health plans, and a total of more than 69 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 www.wellpoint.com. For more information about WellPoint's diversity and corporate responsibility efforts, see the company's Corporate Responsibility Report.

About Working Mother Media

Working Mother magazine reaches 2.2 million readers and is the only national magazine for career-committed mothers; WorkingMother.com (www.workingmother.com) gives working mothers @home and @work advice, solutions, and ideas. This year marks the 26th anniversary of Working Mother's signature research initiative, Working Mother 100 Best Companies, and the ninth year of the Best Companies for Multicultural Women. Working Mother Media, a division of Bonnier Corporation (www.bonnier.com), includes the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE, www.nafe.com), Diversity Best Practices (www.diversitybestpractices.com), and the Working Mother Research Institute. Working Mother Media's mission is to serve as a champion of culture change.

About Bonnier Corporation

Bonnier Corp. (www.bonniercorp.com) is one of the largest consumer-publishing groups in America and is the leading media company serving passionate, highly engaged audiences, through 50 special-interest magazines and related multimedia projects and events. Bonnier Corp. is the U.S. division of the Bonnier Group (www.bonnier.com), a 200-year-old, family-owned media group based in Sweden with business operations in 25 countries.

SOURCE WellPoint, Inc.