Elevance Health Profits Eclipse $1.7 Billion Despite Elevated Costs

InnovationHealthcareElevance Health Profits Eclipse $1.7 Billion Despite Elevated CostsByBruce Japsen,Senior Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Bruce Japsen writes about healthcare business and policy.Follow AuthorApr 22, 2026, 07:17am EDTApr 22, 2026, 07:24am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.Elevance Health Wednesday reported first quarter net income exceeding $1.7 billion as healthcare cost issues continued to be a drag on earnings of the nation’s second-largest health insurance company.Elevance Health Elevance Health Wednesday reported nearly $1.8 billion in first quarter net income as costs continued to be a drag on earnings of the nation’s second-largest health insurance company. Elevance, which is the nation’s second largest health insurer behind UnitedHealth Group’s UnitedHealthcare, is best known for its operation of Anthem brand Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in 14 states. In addition, Elevance manages Medicaid via contracts with multiple states and also sells individual coverage under the ACA known as Obamacare. The company also has a growing Carelon healthcare services business.Like many of its rival health insurers, the company has been battling rising medical expenses from customers in its health plans. Wednesday’s results reflected costs that are still up with the company’s benefit expense ratio, which is the percentage of premium revenue that goes toward medical costs, eclipsing 86%. “The benefit expense ratio was 86.8 percent, an increase of 40 basis points, reflecting expected elevated medical cost trend in our Medicaid business, partially offset by improved performance in Medicare,” Elevance Health said in its first quarter earnings statement.Health insurers typically want that benefit expense ratio in the mid to low 80s but that’s been largely unachievable for most health insurers for the last year or so in part...