Oct
25
New CEO Named for Aetna
Posted on Oct 25, 2010 by Sergio Ulloa (G+)
Aetna Inc., the third-largest health insurer in the US, has announced that its Chairman and current Chief Executive Officer, Ronald A. Williams, will be succeeded by the end of November 2010 by Mark T. Bertolini, current President of Aetna. Mr. Williams intends to retire, and will stay on as executive chairman until April 2011, when this role will also be assumed by Mr. Bertolini. Mr. Williams, 60, who joined Aetna in 2001 and became its CEO in 2006, brought the company back to profitability twice over the past 10 years, when revenue from premiums failed to match medical costs. The insurer managed to lower medical costs through the introduction of insurance plans with higher deductibles, a move in which Mr. Williams played an instrumental role. Mr. Bertolini, 54, joined Aetna from Cigna Corp. at the beginning of 2003 and was appointed as President in 2007. Mr. Bertolini was Senior Vice-President for national sales at Cigna from 2000 to 2002, after he served as Executive Vice-President at NYLCare Health Plans Inc., a health insurer bought by Aetna in 1998. According to analysts, one of the initial challenges for Mr. Bertolini in his new role as CEO will be to articulate how Aetna will conquer the challenges posed by the recently-passed healthcare law, something that in the view of industry observers, their close competitors have already made known their respective plans. It is anticipated that Mr. Bertolini will announce the strategic plans of Aetna for diversification of revenue sources. After the retirement of Mr. Williams becomes effective in April 2011, he will continue being a consultant for Aetna, advising on matters of public policy and federal regulatory strategy until February 2012. Insurance Company mentioned: Aetna Aetna is a leading global diversified health care benefits company head-quartered in the U.S., serving approximately 35.8 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioural health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labour groups and expatriates.