“WellPoint Inc. named Joseph R. Swedish as its new chief executive, unexpectedly turning to a hospital-industry veteran to lead the second-largest U.S. health insurer through the challenging implementation of the health-care overhaul.
Mr. Swedish, 61 years old, will take over as CEO on March 25, the company said. Since 2004, he has been chief executive and president of Trinity Health, a Catholic operator of 47 hospitals with revenue of around $9 billion last year.
The choice is likely to surprise investors, whose displeasure with previous WellPoint CEO Angela Braly helped lead to her resignation last August. Mr. Swedish’s career has been spent on the provider side of health care, and recently at nonprofit institutions, so he is not a familiar face for managed-care investors.
In an interview, Mr. Swedish signaled that he’s unlikely to radically change WellPoint’s current direction under interim CEO John Cannon. “I’m inheriting a springboard” that will propel the company forward, he said. “This organization has an expert leadership team.” Mr. Swedish also said his background will help him forge closer ties with health-care providers in efforts to share data and improve care and efficiency.
Under Ms. Braly, WellPoint suffered through a series of missteps, including earnings misses; a proposed premium increase in California that became a lightning rod in the health-overhaul debate and was later scaled back; and a public tiff with the Obama administration. Investor concerns crystallized after a disappointing second-quarter earnings report and guidance downgrade last July….”
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