UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)

ý QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2004

o TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from to

Commission File Number 001-13083

WELLPOINT HEALTH NETWORKS INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware		95-4635504
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)		(IRS Employer Identification No.)

1 WellPoint Way, Thousand Oaks, California		91362
(Address of principal executive offices)		(Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code (818) 234-4000

Not Applicable
(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ý No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an accelerated filer (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934). Yes ý No o

As of May 4, 2004, there were approximately 155,646,513 shares of Common Stock, $0.01 par value of the registrant outstanding.

WellPoint Health Networks Inc.

Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2004

Table of Contents

PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION			1

ITEM 1.		Financial Statements	1

	Consolidated Balance Sheets as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003		1

	Consolidated Income Statements for the Quarters Ended March 31, 2004 and 2003		2

	Consolidated Statement of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2004		3

	Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Quarters Ended March 31, 2004 and 2003		4

	Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements		5

	Report of Independent Accountants		26

ITEM 2.		Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations	27

ITEM 3.		Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk	60

ITEM 4.		Controls and Procedures	62

PART II. OTHER INFORMATION			63

ITEM 1.		Legal Proceedings	63

ITEM 2		Changes in Securities, Use of Proceeds and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities	63

ITEM 6.		Exhibits and Reports on Form 8-K	63

SIGNATURES			65

EXHIBIT INDEX			66

PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION

ITEM 1. Financial Statements

WellPoint Health Networks Inc.

Consolidated Balance Sheets

(In thousands, except share data)	March 31, 2004			December 31, 2003
	(Unaudited)
ASSETS
Current Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	1,136,636		$	1,030,327
Investments - available-for-sale, at fair value	7,565,549			6,726,802
Securities lending collateral	960,684			914,173
Receivables, net	1,561,341			1,356,107
Deferred tax assets, net	316,873			355,110
Other current assets	261,805			258,588
Total Current Assets	11,802,888			10,641,107
Property and equipment, net	458,153			441,936
Intangible assets, net	939,197			950,954
Goodwill, net	2,333,702			2,321,208
Long-term investments, at market value	148,133			161,784
Other non-current assets	274,988			271,689
Total Assets	$	15,957,061		$	14,788,678

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Current Liabilities:
Medical claims payable	$	2,639,503		$	2,747,074
Reserves for future policy benefits	111,763			129,135
Unearned premiums	665,181			629,831
Accounts payable and accrued expenses	1,299,097			1,411,391
Experience rated and other refunds	267,996			267,382
Income taxes payable	350,125			241,979
Security trades pending payable	669,111			27,456
Securities lending payable	960,684			914,173
Other current liabilities	738,235			712,273
Total Current Liabilities	7,701,695			7,080,694
Accrued postretirement benefits	153,769			152,738
Reserves for future policy benefits, non-current	317,397			288,197
Long-term debt	1,238,940			1,238,267
Deferred tax liabilities	371,001			370,737
Other non-current liabilities	226,082			228,096
Total Liabilities	10,008,884			9,358,729
Stockholders’ Equity:
Preferred Stock - $0.01 par value, 50,000,000 shares authorized, none issued and outstanding	—			—
Common Stock - $0.01 par value, 300,000,000 shares authorized, 157,482,946 and 157,006,322 issued at March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, respectively	1,575			1,570
Treasury stock, at cost, 2,171,017 and 4,248,172 shares at March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, respectively	(164,726		)	(298,049		)
Additional paid-in capital	2,374,327			2,348,506
Retained earnings	3,545,704			3,250,483
Accumulated other comprehensive income	191,297			127,439
Total Stockholders’ Equity	5,948,177			5,429,949
Total Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity	$	15,957,061		$	14,788,678

See the accompanying notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

WellPoint Health Networks Inc.

Consolidated Income Statements

(Unaudited)

	Quarter Ended March 31,
(In thousands, except earnings per share)	2004		2003
Revenues:
Premium revenue	$	5,256,303	$	4,548,305
Management services and other revenue	306,176		226,171
Investment income	83,661		66,315
	5,646,140		4,840,791
Operating Expenses:
Health care services and other benefits	4,187,351		3,717,500
Selling expense	217,122		191,997
General and administrative expense	725,723		589,669
	5,130,196		4,499,166
Operating Income	515,944		341,625
Interest expense	12,243		12,774
Other expense, net	11,666		7,004
Income before Provision for Income Taxes	492,035		321,847
Provision for income taxes	196,814		128,794
Net Income	$	295,221	$	193,053

Earnings Per Share:
Net Income	$	1.92	$	1.33

Earnings Per Share Assuming Full Dilution:
Net Income	$	1.85	$	1.29

See the accompanying notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

WellPoint Health Networks Inc.

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity

(Unaudited)

			Common Stock								Additional Paid - in Capital			Retained Earnings		Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income		Total
	Preferred Stock		Issued			In Treasury
(In thousands)	Preferred Stock		Shares	Amount		Shares		Amount
Balance as of December 31, 2003	$	—	157,006	$	1,570	4,248		$	(298,049	)	$	2,348,506		$	3,250,483	$	127,439	$	5,429,949
Stock grants to employees and directors				—		(514	)	33,119										33,119
Stock issued for employee stock option plans and stock purchase plans			477	5		(1,563	)	100,204			60,782							160,991
Net losses from treasury stock reissued											(34,961		)					(34,961		)
Comprehensive income
Net income														295,221				295,221
Other comprehensive income, net of tax
Change in unrealized valuation adjustment on investment securities, net of reclassification adjustment																63,858		63,858
Total comprehensive income														295,221		63,858		359,079

Balance as of March 31, 2004	$	—	157,483	$	1,575	2,171		$	(164,726	)	$	2,374,327		$	3,545,704	$	191,297	$	5,948,177

See the accompanying notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

WellPoint Health Networks Inc.

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Unaudited)

	Quarter Ended March 31,
(In thousands)	2004			2003
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income	$	295,221		$	193,053
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization, net of accretion	50,507			37,835
Gain on sales of assets, net	(15,507		)	(7,867		)
Amortization of deferred gain on sale of building	(131		)	—
Accretion of interest on 6 3/8% Notes due 2012 and 6 3/8% Notes due 2006	74			70
(Increase) decrease in certain assets, net of effect of businesses acquired and sold:
Receivables, net	(99,414		)	(169,745		)
Other current assets	(3,275		)	(26,028		)
Other non-current assets	96			4,530
Increase (decrease) in certain liabilities, net of effect of businesses acquired and sold:
Medical claims payable	(107,585		)	86,341
Reserves for future policy benefits	11,828			11,991
Unearned premiums	35,350			7,905
Accounts payable and accrued expenses	(62,960		)	(40,384		)
Experience rated and other refunds	614			(4,078		)
Income taxes payable	175,966			128,836
Other current liabilities	25,927			89,143
Accrued postretirement benefits	1,031			2,218
Other non-current liabilities	(1,883		)	(173		)
Net cash provided by operating activities	305,859			313,647
Cash flows from investing activities:
Investments purchased	(1,462,723		)	(2,046,457		)
Proceeds from investments sold and matured	1,231,876			2,045,006
Property and equipment purchased	(52,322		)	(23,268		)
Proceeds from property and equipment sold	7,935			117
Additional cash used for prior period acquisitions	(10,583		)	—
Proceeds from sale of business, net of cash sold	1,262			—
Net cash used in investing activities	(284,555		)	(24,602		)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Net borrowing of commercial paper	(2,795		)	149,878
Change in advances on securities lending deposits	46,511			37,050
Proceeds from issuance of Common Stock	41,289			40,272
Common Stock repurchased	—			(192,414		)
Net cash provided by financing activities	85,005			34,786
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents	106,309			323,831
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period	1,030,327			1,355,616
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	1,136,636		$	1,679,447

See the accompanying notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

WellPoint Health Networks Inc.

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

(Unaudited)

1. Organization

WellPoint Health Networks Inc. (the “Company” or “WellPoint”) is one of the nation’s largest publicly traded managed health care companies. As of March 31, 2004, WellPoint had approximately 15.4 million medical members (including approximately 1.2 million BlueCard “host” members) and approximately 45.9 million specialty members. Through its subsidiaries, the Company offers a broad spectrum of network-based managed care plans to the large and small employer, individual, Medicaid and senior markets. The Company’s managed care plans include preferred provider organizations (“PPOs”), health maintenance organizations (“HMOs”), point-of-service (“POS”) plans, other hybrid plans and traditional indemnity plans. In addition, the Company offers managed care services, including underwriting, actuarial services, network access, medical management and claims processing. The Company also provides a broad array of specialty and other products and services including pharmacy benefits management, dental, vision, life insurance, preventive care, disability insurance, behavioral health, COBRA and flexible benefits account administration. With its recent acquisition of Cobalt Corporation, the Company now also offers workers’ compensation insurance products and is currently the largest Medicare Part A fiscal intermediary in the nation, processing claims for providers in all 50 states. The Company markets its products in California primarily under the name Blue Cross of California, in Georgia primarily under the name Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia, in various parts of Missouri (including the greater St. Louis area) primarily under the name Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri, in Wisconsin primarily under the names Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wisconsin and CompcareBlue and in various parts of the country under the names UNICARE and HealthLink. These products are marketed by the Company’s various operating subsidiaries throughout the United States. The Company’s customer base is diversified, with extensive membership among large and small employer groups and individuals and in the Medicare and Medicaid markets.

2. Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements of WellPoint have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) for interim financial reporting. In accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC, certain footnotes or other financial information have been condensed or omitted if they substantially duplicate the disclosures contained in the Company’s annual audited financial statements. In the opinion of management, the interim financial statements reflect all material adjustments (which are of a normal recurring nature) necessary for a fair statement of its financial position as of March 31, 2004, the results of its operations for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, its changes in stockholders’ equity for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 and its cash flows for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003. The results of operations for the interim periods presented are not necessarily indicative of the operating results for the full year. These unaudited consolidated financial statements should be read together with the consolidated financial statements and notes included in the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2003. The Company has

reclassified certain prior year amounts in the accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements to conform to the 2004 presentation.

3. New Accounting Pronouncements

In December 2003, the FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 132 (revised 2003), “Employers’ Disclosures about Pensions and Other Postretirement Benefits - an amendment of FASB Statements No. 87, 88, and 106” (“SFAS No. 132R”). SFAS No. 132R retains the disclosure requirements contained in FASB Statement No. 132, “Employers’ Disclosures about Pensions and Other Postretirement Benefits” (“SFAS No. 132”), and also requires additional disclosures to those in the original SFAS No. 132 that a company is required to make in its annual and interim financial statements. Except as noted, disclosures required by SFAS No. 132R are effective for financial statements with fiscal years ending after December 15, 2003. The disclosure of estimated future benefit payments required by SFAS No. 132R is effective for fiscal years ending after June 15, 2004. The adoption of SFAS No. 132R did not have a material effect on the consolidated financial statements of the Company.

On December 8, 2003, the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 (“MMA”) was signed into law. MMA introduced a voluntary Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit and created a new 28% federal subsidy for the sponsors of the postretirement prescription drug benefits that are at least actuarially equivalent to the new Medicare Part D benefit. In January 2004, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. FAS 106-1, “Accounting and Disclosure Requirements Related to the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003” (“FSP FAS 106-1”). Under FSP FAS 106-1, which guidance is based on FASB Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 106, “Accounting for Postretirement Benefits Other Than Pensions,” sponsors must consider the two new features of MMA in measuring the accumulated postretirement benefit obligation (“APBO”) and net periodic postretirement benefit cost. In accordance with FSP FAS 106-1, the Company made a one-time election to recognize the impact of MMA. Accordingly, any measures of APBO and net periodic postretirement benefit cost in the Company’s consolidated financial statements and the related footnotes for the year ended December 31, 2003 include the effects of MMA. The adoption of the FSP FAS 106-1 did not have a material effect on the consolidated financial statements of the Company. Currently, specific authoritative guidance on the accounting for the federal subsidy is pending and that guidance, when issued, could require the Company to change previously reported information.

4. Acquisitions

On October 31, 2003, Company completed its acquisition of Health Core Inc. (“Health Core”). Health Core currently provides outcomes research services to health plans and pharmaceutical organizations. The purchase price and related acquisition costs of approximately $4.1 million exceeded the estimated fair value of net assets acquired by $2.9 million. Under the purchase method of accounting, the Company assigned this amount to goodwill. The operating results

for Health Core are included in WellPoint’s consolidated income statements for periods following the completion of the acquisition.

On September 24, 2003, the Company completed its acquisition of Cobalt, the parent company of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wisconsin. Cobalt served approximately 675,000 medical members (excluding BlueCard “host” members) as of September 30, 2003. The transaction was effective as of September 30, 2003 for accounting purposes. The operating results for Cobalt are included in WellPoint’s consolidated income statement for periods following September 30, 2003. Under the terms of the transaction, total consideration paid to all holders of Cobalt common stock in the merger was approximately $427.5 million in cash and approximately 7.3 million newly issued shares of WellPoint Common Stock (which included approximately 2.1 million shares issued to affiliates). The total purchase price of approximately $884.9 million valued as of September 24, 2003 was used to purchase net assets with a fair value of approximately $251.3 million. Included in the total purchase price was $12.1 million used to retire Cobalt’s existing long-term debt at the time of acquisition. As a result of the acquisition of Cobalt, the Company incurred $34.0 million in expenses, primarily related to transaction costs. Generally accepted accounting principles require that these expenses, which are not associated with the generation of future revenues and have no future economic benefit, be reflected as assumed liabilities in the allocation of the purchase price to the net assets acquired. Estimated goodwill and other intangibles totaling $861.6 million includes $96.5 million of deferred tax liabilities relating to identified intangibles. Identified intangibles with definite useful lives are being amortized on a straight-line basis or the timing of related cash flows depending upon the expected amortization pattern over three to 23 years. The valuation process is not yet complete and, therefore, the allocation between goodwill and intangible assets recorded as of March 31, 2004 represents an estimate. As a result, the useful lives and method of amortization are only preliminary estimates. The current estimated purchase price allocation between goodwill and identifiable intangible assets is $620.3 million and $241.3 million, respectively. The entire estimated goodwill amount of $620.3 million is not deductible for tax purposes.

On June 30, 2003, the Company completed its acquisition of Golden West Health Plan, Inc. (“Golden West”) for a purchase price of approximately $30.4 million. Upon completion of the acquisition, Golden West had net assets with a fair value of approximately $0.4 million and served more than 275,000 dental and vision members. As a result of the acquisition of Golden West, the Company incurred $0.4 million in expenses primarily related to transaction costs. The estimated purchase price allocation between goodwill and identifiable intangible assets was $17.3 million and $13.0 million, respectively. The operating results for Golden West are included in WellPoint’s consolidated income statements for periods following the completion of the acquisition.

5. Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

In accordance with SFAS No. 142, the Company completed the annual evaluation of its goodwill and other intangible assets at December 31, 2003, and determined that there was no impairment loss.

The changes in the carrying amount of goodwill by reportable segment are as follows:

(In thousands)	Health Care		Specialty		Corporate and Other		Consolidated
Balance as of January 1, 2003	$	1,676,800	$	14,971	$	—	$	1,691,771
Goodwill acquired during 2003	607,826		17,248		2,892		627,966
Final purchase accounting adjustments for RightCHOICE goodwill	1,471		—		—		1,471
Balance as of December 31, 2003	2,286,097		32,219		2,892		2,321,208
Purchase accounting adjustments for Cobalt goodwill	12,440		—		—		12,440
Other goodwill adjustments	—		39		15		54
Balance as of March 31, 2004	$	2,298,537	$	32,258	$	2,907	$	2,333,702

On October 31, 2003, WellPoint completed its acquisition of Health Core, as discussed in Note 4. As a result of the acquisition of Health Core, the Company recorded $2.9 million of goodwill as of March 31, 2004.

On September 24, 2003, WellPoint completed its acquisition of Cobalt, as discussed in Note 4. As a result of the acquisition of Cobalt, the Company recorded $620.3 million of goodwill and $241.3 million of identifiable intangible assets as of March 31, 2004. The valuation process is not yet complete and, therefore, the allocation between goodwill and other intangible assets recorded as of March 31, 2004 represents an estimate. The Company assumes no residual value for its amortizable intangible assets. The following table presents details of the acquired amortized and non-amortized intangible assets of Cobalt at cost as of March 31, 2004.

(In thousands)	Gross Carrying Value		Useful Life (in years)	Weighted Average Useful Life (in years)
Amortized intangible assets:
Provider relationships	$	3,450	11 to 23	16.7
Customer contracts and related customer relationships	70,000		3 to 16	9.0
Total amortized intangible assets	73,450			9.4

Non-amortized intangible assets:
Provider relationships	552		Indefinite	Indefinite
Trade names and service marks	167,300		Indefinite	Indefinite
Total non-amortized intangible assets	167,852

Total other intangible assets	$	241,302

On June 30, 2003, WellPoint completed its acquisition of Golden West, as discussed in Note 4. As a result of the acquisition of Golden West, the Company recorded $17.3 million of goodwill and $13.0 million of identifiable intangible assets as of March 31, 2004. The valuation process is not yet complete and, therefore, the allocation between goodwill and other intangible assets recorded as of March 31, 2004 represents an estimate. The Company assumes no residual value for its amortizable intangible assets. The following table presents details of the acquired amortized and non-amortized intangible assets of Golden West at cost as of March 31, 2004.

(In thousands)	Gross Carrying Value		Useful Life (in years)	Weighted Average Useful Life (in years)
Amortized intangible assets:
Customer contracts and related customer relationships	$	5,000	12	12.0
Total amortized intangible assets	5,000

Non-amortized intangible assets:
Trade names and service marks	8,000		Indefinite	Indefinite
Total non-amortized intangible assets	8,000

Total other intangible assets	$	13,000

The gross carrying value, accumulated amortization and net carrying value of other intangible assets of the Company as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003 were as follows:

(In thousands)	Gross Carrying Value		Accumulated Amortization		Net Carrying Value		Amortizat- ion Period (in years)
As of March 31, 2004
Amortized intangible assets:
Provider relationships	$	33,424	$	5,768	$	27,656	10 to 25
Customer contracts and related customer relationships	427,974		122,185		305,789		1.5 to 20
Other	21,968		10,450		11,518		5 to 20
Total amortized intangible assets	483,366		138,403		344,963

Non-amortized intangible assets:
Provider relationships	17,674		98		17,576		Indefinite
Trade names and service marks	579,300		2,642		576,658		Indefinite
Total non-amortized intangible assets	596,974		2,740		594,234

Total other intangible assets	$	1,080,340	$	141,143	$	939,197

(In thousands)	Gross Carrying Value		Accumulated Amortization		Net Carrying Value		Amortizat- ion Period (in years)
As of December 31, 2003
Amortized intangible assets:
Provider relationships	$	33,424	$	5,349	$	28,075	10 to 25
Customer contracts and related customer relationships	427,974		111,351		316,623		1.5 to 20
Other	21,968		9,946		12,022		5 to 20
Total amortized intangible assets	483,366		126,646		356,720

Non-amortized intangible assets:
Provider relationships	17,674		98		17,576		Indefinite
Trade names and service marks	579,300		2,642		576,658		Indefinite
Total non-amortized intangible assets	596,974		2,740		594,234

Total other intangible assets	$	1,080,340	$	129,386	$	950,954

For the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, amortization expense relating to intangible assets was $11.8 million and $9.1 million, respectively. The following table presents the Company’s estimated annual amortization expense for amortized intangible assets for each of the years ending December 31, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 (amounts in thousands). These estimates were calculated based on the gross carrying value of amortized intangible assets as of March 31, 2004 using the applicable amortization period.

For year ending December 31, 2004	$	47,028
For year ending December 31, 2005	43,648
For year ending December 31, 2006	37,102
For year ending December 31, 2007	32,412
For year ending December 31, 2008	28,945

6. Pension Benefits

The Company maintains three non-contributory defined benefit pension plans. The Restated Employees’ Retirement Plan of Blue Cross of California (the “BCC Plan”) covers employees of a collective bargaining unit. The WellPoint Health Networks Inc. Pension Accumulation Plan (the “WellPoint Pension Plan”), which was established on January 1, 1987, covers all eligible employees (employees covered under a collective bargaining agreement participate if the terms of the collective bargaining agreement permits) meeting certain age and service requirements. In addition, with the completion of the acquisition of Cobalt, WellPoint became the sponsor of Cobalt’s UGS Pension Plan (“UGS Plan”). The UGS Plan provides retirement benefits to covered employees based primarily on compensation and years of service. Plan assets are invested primarily in pooled income funds. The Company’s policy is to fund its plans according to the requirements of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974,

as amended, and applicable income tax regulations. The Company uses the projected unit credit method of cost determination. In October 2003, the Company amended the WellPoint Pension Plan effective January 1, 2004. Beginning January 1, 2004, employees who are of age 50 and over, with combined age and service totaling 65 or higher as of December 31, 2003, will continue to earn future contributions under the WellPoint Pension Plan based on eligible compensation. For other employees, the funds in their pension account earned through December 31, 2003 will continue to accrue interest. However, there will be no additional contributions based on the employee’s earnings after December 31, 2003. Once the employee becomes vested (after five years of service), the employee will be eligible to receive a benefit from the WellPoint Pension Plan at retirement or termination based on his or her account balance as of December 31, 2003 plus accrued interest. Employees hired after December 31, 2003 will not be eligible to participate in the WellPoint Pension Plan.

Estimated net periodic pension expense for the Company’s defined benefit pension plans included the following components:

	Quarter Ended March 31,
(In thousands)	2004			2003

Service cost—benefits earned during the quarter	$	1,893		$	4,888
Interest cost on projected benefits obligations	5,682			4,910
Expected return on plan assets	(6,962		)	(4,902		)
Amortization of prior service cost	19			24
Recognized net actuarial loss	1,697			2,206
Curtailment charge	—			310
Net periodic pension expense	$	2,329		$	7,436

Based on the funded status of all of WellPoint’s pension plans, during 2004 the Company expects to contribute approximately $17.3 million, $0.8 million and $5.9 million to the WellPoint Pension Plan, BCC Plan and UGS Plan, respectively. As of March 31, 2004, $0.2 million in contributions have been made to WellPoint’s pension plans.

7. Long-Term Debt

The carrying amount of the Company’s long-term indebtedness consisted of the following:

(In thousands)	March 31, 2004		December 31, 2003

6 ³/₈% Notes due 2006	$	462,812	$	459,366
6 ³/₈% Notes due 2012	349,090		349,068
Commercial paper program	427,038		429,833
Total long-term debt	$	1,238,940	$	1,238,267

6³/₈% Notes due 2012

On January 16, 2002, the Company issued $350.0 million aggregate principal amount at maturity of 6 3/8% Notes due January 15, 2012 (the “2012 Notes”). The net proceeds of this offering totaled approximately $348.9 million. The 2012 Notes bear interest at a rate of 6 3/8% per annum, payable semi-annually in arrears on January 15 and July 15 of each year commencing July 15, 2002. Interest is computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months. At March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the Company had $349.1 million, (based upon the principal amount of $350.0 million less unamortized discount) of 2012 Notes outstanding. The related interest expense and amortization of discount and issue costs for each of the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003 totaled $5.7 million.

The 2012 Notes may be redeemed, in whole or in part, at the Company’s option at any time. The redemption price for any 2012 Notes redeemed will be equal to the greater of the following amounts: 1) 100% of the principal amount of the 2012 Notes being redeemed on the redemption date; or 2) the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest on the 2012 Notes being redeemed on that redemption date (not including any portion of any payments of interest accrued to the redemption date) discounted to the redemption date on a semi-annual basis at the Treasury rate as determined by the Reference Treasury Dealer (J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. or Deutsche Banc Alex Brown or their respective successors), plus 25 basis points. In each case, the redemption price will also include accrued and unpaid interest on the 2012 Notes to the redemption date.

6³/₈% Notes due 2006

On June 15, 2001, the Company issued $450.0 million aggregate principal amount at maturity of 6 3/8% Notes due June 15, 2006 (the “2006 Notes”). The net proceeds of this offering totaled approximately $449.0 million. The net proceeds from the sale of the 2006 Notes were used for repayment of indebtedness under the Company’s revolving credit facilities. The 2006 Notes bear interest at a rate of 6 3/8% per annum, payable semi-annually in arrears on June 15 and December 15 of each year commencing December 15, 2001. Interest is computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months. At March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the Company had $449.5 million (based upon the principal amount of $450.0 million less unamortized discount) of 2006 Notes outstanding. The related interest expense and amortization of discount and issue costs for each of the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003 was $7.4 million.

The 2006 Notes may be redeemed, in whole or in part, at the Company’s option at any time. The redemption price for any 2006 Notes redeemed will be equal to the greater of the following amounts: 1) 100% of the principal amount of the 2006 Notes being redeemed on the redemption date; or 2) the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest on the 2006 Notes being redeemed on that redemption date (not including any portion of any payments of interest accrued to the redemption date) discounted to the redemption date on a semi-annual basis at the Treasury rate as determined by the designated Reference Treasury Dealer (Salomon Smith Barney Inc. or UBS Warburg LLC or

their respective successors), plus 25 basis points. In each case, the redemption price will also include accrued and unpaid interest on the 2006 Notes to the redemption date.

With the intention of reducing the interest expense associated with the 2006 Notes, the Company, on January 15, 2002, entered into a $200.0 million notional amount interest rate swap agreement. The swap agreement is a contract to exchange a fixed 6 3/8% rate for a LIBOR-based floating rate. The swap agreement expires June 15, 2006. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the Company recognized a liability adjustment, for the change in the fair value of the interest rate swap agreement, of $13.3 million and $9.9 million, respectively, related to the 2006 Notes. The Company recognized settlement income of $1.9 million for the each of the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003 from this interest rate swap, which offset the Company’s interest expense for the respective years (see Note 8).

The 2012 and 2006 Notes are unsecured obligations and rank equally with all of the Company’s existing and future senior unsecured indebtedness. All existing and future liabilities of the Company’s subsidiaries are and will be effectively senior to the 2012 and 2006 Notes. The indenture governing the 2012 and 2006 Notes contains a covenant that limits the ability of the Company and its subsidiaries to create liens on any of their property or assets to secure certain indebtedness without also securing the indebtedness under the 2012 and 2006 Notes.

Revolving Credit Facility

Effective as of March 30, 2001, the Company entered into two unsecured revolving credit facilities allowing aggregate indebtedness of $1.0 billion in principal amount. Borrowings under these facilities (which are generally referred to collectively as the Company’s “revolving credit facility”) bear interest at rates determined by reference to the bank’s base rate or London InterBank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) plus a margin determined by reference to the then-current rating of the Company’s unsecured long-term debt by specified rating agencies. A facility fee based on the facility amount, regardless of utilization, is payable quarterly. The facility fee rate is also determined by the senior unsecured long-term debt ratings by specified rating agencies. One facility, which provides for borrowings not to exceed $750.0 million at any time outstanding, expires on March 30, 2006, although it may be extended for up to two additional one-year periods under certain circumstances. The other facility, which provides for borrowings not to exceed $250.0 million at any time outstanding, expires on March 25, 2005. Any amount outstanding under this facility as of March 25, 2005 may be converted into a one-year term loan at the option of the Company and will bear interest at rates determined by reference to the bank’s base rate or LIBOR plus a margin determined by reference to the then-current rating of the Company’s unsecured long-term debt by specified rating agencies, plus 0.125% until paid in full.

Loans under the $250.0 million facility are made on a committed basis. Loans under the $750.0 million facility are made on a committed basis or pursuant to an auction bid process. The $750.0 million facility also contains sublimits for letters of credit and “swingline” loans. Each credit agreement requires the Company to maintain certain financial ratios and contains

restrictive covenants, including restrictions on the incurrence of additional indebtedness and the granting of certain liens, limitations on acquisitions and investments and limitations on changes in control. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the Company had no amounts outstanding under the revolving credit facility.

Commercial Paper Program

In April 2002, the Company commenced a commercial paper program providing for the issuance of up to $1.0 billion in aggregate maturity value of short-term indebtedness (known generally as “commercial paper”). The commercial paper is being issued by the Company without registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”) in reliance upon the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(2) of the 1933 Act. The commercial paper is issued in denominations of $100,000 or integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof and will bear such interest rates, if interest-bearing, or will be sold at such discount from their face amounts, as agreed upon by the Company and the dealer or dealers acting in connection with the commercial paper program. The commercial paper may be issued with varying maturities up to a maximum of 270 days from the date of issuance. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, outstanding commercial paper totaled approximately $427.0 million and $429.8 million, respectively. The average maturity for the commercial paper was 36 days as of March 31, 2004 and 43 days as of December 31, 2003. The weighted average yield on the outstanding commercial paper as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003 was 1.16% and 1.25%, respectively. The Company intends to maintain commercial paper borrowings of at least the amount outstanding at March 31, 2004 for more than one year. Accordingly, for financial reporting purposes, the commercial paper has been classified under non-current liabilities in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets. Under the Company’s merger agreement with Anthem, Inc., however, the Company has agreed to repurchase, prior to the closing of the merger with Anthem, any outstanding commercial paper issued by the Company or any of its subsidiaries. The related interest expense for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003 was $1.3 million and $1.1 million, respectively.

Debt Covenants

The Company’s revolving credit facility requires the maintenance of certain financial ratios and contains other restrictive covenants, including restrictions on the incurrence of additional indebtedness by subsidiaries and the granting of certain liens, limitations on acquisitions and investments and limitations on changes in control. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the Company was in compliance with the requirements in these agreements.

8. Hedging Activities

The Company maintains an interest rate risk management strategy that uses derivative instruments to minimize significant, unanticipated earnings fluctuations caused by interest rate volatility. The Company’s goal is to maintain a balance between fixed and floating interest rates on its long-term debt.

By using derivative financial instruments to hedge exposures to changes in interest rates, the Company exposes itself to credit risk and market risk. Market risk is the adverse effect on the value of a financial instrument that results from a change in interest rates. The Company manages exposure to market risk associated with interest rate contracts by establishing and monitoring parameters that limit the types and degree of market risk that may be undertaken.

The Company uses interest rate swap agreements to manage interest rate exposures. The principal objective of such contracts is to minimize the risks and/or costs associated with financial and investing activities. The Company does not use derivative financial instruments for speculative purposes. The counterparties to these contractual arrangements are major financial institutions with which the Company also has other financial relationships. These counterparties expose the Company to credit loss in the event of non-performance. However, the Company does not anticipate non-performance by the other parties. As of March 31, 2004, the Company reported a derivative asset of $13.3 million related to a fair value hedge.

Fair Value Hedges

With the intention of reducing the interest expense associated with the 2006 Notes, the Company, on January 15, 2002, entered into a $200.0 million notional amount interest rate swap agreement. The swap agreement is a contract to exchange a fixed 6 3/8% rate for a LIBOR-based floating rate. The swap agreement expires June 15, 2006. The Company recognized $1.9 million for each of the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, in income from this swap agreement, which was recorded as a reduction to interest expense. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the Company recognized a derivative asset of $13.3 million and $9.9 million, respectively, related to this swap agreement.

Cash Flow Hedges

The Company has entered into interest rate swap agreements to reduce the impact of changes in interest rates on its floating rate debt under its revolving credit facility. The swap agreements were contracts to exchange variable-rate for fixed-rate interest payments without the exchange of the underlying notional amounts.

In September 2002, the Company terminated and settled its $150.0 million and $50.0 million notional amount interest rate swap agreements with original expiration dates of October 17, 2003 and October 17, 2006, respectively. At termination, the Company paid $17.6 million, of which $1.8 million was accrued interest and the remaining $15.8 million represented the fair value of the swap agreements at the time of termination. The fair value of the swap agreements was reflected in accumulated other comprehensive income and will be amortized as a reduction to investment income on a straight-line basis over the shorter of the original expiration dates of the interest rate swap agreements or the expected cash flows of the commercial paper program. The fair value of the $150.0 million and $50.0 million notional amount swap agreements, at termination, were $8.0 million and $7.8 million, respectively. Amortization of other comprehensive income related to the terminated swaps on a pre-tax basis for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003 totaled $0.5 million, or $0.3 million

after-tax, and $2.4 million, or $1.4 million after-tax, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2003, the fair value of the $150.0 million notional amount swap agreement in other comprehensive income was fully amortized. The unamortized pre-tax amount in other comprehensive income related to the $50.0 million notional amount swap agreement as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003 totaled $4.9 million and $5.4 million, respectively.

9. Stock-Based Compensation

At March 31, 2004, the Company had three stock-based employee compensation plans: the 1999 Stock Incentive Plan, the 2000 Employee Stock Option Plan and the Employee Stock Purchase Plan. The Company accounts for these plans under the recognition and measurement principles of APB Opinion No. 25, “Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees” and related FASB interpretations. Accordingly, compensation cost for stock options under existing plans is measured as the excess, if any, of the quoted market price of the Company’s Common Stock at the date of the grant over the amount an employee must pay to acquire the stock. No stock-based employee compensation cost is reflected in net income related to stock options granted because options granted under those plans had an exercise price equal to the market value of the underlying Common Stock on the date of grant. In addition, no compensation expense is recorded for purchases under the Employee Stock Purchase Plan in accordance with APB No. 25. Employee stock-based compensation included in reported net income includes restricted stock awards being amortized over the award’s vesting period.

The following table illustrates the pro forma effect on net income and earnings per share if the Company had applied the fair value recognition provisions of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation” as amended by Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 148, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation-Transition and Disclosure,” for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003.

	Quarter Ended March 31,
(In millions, except per share amounts)	2004			2003

Net income—as reported	$	295.2		$	193.1
Add: Stock-based employee compensation expense included in reported net income, net of related tax effects	2.6			0.4
Less: Total stock-based employee compensation expense determined under fair value based method for all awards, net of related tax effects	(29.6		)	(17.2		)
Net income—pro forma	$	268.2		$	176.3

Earnings per share—as reported	$	1.92		$	1.33
Earnings per share—pro forma	$	1.74		$	1.21
Earnings per share assuming full dilution-as reported	$	1.85		$	1.29
Earnings per share assuming full dilution-pro forma	$	1.68		$	1.18

The above pro forma disclosures may not be representative of the effects on reported pro forma net income for future years.

10. Earnings Per Share

The following is an illustration of the dilutive effect of the Company’s potential Common Stock on earnings per share. Outstanding stock options for which the exercise price was greater than the average market per share price of Common Stock were as follows: 842,000 and 762,000 for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, respectively. Since the effect of these options was antidilutive, they have been excluded from the computation of the diluted earnings per share below.

	Quarter Ended March 31,
(In thousands, except per share data)	2004		2003
Numerator
Net Income	$	295,221	$	193,053

Denominator
Weighted average shares outstanding	153,939		145,613
Net effect of dilutive stock options	5,459		3,558
Fully diluted weighted average shares outstanding	159,398		149,171

Earnings Per Share	$	1.92	$	1.33
Earnings Per Share Assuming Full Dilution	$	1.85	$	1.29

11. Comprehensive Income

The following summarizes comprehensive income (loss) reclassification adjustments for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003:

	Quarter Ended March 31,
(In thousands)	2004		2003

Investment Securities:
Net holding gain (loss) on investment securities arising during the period, net of tax (expense) benefit of $(32,797) and $6,794	$	53,919	$	(10,635	)
Reclassification adjustment for realized gain on investment securities, net of tax expense of $6,627 and $2,455	9,939		3,737
Net gain (loss) recognized in other comprehensive income, net of tax (expense) benefit of $(39,424) and $4,339	$	63,858	$	(6,898	)

12. Business Segment Information

The Company maintains the following two reportable segments: Health Care and Specialty. The Health Care segment, prior to the acquisition of Cobalt, was an aggregation of four operating segments: California, Central, Georgia and Senior/State-Sponsored Programs. With the acquisition of Cobalt on September 24, 2003, the Health Care segment increased to five operating segments with the addition of the Wisconsin region. These Health Care operating segments all have similar characteristics and meet the following five aggregation criteria as defined under paragraph 17 of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 131, “Disclosures About Segments of an Enterprise and Related Information” (“SFAS No. 131”):

(1) All operating segments provide similar health care products to similar customer types. WellPoint generally markets the same health care products across the country for each of its customer groups.

(2) The production processes are substantially similar for all operating segments as they support similar customer groups and products.

(3) Each operating segment has the same class of customers, primarily large employer groups and individual and small employer groups.

(4) Each operating segment has similar distribution channels that are used for each of the customer types. Large employer group products are distributed primarily through health care consultants and brokers, while individual and small group products are

distributed through agents or through captive sales forces. These methods are similar across geographies.

(5) The health care industry is highly regulated at both the federal and state levels. All of the geographies must comply with the same federal regulations. While each state’s laws are in some respects unique, many states have similar laws and regulations applicable to managed care and insurance companies.

The Company’s focus on regional concentration allows management to understand and meet customer needs while effectively managing the cost structure. The Company’s chief operating decision maker (Chief Executive Officer) reviews the results of operations on a regular basis and holds each Division President accountable for his or her segment’s operating results. These operating segments composing the Health Care segment provide a broad spectrum of network-based health plans, including PPOs, HMOs, POS plans, other hybrid plans and traditional indemnity plans, to large and small employers and individuals as well as other health care-related products, such as vision, preventive care, COBRA and flexible benefits account administration. The Specialty business is maintained as a separate segment providing an array of specialty products, including pharmacy benefits management, dental, life insurance, disability insurance, behavioral health, workers’ compensation insurance products and workers’ compensation managed care services. Amounts under the heading “Corporate and Other” include net investment income, general and administrative expense and interest expense not allocable to the reportable segments. Also included in Corporate and Other are the operating results from the Company’s captive general insurance agency, which has not met the quantitative thresholds for an operating segment under SFAS No. 131.

The accounting policies of the segments are consistent with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States. The following tables present segment information for the Health Care and Specialty segments for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003.

Intersegment revenues include internal pharmaceutical sales by the Company’s mail order pharmacy to the Health Care segment’s members, utilization review fees (primarily related to behavioral health services) and claims and rebate processing fees recognized by the Specialty segment for pharmacy benefit management services provided to the Health Care segment. For the quarter ended March 31, 2004, pharmaceutical sales totaled $112.0 million and utilization review fees and claims and rebate processing fees totaled $23.3 million. For the quarter ended March 31, 2003, pharmaceutical sales totaled $93.1 million and utilization review fees and claims and rebate processing fees totaled $21.6 million. All intersegment transactions are eliminated in consolidation under the caption “Corporate and Other.”

Quarter Ended March 31, 2004

(In thousands)	Health Care		Specialty		Corporate and Other			Consolidated

Premium revenue	$	5,072,731	$	183,572	$	-		$	5,256,303
Management services and other revenue	254,913		48,893		2,370			306,176
Total revenue from external customers	5,327,644		232,465		2,370			5,562,479
Intersegment revenues	—		135,321		(135,321		)	—

Segment net income	$	254,345	$	35,000	$	5,876		$	295,221

Quarter Ended March 31, 2003

(In thousands)	Health Care		Specialty		Corporate and Other			Consolidated


Premium revenue	$	4,417,465	$	130,840	$	—		$	4,548,305
Management services and other revenue	188,534		36,967		670			226,171
Total revenue from external customers	4,605,999		167,807		670			4,774,476
Intersegment revenues	—		114,667		(114,667		)	—

Segment net income (loss)	$	173,040	$	31,708	$	(11,695	)	$	193,053

13. Related Party Transactions

In December 2000, the Company formed The WellPoint Foundation (the “Foundation”), a non-profit organization exempt from federal taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The purpose of the Foundation is to improve the health and well-being of individuals in the communities served by the Company and its subsidiaries. The Foundation’s Board of Directors is composed solely of persons who are also officers of the Company. For the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, the Company committed and contributed $15.0 million and $10.0 million, respectively, to the Foundation. As of March 31, 2004 and 2003, the Company did not have any outstanding commitments payable to the Foundation. The Company currently has no legal obligations for any future commitments to the Foundation.

14. Contingencies

a significant punitive damage award, could have a material adverse effect on the Company. In addition, the risk of potential liability under punitive damage theories may increase significantly the difficulty of obtaining reasonable settlements of coverage claims.

In May 2000, the California Medical Association filed a lawsuit in U.S. district court in San Francisco against BCC. The lawsuit alleges that BCC violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) through various misrepresentations to and inappropriate actions against health care providers. In late 1999, a number of class-action lawsuits were brought against several of the Company’s competitors alleging, among other things, various misrepresentations regarding their health plans and breaches of fiduciary obligations to health plan members. In August 2000, the Company was added as a party to Shane v. Humana, et al., a class-action lawsuit brought on behalf of health care providers nationwide. In addition to the RICO claims brought in the California Medical Association lawsuit, this lawsuit also alleges violations of ERISA, federal and state “prompt pay” regulations and certain common law claims. In October 2000, the federal Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation issued an order consolidating the California Medical Association lawsuit, the Shane lawsuit and various other pending managed care class-action lawsuits against other companies before District Court Judge Federico Moreno in the Southern District of Florida for purposes of the pretrial proceedings. In March 2001, Judge Moreno dismissed the plaintiffs’ claims based on violation of RICO, although the dismissal was made without prejudice to the plaintiffs’ ability to subsequently refile their claims. Judge Moreno also dismissed, with prejudice, the plaintiffs’ federal prompt pay law claims. On March 26, 2001, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint in its lawsuit, alleging, among other things, revised RICO claims and violations of California law. On May 3, 2001, the defendants filed a motion to dismiss this amended complaint. On May 9, 2001, Judge Moreno issued an order requiring that all discovery in the litigation be completed by December 2001, with the exception of discovery related to expert witnesses, which was to be completed by March 15, 2002. In June 2001, the federal Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit issued a stay of Judge Moreno’s discovery order, pending a hearing before the Court of Appeals on the Company’s appeal of its motion to compel arbitration (which had earlier been granted in part and denied in part by Judge Moreno). The hearing was held in January 2002 and, in March 2002, the Court of Appeals panel issued an opinion affirming Judge Moreno’s earlier action with respect to the motion to compel arbitration. The Company filed a motion requesting a rehearing of the matter before the entire 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which motion was denied by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in June 2002. On July 29, 2002, Judge Moreno issued an order providing that discovery in the case would be allowed to re-commence on September 30, 2002. On September 26, 2002, Judge Moreno issued an additional order certifying a nationwide class of physicians in the Shane matter, setting a trial date in May 2003 and ordering the parties to participate in non-binding mediation. In October 2002, the defendants, among other things, moved to compel arbitration of most claims (which motion was granted in part in September 2003). In October 2002, the Company also filed a motion with the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals seeking to appeal Judge Moreno’s class-certification order. The motion was granted. The 11th Circuit heard oral argument on September 11, 2003 on the Company’s appeal. A mediator has been appointed by Judge Moreno and the parties are currently conducting court-ordered mediation. On April

30, 2004, Judge Moreno set a new trial date in March 2005 and extended the deadline for discovery to September 29, 2004, which may be further extended.

In March 2002, the American Dental Association and three individual dentists filed a lawsuit in U.S. district court in Chicago against the Company and BCC. This lawsuit alleges that WellPoint and BCC engaged in conduct that constituted a breach of contract under ERISA, trade libel and tortious interference with contractual relations and existing and prospective business expectancies. The lawsuit seeks class-action status. The Company filed a motion (which was granted in July 2002) with the federal Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation requesting that the proceedings in this case be consolidated with a similar action brought against other managed care companies that has been consolidated with the Shane lawsuit. The case is currently stayed.

In May 2003, a lawsuit entitled Thomas, et al. v. Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, et al. was filed in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Florida. The attorneys representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit are primarily the attorneys representing the plaintiffs in the Shane litigation described above. The defendants in Thomas are the Company’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield-licensed subsidiaries, the BCBSA and all of the other current Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensees. The lawsuit alleges that each of the defendants engaged in similar activities and conduct as that alleged in the Shane litigation. The case has been assigned to Judge Moreno. The defendants have moved to compel arbitration and to dismiss the complaint.

On March 26, 2003, a lawsuit entitled Irwin v. AdvancePCS, et al. was filed in the California Superior Court in Alameda County, California. WellPoint and certain of its wholly owned subsidiaries are named as defendants in the lawsuit. The complaint alleges that the defendants violated California Business and Professions Code Section 17200 by engaging in unfair, fraudulent and unlawful business practices. The complaint alleges, among other things, that pharmacy benefit management companies (such as the Company’s subsidiary that does business under the tradename WellPoint Pharmacy Management) engage in unfair practices such as negotiating discounts in prices of drugs from pharmacies and negotiating rebates from drug manufacturers and retaining such discounts and rebates for their own benefit. The complaint also alleges that drugs are included in formularies in exchange for rebates and that the defendants charge patient co-payments that exceed the actual cost of generic drugs.

In early 2003, a lawsuit entitled Knecht v. Cigna, et al. was filed in U.S. District Court in Oregon. This litigation has subsequently been transferred to Judge Moreno of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. This litigation is a putative class action lawsuit on behalf of chiropractors in the western United States. The Company is a named defendant in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that each of the defendants engaged in similar activities and conduct as that alleged in the Shane litigation. The case is currently stayed.

brought on behalf of chiropractors, podiatrists and certain other types of health care practitioners nationwide. This lawsuit also alleges that the defendants engaged in similar activities and conduct as that alleged in the Shane litigation. On December 15, 2003, this lawsuit was transferred to Judge Moreno, and the case was consolidated with the Knecht lawsuit for pre-trial purposes. Both of these cases are currently stayed. In December 2003, the plaintiffs in Solomon, et al. v. Cigna, et al. filed a similar lawsuit against the Company, the Company’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield-licensed subsidiaries, the BCBSA and all of the other current Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensees. The lawsuit is entitled Solomon, et al. v. Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, et al. and was filed in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District in Florida. On January 7, 2004, this lawsuit was transferred to Judge Moreno. On March 9, 2004, Judge Moreno issued an order restoring this case to the active docket and placing it on a coordinated track with the Thomas lawsuit.

The financial and operational impact that these and other evolving theories of recovery will have on the managed care industry generally, or the Company in particular, is at present unknown.

Prior to the Company’s acquisition of the GBO, John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company (“John Hancock”) entered into a number of reinsurance arrangements with respect to personal accident insurance and the occupational accident component of workers’ compensation insurance, a portion of which was originated through a pool managed by Unicover Managers, Inc. Under these arrangements, John Hancock assumed risks as a reinsurer and transferred certain of such risks to other companies. These arrangements have become the subject of disputes, including a number of legal proceedings to which John Hancock is a party. The Company is currently in arbitration with John Hancock regarding these arrangements. The Company believes that it has a number of defenses to avoid any ultimate liability with respect to these matters and believes that such liabilities were not transferred to the Company as part of the GBO acquisition. However, if the Company were to become subject to such liabilities, the Company could suffer losses that might have a material adverse effect on its financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

A stockholder class action lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of Ventura County, California on October 28, 2003 against the Company and its board of directors. The lawsuit, which is entitled Abrams v. WellPoint Health Networks Inc., et al., alleges that the Company’s directors breached their fiduciary duties to stockholders by approving an Agreement and Plan of Merger with Anthem while in possession of non-public information regarding the Company’s financial results for the third quarter of 2003. The lawsuit seeks to enjoin the Company from consummating the merger with Anthem, unless the Company adopts and implements a process for obtaining the highest possible price for stockholders, and to rescind any terms of the Agreement and Plan of Merger that have already been implemented. On May 7, 2004, WellPoint and the plaintiff signed a memorandum of understanding regarding a potential settlement of the action. The potential settlement contemplated by the memorandum of understanding would involve WellPoint agreeing to provide certain additional disclosures on several matters in the joint proxy statement/prospectus to be sent to WellPoint’s stockholders beyond those contained in the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus. The settlement would also provide for the payment by WellPoint of $2.25 million to the plaintiff’s counsel for fees and costs (subject to court approval). No part of the settlement costs will be paid by the WellPoint directors individually. The settlement would not involve any admissions of breaches of fiduciary duty or other wrongdoing by WellPoint or any of its directors. The settlement and payment of the plaintiff’s counsel fees would be conditioned upon, among other things, completion of the merger. Any final settlement agreement signed by the parties must be approved by the Superior Court judge assigned to the matter. While WellPoint expects to diligently negotiate the terms of a final settlement agreement, there can be no assurances that a settlement agreement will be signed.

Certain of such legal proceedings are or may be covered under insurance policies or indemnification agreements. Based upon information presently available, the Company

believes that the final outcome of all such proceedings should not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations, cash flows or financial condition.

The Company and its subsidiaries are party to a variety of agreements entered into in the ordinary course of business that contain standard indemnity provisions obligating the Company or such subsidiary to indemnify third parties for certain costs and expenses incurred by such parties in connection with such agreements. These agreements include, for example, vendor contracts, underwriting and loan agreements, consulting agreements and agreements for other services, such as custodial arrangements with respect to certain of the Company’s assets. The maximum amount of potential future payments pursuant to these standard indemnity provisions cannot be estimated because the amount of costs and expenses that may be incurred by the indemnified parties is unknown.

In connection with the formation of a joint venture providing Medicaid services in Puerto Rico in 2000, the Company agreed under certain circumstances to provide additional funds to the joint-venture entity. The Company agreed that it would make a capital contribution to the joint venture of up to 80% of any amount necessary to increase the entity’s capital to meet minimum regulatory capital requirements if (i) applicable law or regulation requires an increase in the entity’s capital and the entity does not then have capital sufficient to meet the increased requirement or (ii) the entity’s medical care ratio is 100% or greater during any 180-day period and the entity does not then meet statutory capital requirements under the Puerto Rico Insurance Code. The amount of this guarantee will not exceed 80% of the amount necessary to provide the entity with a 12 to 1 premium-to-capital ratio. As of March 31, 2004, the Company’s maximum potential liability pursuant to this guarantee was $27.3 million. Since the formation of the joint venture in 2000, the Company has not been required to make any payments under this guarantee and the Company does not currently expect that any such payments will be made.

15. Pending Merger with Anthem

On October 26, 2003, WellPoint entered into a merger agreement with Anthem, Inc. (“Anthem”). The consideration to be received by the stockholders of WellPoint will be composed of $23.80 in cash and one share of Anthem common stock per share of WellPoint Common Stock. Based on the closing price of Anthem’s common stock on October 24, 2003, the transaction was valued at approximately $16.4 billion. Upon completion of this transaction, WellPoint will merge into a wholly owned subsidiary of Anthem and Anthem will change its name to WellPoint, Inc. Anthem, a publicly traded company, is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and holds the exclusive right to use the Blue Cross and Blue Shield names and marks in the states of Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Colorado, Nevada, Maine and Virginia, excluding the immediate suburbs of Washington D.C. As of March 31, 2004, Anthem provided health care benefits to more than 12.5 million members, which includes BlueCard “host” members. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, Anthem, along with its subsidiaries, offers a diverse portfolio of complementary health and group life insurance, managed care products, pharmacy benefit management and government health program administration.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including, among other things, approval of WellPoint’s and Anthem’s shareholders and various regulatory agencies. The Company currently expects the transaction to close by mid-2004.

Report of Independent Accountants

To the Stockholders and Board of Directors of

WellPoint Health Networks Inc.

We have reviewed the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of WellPoint Health Networks Inc. and its subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of March 31, 2004, and the related consolidated income statements for each of the three-month periods ended March 31, 2004 and 2003 and the related consolidated statement of changes in stockholders’ equity for the three-month period ended March 31, 2004 and the consolidated statements of cash flows for the three-month periods ended March 31, 2004 and 2003. These interim financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management.

We conducted our review in accordance with standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. A review of interim financial information consists principally of applying analytical procedures and making inquiries of persons responsible for financial and accounting matters. It is substantially less in scope than an audit conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards, the objective of which is the expression of an opinion regarding the financial statements taken as a whole. Accordingly, we do not express such an opinion.

Based on our review, we are not aware of any material modifications that should be made to the accompanying consolidated interim financial statements for them to be in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

We previously audited in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America, the consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2003, and the related consolidated income statement and consolidated changes in stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for the year then ended (not presented herein), and in our report dated January 27, 2004 we expressed an unqualified opinion on those consolidated financial statements. Our report included an explanatory paragraph, that effective January 1, 2002, the Company adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets. Accordingly, the Company ceased amortizing goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets as of January 1, 2002. Additionally, effective January 1, 2003, the Company adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 145, Rescission of FASB No. 4, 44, and 64, Amendment of FASB Statement No. 13, and Technical Corrections. In our opinion, the information set forth in the accompanying consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2003, is fairly stated in all material respects in relation to the consolidated balance sheet from which it has been derived.

/s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Los Angeles, California
April 19, 2004, except Note 14 as to which the date is May 7, 2004

ITEM 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

This discussion contains forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties. The Company’s actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors including, but not limited to, those set forth under “Factors That May Affect Future Results of Operations.”

General

The Company is one of the nation’s largest publicly traded managed health care companies. As of March 31, 2004, WellPoint had approximately 15.4 million medical members (including approximately 1.2 million BlueCard “host” members) and approximately 45.9 million specialty members. Through its subsidiaries, the Company offers a broad spectrum of network-based managed care plans to the large and small employer, individual, Medicaid and senior markets. The Company’s managed care plans include PPOs, HMOs, POS plans, other hybrid plans and traditional indemnity plans. In addition, the Company offers managed care services, including underwriting, actuarial services, network access, medical management and claims processing. The Company also provides a broad array of specialty and other products and services, including pharmacy benefits management, dental, vision, life insurance, preventive care, disability insurance, behavioral health, COBRA and flexible benefits account administration. With its recent acquisition of Cobalt Corporation (“Cobalt”), the Company now also offers workers’ compensation insurance products and is currently the largest Medicare Part A fiscal intermediary in the nation, processing claims for providers in all 50 states. The Company markets its products in California primarily under the name Blue Cross of California, in Georgia primarily under the name Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia, in various parts of Missouri (including the greater St. Louis area) primarily under the name Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri, in Wisconsin primarily under the names Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wisconsin and CompcareBlue and in various parts of the country under the names UNICARE and HealthLink.

Acquisition of Cobalt

On September 24, 2003, the Company completed its acquisition of Cobalt (see Note 4 to the Consolidated Financial Statements). At closing, the acquisition was valued at approximately $884.9 million, which was paid with $439.6 million in cash and approximately 7.3 million shares of WellPoint Common Stock, of which approximately 2.1 million shares were issued to affiliates of WellPoint. As of September 30, 2003, Cobalt served approximately 675,000 medical members and offered a diverse portfolio of complementary insurance, managed care products and administrative services to employer, individual, insurer and government customers. The Cobalt merger was effective as of September 30, 2003 for accounting purposes.

Acquisition of Golden West

On June 30, 2003, the Company completed its acquisition of Golden West (see Note 4 to the Consolidated Financial Statements), which served over 275,000 dental and vision members, primarily in California, at the time of acquisition.

Pending Merger with Anthem

On October 26, 2003, WellPoint entered into a merger agreement with Anthem, Inc. (“Anthem”). The consideration to be received by the stockholders of WellPoint will be composed of $23.80 in cash and one share of Anthem common stock per share of WellPoint Common Stock. Based on the closing price of Anthem’s common stock on October 24, 2003, the transaction was valued at approximately $16.4 billion. Upon completion of this transaction, WellPoint will merge into a wholly owned subsidiary of Anthem and Anthem will change its name to WellPoint, Inc. Anthem, a publicly traded company, is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and holds the exclusive right to use the Blue Cross and Blue Shield names and marks in the states of Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Colorado, Nevada, Maine and Virginia, excluding the immediate suburbs of Washington D.C. As of March 31, 2004, Anthem provided health care benefits to more than 12.5 million medical members, which includes BlueCard “host” members. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, Anthem, along with its subsidiaries, offers a diverse portfolio of complementary health and group life insurance, managed care products, pharmacy benefit management and government health program administration.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including, among other things, approval of WellPoint’s and Anthem’s shareholders, various regulatory agencies and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

In connection with obtaining the approval of WellPoint’s and Anthem’s shareholders for the proposed merger, Anthem filed a preliminary registration statement on Form S-4, including the preliminary joint proxy statement/prospectus constituting a part thereof, with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 26, 2003. Anthem will file a final registration statement, including a definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus constituting a part thereof, and other documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The final joint proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed to holders of WellPoint and Anthem common stock.

WellPoint and Anthem have made appropriate filings and applications with insurance and HMO regulators in California, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Pursuant to applicable insurance and HMO laws and regulations, and before the merger may be consummated, the insurance commissioner and, where applicable, HMO regulator, must review and approve the acquisition of control of the insurance company or HMO subsidiary domiciled in its respective jurisdiction. In addition to the filings with and approvals from the domiciliary insurance and HMO regulators, pre-acquisition notifications of the merger under state insurance antitrust laws and regulations will be required in certain states in which insurance company or HMO subsidiaries of both WellPoint and Anthem operate.

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association must approve the transfer to Anthem of WellPoint’s licenses to use the Blue Cross and Blue Shield names and marks in WellPoint’s geographical territories. Anthem and WellPoint have submitted a joint application requesting that, in connection with the completion of the merger, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association grant to Anthem the licenses for the WellPoint service area. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association unanimously approved this application on March 18, 2004.

The Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder provide that the merger may not be completed until pre-merger notification filings have been made with the Federal Trade Commission, and the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, and the specified waiting period thereunder has expired or is terminated. Even after the waiting period expires or is terminated, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission will have the authority to challenge the merger on antitrust grounds before or after the merger is completed. Each of Anthem and WellPoint filed a notification and report form for the merger with the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice in January 2004 and the waiting period expired on February 26, 2004.

Following the merger, WellPoint stockholders will become shareholders of Anthem. In addition, in the merger agreement, among other things, WellPoint has agreed that Anthem will have its corporate headquarters and principal executive offices in Indianapolis, Indiana and that Anthem’s name will be changed to WellPoint, Inc. WellPoint and Anthem have also agreed to file an application to have the common stock of Anthem listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “WLP.”

After the merger, the board of directors of Anthem will have 19 members, consisting of 11 current members of Anthem’s board of directors designated by Anthem (including Larry C. Glasscock) and eight current members of WellPoint’s board of directors designated by WellPoint (including Leonard D. Schaeffer). Also after the merger, Leonard D. Schaeffer of WellPoint will be Chairman of the Board of Directors of Anthem and Larry C. Glasscock of Anthem will be the President and Chief Executive Officer and a director of Anthem. By the second anniversary of the completion of the merger, Leonard D. Schaeffer will retire as Chairman and as a director of Anthem and Larry C. Glasscock will succeed him as Chairman.

Either WellPoint or Anthem may terminate the merger agreement, even after the requisite shareholder approvals have been received, if the merger has not been completed by November 30, 2004, and either of them may also terminate the merger agreement in certain other circumstances specified in the merger agreement. The Company currently expects the transaction to close by mid-2004.

CareFirst Merger Agreement

In November 2001, WellPoint entered into a merger agreement with CareFirst, Inc. (“CareFirst”), which agreement was amended in January 2003. CareFirst has the exclusive right to use the Blue Cross and Blue Shield names and marks in Maryland, Delaware, the District of Columbia and certain counties in Northern Virginia. Under the amended merger agreement, CareFirst would have become a subsidiary of WellPoint. The consummation of the CareFirst transaction was subject to a number of conditions, including the approval of the insurance regulators in Maryland, Delaware and the District of Columbia for the conversion of

CareFirst from a non-profit corporation to a for-profit entity. On March 5, 2003, the Maryland insurance commissioner issued an order disapproving this conversion. In August 2003, the Company received a notice from CareFirst electing to terminate the amended merger agreement in accordance with its terms.

In August 2003, the Company received a Grand Jury subpoena from the United States Attorney’s office in the District of Maryland requesting various documents relating to the CareFirst transaction. The Company has responded to the request and intends to cooperate fully with the United States Attorney’s office. The Company has no reason to believe it is a target of the proceedings.

National Expansion and Other Recent Developments

In an effort to pursue the expansion of the Company’s business outside the state of California, the Company acquired two businesses in 1996 and 1997, the Life and Health Benefits Management Division of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company and the Group Benefits Operations (the “GBO”) of John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company. The acquisitions of Rush Prudential Health Plans and a mail-order pharmacy, which now does business as PrecisionRx, in 2000, the acquisition of Cerulean Companies, Inc. in 2001, the acquisitions of RightCHOICE and MethodistCare in 2002 and the acquisition of Cobalt in 2003 were also components of this expansion strategy.

As a result of these acquisitions, the Company has significantly expanded its operations outside of California. In order to integrate its acquired businesses and implement its regional expansion strategy, the Company will need to develop satisfactory networks of hospitals, physicians and other health care service providers, develop distribution channels for its products and successfully convert acquired books of business to the Company’s existing information systems, which will require continued investments by the Company.

In response to rising medical and pharmacy costs, the Company has from time to time implemented premium increases with respect to certain of its products. The Company will continue to evaluate the need for further premium increases, plan design changes and other appropriate actions in the future in order to maintain or restore profit margins. There can be no assurances, however, that the Company will be able to take subsequent pricing or other actions or that any actions previously taken or implemented in the future will be successful in addressing any concerns that may arise with respect to the performance of certain businesses.

Legislation

Federal legislation enacted during the last several years seeks, among other things, to ensure the portability of health coverage and mandates minimum maternity hospital stays. California legislation enacted since 1999, among other things, establishes an explicit duty on managed care entities to exercise ordinary care in arranging for the provision of medically necessary health care services and establishes a system of independent medical review. In 1997, Texas adopted legislation purporting to make managed care organizations such as the Company liable for their failure to exercise ordinary care when making health care treatment decisions. Similar legislation has also been enacted in Georgia. These and other proposed measures may have the effect of dramatically altering the regulation of health care and of increasing the

Company’s medical care ratio and administrative costs or decreasing the affordability of the Company’s products.

Consolidated Results of Operations

The Company’s revenues are primarily generated from premiums earned for risk-based health care and specialty services provided to its members; fees for administrative services, including claims processing and access to provider networks for self-insured employers; and investment income. Operating expenses include health care services and other benefits expenses, consisting primarily of payments for physicians, hospitals and other providers for health care and specialty products claims; selling expenses for broker and agent commissions; general and administrative expenses; interest expense; depreciation and amortization expense; and income taxes.

The Company’s consolidated results of operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 include its acquired operations of Cobalt for the entire three months, while operating results for the quarter ended March 31, 2003 do not include any acquired operations of Cobalt. On September 24, 2003, the Company completed its acquisition of Cobalt. The Cobalt merger was effective as of September 30, 2003 for accounting purposes.

The following table sets forth selected operating ratios. The medical care ratio for health care services and other benefits is shown as a percentage of premium revenue. All other ratios are shown as a percentage of premium revenue and management services and other revenue combined.

	Quarter Ended March 31,
	2004		2003
Operating Revenues:
Premium revenue	94.5	%	95.3	%
Management services and other revenue	5.5	%	4.7	%
	100.0	%	100.0	%
Operating Expenses:
Health care services and other
benefits (medical care ratio)	79.7	%	81.7	%
Selling expense	3.9	%	4.0	%
General and administrative expense	13.0	%	12.4	%

Membership

The following table sets forth membership data and the percent change in membership:

	March 31,		Percent Change
	2004	2003 (e)	Percent Change
*Medical Membership (a)(b)(c)(d)*
California
Large Group	4,772,760	4,810,834	-0.8	%
Individual and Small Group	1,656,153	1,653,001	0.2	%
Senior	244,031	246,605	-1.0	%
Total California	6,672,944	6,710,440	-0.6	%
Georgia
Large Group	1,659,351	1,645,702	0.8	%
Individual and Small Group	511,588	449,054	13.9	%
Senior	55,722	69,191	-19.5	%
Total Georgia	2,226,661	2,163,947	2.9	%

Central Region (f)
Missouri
Large Group	1,177,183	1,281,694	-8.2	%
Individual and Small Group	240,543	235,779	2.0	%
Senior	40,465	41,726	-3.0	%
Total Missouri	1,458,191	1,559,199	-6.5	%
Illinois
Large Group	590,948	606,727	-2.6	%
Individual and Small Group	128,241	113,759	12.7	%
Senior	13,460	12,497	7.7	%
Total Illinois	732,649	732,983	0.0	%
Texas
Large Group	278,878	313,931	-11.2	%
Individual and Small Group	202,583	187,456	8.1	%
Senior	8,244	1,260	N/A
Total Texas	489,705	502,647	-2.6	%
Other States
Large Group	1,892,135	1,633,468	15.8	%
Individual and Small Group	104,637	97,870	6.9	%
Senior	32,639	24,849	31.3	%
Total Other States	2,029,411	1,756,187	15.6	%
Wisconsin
Large Group	413,243	24,816	N/A
Individual and Small Group	104,832	944	N/A
Senior	53,209	68	N/A
Total Wisconsin	571,284	25,828	N/A

Total Medical Members Excluding BlueCard Host Members (g)	14,180,845	13,451,231	5.4	%
Total BlueCard Host Members (h)	1,196,000	748,490	59.8	%
Total Medical Members	15,376,845	14,199,721	8.3	%

	March 31,		Percent Change
	2004	2003 (e)	Percent Change
*ASO Membership (i)*
California	1,609,412	1,578,546	2.0	%
Georgia	871,220	864,946	0.7	%
Central Region (f)	2,839,187	2,695,656	5.3	%
Wisconsin	183,987	16,427	N/A
BlueCard Host Members	1,196,000	748,490	59.8	%
Total ASO Membership	6,699,806	5,904,065	13.5	%
*Risk Membership*
California	5,063,532	5,131,894	-1.3	%
Georgia	1,355,441	1,299,001	4.3	%
Central Region	1,870,769	1,855,360	0.8	%
Wisconsin	387,297	9,401	N/A
Total Risk Membership	8,677,039	8,295,656	4.6	%
Total Medical Membership	15,376,845	14,199,721	8.3	%

	March 31,		Percent Change
	2004	2003	Percent Change
*State-Sponsored Programs (j)*
Medi-Cal/Medicaid
California	847,156	835,273	1.4	%
Virginia	52,025	41,893	24.2	%
Puerto Rico	260,749	274,723	-5.1	%
Other	43,819	80,776	-45.8	%
Total	1,203,749	1,232,665	-2.3	%

Healthy Families	270,413	264,102	2.4	%
MRMIP / AIM / IHRP	13,676	18,190	-24.8	%
California Kids	13,587	19,114	-28.9	%
Total	1,501,425	1,534,071	-2.1	%

(a) Membership numbers are approximate and include some estimates based upon the number of contracts at the relevant date and an actuarial estimate of the number of members represented by the contract.

(b) Classification between states for employer groups is determined by the zip code of the subscriber.

(c) Medical membership includes management services and network services members, who are primarily included in the Large Group for each respective state.

(d) Senior membership includes members covered under both Medicare risk and Medicare supplement products.

(e) Membership numbers as of March 31, 2003 have been reclassified to reflect the zip code of the subscriber of HealthLink’s commercial insurer accounts. These members were previously included in the commercial insurers’ state of domicile. As of March 31, 2003, Missouri and Illinois members would have been higher by 84,612 and 32,361, respectively, while California, Georgia, Texas and Other States would have been lower by 1,876, 495, 9,572 and 105,030, respectively.

(f) Central Region - Large Group membership includes network access services members, primarily from HealthLink, of 1,277,580 and 1,429,847 as of March 31, 2004 and March 31, 2003, respectively. As of December 31, 2003, the Company revised its methodology of calculating the number of medical members represented by each subscriber contract within the Company’s rental networks and a Missouri joint venture. The weighted average factor changed from approximately 2.4 members to 2.1 members per subscriber. The impact of this change as of quarter end for the year ended December 31, 2003 is to reduce membership as follows:

As of	Illinois	Missouri	Other States	Total

March 31, 2003	35,999	111,008	15,314	162,321
June 30, 2003	35,083	108,097	14,925	158,105
September 30, 2003	34,990	104,614	14,885	154,489
December 31, 2003	34,377	103,013	14,624	152,014

Membership data as of March 31, 2003 shown in the above table have not been revised to reflect this change in methodology.

(g) Total medical members as of March 31, 2004 include 663,274 medical members from the Cobalt acquisition.

(h) The Company has revised its medical membership counting methodology to include estimated “host” members using the national BlueCard program. Host members are generally members who reside in a state in which a WellPoint subsidiary is the Blue Cross and/or Blue Shield licensee and who are covered under an employer-sponsored health plan issued by a non-WellPoint controlled Blue Cross and/or Blue Shield licensee. Host members are computed using, among other things, an estimate of the average number of BlueCard claims received per member per month. Total BlueCard host members as of each calendar quarter end during the year ended December 31, 2003 were as follows:

As of		BlueCard Members

March 31, 2003		748,490
June 30, 2003		743,897
September 30, 2003		1,009,900
December 31, 2003		1,002,113

(i) ASO Membership represents members for which the Company provides administrative services only and does not assume full insurance risk.

(j) Medi-Cal (the California Medicaid program) membership is included in California - Large Group. Medicaid membership for Virginia, Puerto Rico and Other are included in Other States - Large Group. Healthy Families, MRMIP (Major Risk Medical Insurance Program) / AIM (Access for Infants and Mothers) / IHRP (Interim High Risk Program) and California Kids membership are included in California – Large Group.

Specialty Membership

	March 31,		Percent Change
	2004 (A)	2003	Percent Change
Pharmacy Benefits Management	31,020,178	35,998,130	-13.8	%
Dental	3,218,669	2,655,528	21.2	%
Life	3,082,286	2,732,911	12.8	%
Disability	573,297	511,002	12.2	%
Behavioral Health (B)	7,962,848	7,307,468	9.0	%
Total	45,857,278	49,205,039	-6.8	%

(A) Specialty membership as of March 31, 2004 includes 644,006 specialty members, from the Cobalt acquisition.

(B) Effective as of January 1, 2004, the Company began including HealthLink members who receive certain behavioral health services in its behavioral health membership. As of March 31, 2004, the Company had approximately 482,000 such members.

Comparison of Results of Operations for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2004 to the Quarter Ended March 31, 2003

The Company maintains the following two reportable segments: Health Care and Specialty. (See Note 12 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion.) The Health Care segment provides a broad spectrum of network-based health plans, including PPOs, HMOs, POS plans, other hybrid plans and traditional indemnity plans, to large and small employers and individuals as well as other health care-related products, such as vision, preventive care, COBRA and flexible benefits account administration. The Specialty business is maintained as a separate segment providing an array of specialty products, including pharmacy benefits management, dental, life insurance, disability insurance, behavioral health, workers’ compensation insurance products and workers’ compensation managed care services.

The operating results for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 compared to the quarter ended March 31, 2003 were impacted by the Cobalt acquisition, which was effective as of September 30, 2003 for accounting purposes. Specifically, the Company’s operating results for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 included three months of operating results from the Cobalt acquisition whereas the Company’s operating results for the quarter ended March 31, 2003 did not include any operating results from the acquired Cobalt business. In order to provide a more meaningful comparison of the Company’s results of operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 versus the quarter ended March 31, 2003, the following discussion presents financial measures that exclude operating results attributable to the acquired Cobalt business for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, which we refer to as “Same-Store.” The Company also uses Same-Store measures for purposes of reporting comparative financial results to its Board of Directors.

The following table depicts premium revenue by reportable segment:

(In thousands)	Quarter Ended March 31, 2004		Less: Acquired Cobalt Business for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2004		Quarter Ended March 31, 2004 (Same-Store)		Quarter Ended March 31, 2003
Health Care	$	5,072,731	$	298,243	$	4,774,488	$	4,417,465
Specialty	183,572		38,910		144,662		130,840
Consolidated	$	5,256,303	$	337,153	$	4,919,150	$	4,548,305

Premium revenue increased 15.6%, or $708.0 million, to $5,256.3 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 from $4,548.3 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. Excluding premium revenue attributable to the acquired Cobalt business of $337.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, premium revenue increased $370.8 million or 8.2% on a Same-Store basis from the quarter ended March 31, 2003. Excluding insured member months attributable to the acquired Cobalt business for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, insured member months decreased slightly by approximately 0.4% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 compared to the quarter ended March 31, 2003. This growth in premium revenue occurred across all regions of the Health Care segment, but was more pronounced in the California and Georgia regions and was mainly attributable to the implementation of premium increases.

The following table depicts management services and other revenue by reportable segment:

(In thousands)	Quarter Ended March 31, 2004		Less: Acquired Cobalt Business for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2004		Quarter Ended March 31, 2004 (Same-Store)		Quarter Ended March 31, 2003
Health Care	$	254,913	$	48,835	$	206,078	$	188,534
Specialty	48,893		2,377		46,516		36,967
Corporate and Other	2,370		—		2,370		670
Consolidated	$	306,176	$	51,212	$	254,964	$	226,171

Management services and other revenue increased 35.4%, or $80.0 million, to $306.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 from $226.2 million for the quarter March 31, 2003. Excluding management services and other revenue attributable to the acquired Cobalt business of $51.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, management services and other revenue increased $28.8 million or 12.7% from the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The increase was primarily due to an increase in management services revenue from the California and Georgia regions of the Health Care segment of $7.0 million and $12.9 million, respectively. The increase in the California region resulted from an increase in administrative services member months of 5.7% and an increase of 5.2% in the administrative services per member per month rate. The increase in the Georgia region resulted primarily from an increase in administrative services member months of 14.9% and an increase of 8.0% in the administrative services per member per month rate. The increase in administrative services revenue also resulted from increased sales in large self-insured accounts. In addition, management services revenue in the Specialty segment increased by $9.5 million, which was primarily attributable to an increase in pharmacy benefit management services revenues from non-affiliated clients. These increases were offset by a decrease in the Central Region of $2.3 million. The decrease in the Central Region resulted primarily from a decrease in management services revenue from the UNICARE Large Group division of $3.3 million due to lower administrative services membership, slightly offset by an increase in the administrative services per member per month rate.

Investment income was $83.7 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, compared to $66.3 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003, an increase of $17.4 million or 26.2%. The increase was primarily due to net realized gains for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 of $16.6 million as compared to net realized gains for the quarter ended March 31, 2003 of $6.2 million. Additionally, gross investment income, net of investment expenses increased by $6.9 million due primarily to higher average investment balances.

The following table depicts health care services and other benefits expense by reportable segment:

(In thousands)	Quarter Ended March 31, 2004		Less: Acquired Cobalt Business for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2004		Quarter Ended March 31, 2004 (Same-Store)		Quarter Ended March 31, 2003
Health Care	$	4,061,352	$	255,830	$	3,805,522	$	3,634,857
Specialty	125,999		29,459		96,540		82,643
Consolidated	$	4,187,351	$	285,289	$	3,902,062	$	3,717,500

Health care services and other benefits expense increased 12.6%, or $469.9 million, to $4,187.4 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 from $3,717.5 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The Company’s medical care ratio was 79.7% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, compared to 81.7% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The medical care ratio attributable to the Health Care segment was 80.1% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, compared to 82.3% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The medical care ratio attributable to the Specialty segment was 68.6% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, compared to 63.2% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. Health care services and other benefits expense and medical care ratio information is provided for each segment so investors can compare the performance of each segment to the other segment and to the Company as a whole.

The Company’s medical care ratio attributable to the Health Care segment decreased from 82.3% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003 to 80.1% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, primarily due to price increases in all regions, lower claims trends and lapses in accounts with higher-than-average medical care ratios. The medical care ratio for the Specialty segment increased to 68.6% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 from 63.2% for the same quarter in 2003. The increase in the Specialty medical ratio was attributable to higher claims trends for life insurance products. The health care services and other benefits expense included an estimate of claims incurred during the period that have not been reported to the Company. This estimate is actuarially determined based on a variety of factors and is inherently subject to a number of highly variable circumstances. Consequently, the actual results could differ materially from the amount recorded in the Consolidated Financial Statements. See “Critical Accounting Policies” for a discussion of this item and its potential effect on the Company’s reported results of operations.

Selling expense consists of commissions paid to outside brokers and agents representing the Company. The selling expense ratio decreased from 4.0% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003 to 3.9% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004. The acquired Cobalt business experienced a lower selling expense ratio due primarily to its higher percentage of large employer group business that maintained a selling expense ratio of less than 1%. Excluding selling expense of $6.4 million and combined premium revenue and management services and other revenue of $388.4 million attributable to the acquired Cobalt business for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, the selling

expense ratio increased from 4.0% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003 to 4.1% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004.

The general and administrative expense ratio increased to 13.0% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 from 12.4% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The increase in the general and administrative expense ratio resulted from costs associated with the pending Anthem merger integration, which added $10.2 million to general and administrative expense for the quarter ended March 31, 2004. The acquired Cobalt business had a higher general and administrative expense ratio of 21.6% during the quarter ended March 31, 2004. The acquired Cobalt business has had an historically higher administrative expense ratio due to its Medicare processing business, which has a general and administrative expense ratio of approximately 98%, and the balance of its business is weighted more towards non-insured business, which tends to have a higher general and administrative expense ratio than insured business. Excluding general and administrative expense of $84.0 million and combined premium revenue and management services and other revenue of $388.4 million attributable to the acquired Cobalt business for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, general and administrative expense remained constant at 12.4% for each of the quarters ended March 31, 2003 and 2004.

Interest expense decreased $0.6 million to $12.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, compared to $12.8 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The decrease in interest expense was primarily due to the reduction in the weighted average interest rate (which includes fees associated with the Company’s borrowings and interest rate swap agreements) for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 of 4.2%, compared to 4.4% for the quarter ended March 31, 2003.

Other expense, net increased $4.7 million to $11.7 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, compared to $7.0 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The increase was primarily due to additional amortization of intangibles attributable to the Cobalt and Golden West acquisitions of $3.3 million during the quarter ended March 31, 2004.

The Company’s net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 was $295.2 million, compared to $193.1 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. Net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 included after-tax net realized investment gains of $9.9 million, compared to $3.7 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. Earnings per share totaled $1.92 and $1.33 for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, respectively. Earnings per share assuming full dilution totaled $1.85 and $1.29 for the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, respectively.

Earnings per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 is based upon weighted average shares outstanding of 153.9 million shares, excluding potential common stock, and 159.4 million shares, assuming full dilution. Earnings per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2003 is based upon 145.6 million shares, excluding potential common stock, and 149.2 million shares, assuming full dilution. The increase in weighted average shares outstanding assuming full dilution primarily resulted from the issuance of shares related to the Cobalt acquisition and the Company’s stock option and stock purchase plans.

Financial Condition

The Company’s consolidated assets increased by $1,168.4 million, or 7.9%, to $15,957.1 million as of March 31, 2004 from $14,788.7 million as of December 31, 2003. The increase in total assets was primarily due to growth in cash and investments of $931.4 million as a result of an increase in security trades pending of $581.8 million and $305.9 million in operating cash flows attributable to net income. Also contributing to the increase in consolidated assets was an increase in receivables, net of $205.2 million. Cash and investments totaled $8.9 billion as of March 31, 2004, or 55.5% of total assets.

Overall claims liabilities, which is composed of medical claims payable and reserves for future policy benefits, decreased $95.7 million, or 3.0%, to $3,068.7 million as of March 31, 2004 from $3,164.4 million as of December 31, 2003. The decrease was due primarily to the timing of pharmacy benefits management payments. See “Critical Accounting Policies” for a discussion of medical claims payable and reserves for future policy benefits. As of March 31, 2004, the Company’s long-term indebtedness was $1,238.9 million, of which $462.8 million was related to the Company’s 6 ³/₈% Notes due 2006 (which includes a fair value adjustment of $13.3 million), $349.1 million was related to the Company’s 6 ³/₈% Notes due 2012 and $427.0 million was related to the commercial paper program. The 6 ³/₈% Notes due 2012, with an aggregate principal amount at maturity of $350.0 million, were issued to partially finance the RightCHOICE acquisition. During the year ended December 31, 2003, the Company issued an additional $104.7 million in commercial paper (net of repayments made during the year) to repurchase Common Stock of the Company. In the third quarter of 2003, the Company also issued an additional $125.1 million in commercial paper primarily to partially finance the acquisition of Cobalt (see “Liquidity and Capital Resources” below for a discussion of the potential repurchase of the Company’s commercial paper as a result of the Company’s pending merger with Anthem, Inc.).

Stockholders’ equity totaled $5,948.2 million as of March 31, 2004, an increase of $518.3 million from $5,429.9 million as of December 31, 2003. The increase was primarily due to net income of $295.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004; a net increase of $194.1 million from the issuance of new Common Stock and the reissuance of treasury stock related to stock grants; the Company’s employee 401(k) plan, stock option and stock purchase plans; and an increase in net unrealized gains from investment securities of $63.9 million, net of taxes. Partially offsetting these increases were net losses from the reissuance of treasury stock of $34.9 million.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of March 31, 2004, consolidated cash and investments were $8.9 billion, of which $1.1 billion were in cash and cash equivalents. The Company’s primary sources of cash are premium and management services revenues and investment income. The Company’s primary uses of cash include health care claims and other benefits, capitation payments, income taxes, repayment of long-term debt, interest expense, broker and agent commissions, administrative expenses, Common Stock repurchases and capital expenditures. In addition to the foregoing, other uses of cash include provider network and systems development costs and costs associated with the integration of acquired businesses.

The Company generally receives premium revenue in advance of anticipated claims for related health care services and other benefits. The Company’s investment policies are designed to provide safety and preservation of capital, sufficient liquidity to meet cash flow needs, the integration of investment strategy with the business operations and objectives of the Company, and attainment of a competitive after-tax total return.

The Company’s strategy for achieving its investment goals is broad diversification of its investments, both across and within asset classes. As of March 31, 2004, the Company’s investment portfolio consisted primarily of investment grade fixed-income securities. The Company’s portfolio also included large capitalization and small capitalization domestic equities, foreign equities, tax-exempt municipal bonds and a small amount of non-investment grade debt securities. The fixed-income assets include both short and long-duration securities with an attempt to match the Company’s funding needs. The Company’s investment policy contains limitations regarding concentration in individual securities and industries and generally prohibits speculative and leveraged investments. Cash and investment balances maintained by the Company are sufficient to meet applicable regulatory financial stability and net worth requirements, including license requirements of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

Net cash provided by operating activities was $305.9 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, compared with $313.6 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. Net cash provided by operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 was due primarily to net income of $295.2 million and an increase in income taxes payable of $176.0 million attributable to business growth and the absence of estimated tax payments during the first quarter of 2004. Partially offsetting these increases was a decrease in medical claims payable of $107.6 million primarily due to the timing of pharmacy benefits management payments and an increase in “receivables, net” of $99.4 million due to timing of cash receipts of certain receivables.

Net cash used in investing activities for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 totaled $284.6 million, compared with $24.6 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The cash used in the first quarter of 2004 was primarily attributable to the purchase of investments of $1,462.7 million and the purchase of property and equipment, net of sales proceeds, of $44.4 million, which were partially offset by proceeds from investments sold of $1,231.9 million.

Net cash provided by financing activities totaled $85.0 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 compared with $34.8 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2003. The net cash provided

in the quarter ended March 31, 2004 was primarily attributable to additional advances on securities lending deposits of $46.5 million and the receipt of proceeds from the issuance of Common Stock related to the Company’s employee stock option plans of $41.3 million, partially offset by net repayments of commercial paper of $2.8 million.

Effective March 30, 2001, the Company entered into two unsecured revolving credit facilities allowing aggregate indebtedness of $1.0 billion in principal amount. Borrowings under these facilities (which are generally referred to collectively as the Company’s “revolving credit facility”) bear interest at rates determined by reference to the bank’s base rate or to the London InterBank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) plus a margin determined by reference to the then-current rating of the Company’s senior unsecured long-term debt by specified rating agencies. One facility, which provides for borrowings not to exceed $750.0 million at any time outstanding, expires as of March 30, 2006, although it may be extended for up to two additional one-year periods under certain circumstances. The other facility, which provides for borrowings not to exceed $250.0 million at any time outstanding, expires on March 25, 2005. Any amount outstanding under this facility as of March 25, 2005 may be converted into a one-year term loan at the option of the Company and will bear interest at rates determined by reference to the bank’s base rate or LIBOR plus a margin determined by reference to the then-current rating of the Company’s unsecured long-term debt by specified rating agencies, plus 0.125% until paid in full. Loans under the $250.0 million facility are made on a committed basis. Loans under the $750.0 million facility are made on a committed basis or pursuant to an auction bid process. The $750.0 million facility also contains sublimits for letters of credit and “swingline” loans. Each credit agreement requires the Company to maintain certain financial ratios and contains restrictive covenants, including restrictions on the incurrence of additional indebtedness and the granting of certain liens, limitations on acquisitions and investments and limitations on changes in control (see Note 7 to the Consolidated Financial Statements). As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, there were no amounts outstanding under the revolving credit facility.

In April 2002, the Company commenced a commercial paper program providing for the issuance of up to $1.0 billion in aggregate maturity value of short-term indebtedness (known generally as “commercial paper”). The commercial paper is being issued by the Company without registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”) in reliance upon the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(2) of the 1933 Act. The commercial paper is issued in denominations of $100,000 or integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof and will bear such interest rates, if interest-bearing, or will be sold at such discount from their face amounts, as agreed upon by the Company and the dealer or dealers acting in connection with the commercial paper program. The commercial paper may be issued with varying maturities up to a maximum of 270 days from the date of issuance. The commercial paper ranks equally with all other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness of the Company. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the outstanding commercial paper borrowings totaled $427.0 million and $429.8 million, respectively, with various maturity dates and had interest rates ranging from 1.12% to 1.20% as of March 31, 2004 and interest rates ranging from 1.10% to 1.27% as of December 31, 2003. The weighted average yield on the outstanding commercial paper as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003 was 1.16% and 1.25%, respectively. The Company intends to maintain commercial paper

borrowings of at least the amount outstanding at March 31, 2004 for more than one year. Accordingly, for financial reporting purposes, the commercial paper has been classified under non-current liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Under the Company’s merger agreement with Anthem, Inc., however, the Company has agreed to repurchase, prior to the closing of the merger with Anthem, any outstanding commercial paper issued by the Company or any of its subsidiaries.

In anticipation of the completion of the RightCHOICE acquisition on January 31, 2002, the Company on January 16, 2002 issued $350.0 million aggregate principal amount at maturity of 6 ³/₈% Notes due January 15, 2012 (the “2012 Notes”). The net proceeds of this offering totaled approximately $348.9 million. The 2012 Notes bear interest at a rate of 6 ³/₈% per annum, payable semi-annually in arrears on January 15 and July 15 of each year commencing July 15, 2002. Interest is computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months.

On June 15, 2001, the Company issued $450.0 million aggregate principal amount at maturity of 6 ³/₈% Notes due June 15, 2006 (the “2006 Notes”). The net proceeds of this offering totaled approximately $449.0 million. The net proceeds from the sale of the 2006 Notes were used to repay indebtedness under the Company’s revolving credit facilities. The 2006 Notes bear interest at a rate of 6 ³/₈% per annum, payable semi-annually in arrears on June 15 and December 15 of each year commencing December 15, 2001. Interest is computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months.

The 2006 and 2012 Notes are unsecured obligations and rank equally with all of the Company’s existing and future senior unsecured indebtedness. All existing and future

liabilities of the Company’s subsidiaries are and will be effectively senior to the 2006 and 2012 Notes. The indenture governing the 2006 and 2012 Notes contains a covenant that limits the ability of the Company and its subsidiaries to create liens on any of their property or assets to secure certain indebtedness without also securing the indebtedness under the 2006 and 2012 Notes.

As a part of a hedging strategy to limit its exposure to variable interest rate increases, the Company has from time to time entered into interest rate swap agreements in order to reduce the volatility of interest expense resulting from changes in interest rates on its variable rate debt. The swap agreements were contracts to exchange variable-rate interest payments (weighted average rate for the year ended December 31, 2002 of 2.25%) for fixed-rate interest payments (weighted average rate for the year ended December 31, 2002 of 7.08%) without the exchange of the underlying notional amounts. The Company had entered into $200.0 million of fixed-rate swap agreements, which consisted of a $150.0 million notional amount swap agreement at 6.99% maturing on October 17, 2003 and a $50.0 million notional amount swap agreement at 7.06% maturing on October 17, 2006. In September 2002, the Company terminated these two fixed-rate swap agreements with an aggregate cash settlement of $17.6 million, of which $1.8 million was accrued interest and the remaining $15.8 million represented the fair value of the swap agreements at the time of termination and is being amortized over the term of the original swap agreements. As of March 31, 2004, the remaining balance of the swap agreements was $4.9 million. (See Note 8 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.)

In order to reduce the interest expense associated with the 2006 Notes, the Company, on January 15, 2002, entered into a $200.0 million notional amount interest rate swap agreement, which matures on June 15, 2006. The swap agreement is a contract to exchange a fixed 6 ³/₈% rate for a LIBOR-based floating rate (weighted average variable rate of 2.57% and 2.45% for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, respectively).

Certain of the Company’s subsidiaries are required to maintain minimum capital requirements prescribed by various regulatory agencies, including the California Department of Managed Health Care and the Departments of Insurance in various states, including Georgia, Missouri, Wisconsin and Delaware. As of March 31, 2004 (or the most recent date with respect to which compliance is required), those subsidiaries of the Company were in compliance with all minimum capital requirements.

The Company believes that cash flow generated by operations and its cash and investment balances, supplemented by the Company’s ability to borrow under its existing revolving credit facility, commercial paper program or through public or private financing sources, will be sufficient to fund continuing operations and expected capital requirements for the foreseeable future.

Critical Accounting Policies

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles requires the Company’s management to make a variety of estimates and assumptions. These estimates and assumptions affect, among other things, the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent liabilities and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses. Actual results could differ from the amounts previously estimated, which were based on the information available at the time the estimates were made.

The critical accounting policies described below are those that the Company believes are important to the portrayal of the Company’s financial condition and results of operations, and which require management to make difficult, subjective or complex judgments. Critical accounting policies cover accounting matters that are inherently uncertain because the future resolution of such matters is unknown. The Company believes that critical accounting policies include medical claims payable, reserves for future policy benefits, goodwill and other intangible assets and investments.

Medical Claims Payable

Medical claims payable includes claims in process as well as provisions for the estimate of incurred but not reported claims (“IBNR”) and provisions for disputed claims obligations. As of March 31, 2004, approximately 90% of the Company’s medical claims payable consisted of IBNR and claims in process. Such estimates are developed using actuarial principles and assumptions that consider, among other things, contractual requirements, historical utilization trends and payment patterns, benefits changes, medical inflation, product mix, seasonality, membership and other relevant factors. In developing IBNR, the Company applies different estimation methods depending on the period for which incurred claims are being estimated. For the most recent four months, the incurred claims are estimated from the trend analysis based on per member per month claims trends developed from the experience in preceding months. For periods prior to the most recent four months, the key assumption used in developing the Company’s IBNR is that the completion factor pattern remains consistent over a rolling 12-month period. The completion factor is an actuarial estimate, based upon historical experience, of the percentage of claims incurred during a given period that have been adjudicated by the Company as of the date of estimation. This approach is consistently applied to each period presented.

The completion factors and claims per member per month trend factor are the most significant factors used in estimating the Company’s IBNR. The following table illustrates the sensitivity of these factors using March 31, 2004 data and the estimated potential impact on the Company’s operating results caused by these factors:

Completion Factor (a):					Claims Trend Factor (b):
(Decrease) Increase in Factor		Increase (Decrease) in Medical Claims Payable			(Decrease) Increase in Factor		Increase (Decrease) in Medical Claims Payable

(3	)%	$	327,000,000		(3	)%	$	(12,000,000	)
(2	)%	212,000,000			(2	)%	(8,000,000		)
(1	)%	103,000,000			(1	)%	(4,000,000		)
1	%	(98,000,000		)	1	%	4,000,000
2	%	(191,000,000		)	2	%	8,000,000
3	%	(279,000,000		)	3	%	12,000,000

(a) Reflects estimated potential changes in medical claims payable caused by changes in completion factors in each of the most recent four months.

(b) Reflects estimated potential changes in medical claims payable caused by changes in annualized claims trend used for the estimation of per member per month claims for the most recent four months.

In addition, assuming a hypothetical 1% difference between the Company’s March 31, 2004 estimated claims liability and the actual claims incurred, net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 would increase or decrease by $15.8 million, while diluted net income per share would increase or decrease by $0.10 per share.

Other relevant factors include exceptional situations that might require judgmental adjustments in setting the outstanding reserves, such as system conversions, processing interruptions, environmental changes or other factors. None of these factors had a material impact on the development of the Company’s claims payable estimates during any of the periods presented in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q. All of these factors are used in estimating IBNR and are important to the Company’s reserve methodology in trending the claims per member per month for purposes of estimating the reserves for the most recent four months.

In developing its best estimate of medical claims payable, the Company consistently applies the principles and assumptions listed above from year to year, while also giving due consideration to the potential variability of these factors. Because medical claims payable includes various actuarially developed estimates, the Company’s actual health care services expense may be more or less than the Company’s previously developed estimates. Claim processing expenses are also accrued based on an estimate of expenses necessary to process such claims. Such reserves are continually monitored and reviewed, with any adjustments reflected in current operations.

Health care claims are usually described as having a “short tail,” which means that they are generally paid within a few months of the member receiving service from the physician or other health care provider. Based on the Company’s historical claim payment patterns, less than 5% of the medical claims payable as of the end of any given year is outstanding at the end

of the following year. Management expects that substantially all of the development of the estimate of medical claims payable as of December 31, 2003 will be known by the end of 2004.

Capitation costs represent monthly fees paid one month in advance to physicians, certain other medical service providers and hospitals in the Company’s HMO networks as retainers for providing continuing medical care. The Company maintains various programs that provide incentives to physicians, certain other medical service providers and hospitals participating in its HMO networks through the use of risk-sharing agreements and other programs. Payments under such agreements are made based on the providers’ performance in managing health care costs while providing quality health care. Expenses related to these programs, which are based in part on estimates, are recorded in the period in which the related services are rendered. The Company believes that its reserves for medical claims payable are adequate to satisfy its ultimate claim liability. However, these estimates are inherently subject to a number of highly variable circumstances. Consequently, the actual results could differ materially from the amount recorded in the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Health care services and other benefits expense includes the costs of health care services, capitation expenses and expenses related to risk-sharing agreements with participating physicians, medical groups and hospitals and incurred losses on the Company’s disability and life products. The costs of health care services are accrued as services are rendered, including an estimate for claims incurred but not yet reported.

For many of the Company’s HMO plans (including substantially all of its California HMO plans), the Company contracts with physicians, hospitals and other health care providers through capitation fee arrangements as a means to manage health care costs. The Company has two general types of capitation arrangements. The predominant type is the so-called “professional” capitation arrangement. Under professional capitation arrangements, the Company pays the health care provider, such as a participating medical group, a fixed amount per member per month, and the health care provider assumes the risk of the member’s utilization of certain specified health care services. Typically, under professional capitation arrangements, the health care provider does not assume the risk of the member’s utilization of any hospital-based services. The second type is the so-called “global” capitation arrangement. Under global capitation arrangements, the Company also pays the health care provider, such as a participating medical group, a fixed amount per member per month. However, under global capitation arrangements, the health care provider generally assumes the risk of the member’s utilization of all health care services (subject to certain limited exceptions and state regulatory requirements). The Company had approximately eight global capitation arrangements as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, covering approximately 190,000 and 161,000 members, respectively. In addition, one of the Company’s subsidiaries owns a 51% equity interest in a community health partnership network (the “CHPN”) operating in the greater Atlanta area. The CHPN is a locally based equity venture between the Company’s subsidiary and a local physician group. The Company’s subsidiary has entered into a global capitation arrangement with the CHPN. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, approximately 544,000 and 560,000 members, respectively, were covered by this arrangement.

For the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, the Company’s capitation expenses of $428.2 million and $393.7 million, represented 10.2% and 10.6%, respectively, of the Company’s total health care services and other benefits expense. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the Company’s capitation expenses payable of $159.2 million and $145.9 million represented 6.0% and 5.3%, respectively, of the Company’s total medical claims payable.

The Company’s future results of operations will depend in part on its ability to predict and manage health care costs through underwriting criteria, medical management, product design and negotiation of favorable provider and hospital contracts. The Company’s ability to contain such costs may be adversely affected by changes in utilization rates, demographic characteristics, the regulatory environment, health care practices, inflation, new technologies, clusters of high-cost cases, continued consolidation of physician, hospital and other provider groups, acts of terrorism and bioterrorism or other catastrophes, including war and numerous other factors. The Company’s inability to mitigate any or all of the above-listed or other factors may adversely affect the Company’s future profitability.

Reserves for Future Policy Benefits

The estimate of reserves for future policy benefits relates to life and disability insurance policies written in connection with health care contracts. Reserves for future life benefit coverage are based on projections of past experience. Reserves for future policy and contract benefits for certain long-term disability products and group paid-up life products are based upon interest, mortality and morbidity assumptions from published actuarial tables, modified based upon the Company’s experience. Reserves are continually monitored and reviewed, and as settlements are made or reserves adjusted, differences are reflected in current operations. The current portion of reserves for future policy benefits relates to the portion of such reserves that the Company expects to pay within one year. The Company believes that its reserves for future policy benefits are adequate to satisfy its ultimate benefit liability. However, these estimates are inherently subject to a number of highly variable circumstances. Consequently, the actual results could differ materially from the amount recorded in the consolidated financial statements. As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, the reserves for future policy benefits were $429.2 million and $417.3 million, respectively.

Intangible Assets and Goodwill

The Company has made several acquisitions in the past several years that included a significant amount of goodwill and other intangible assets. Under generally accepted accounting principles in effect through December 31, 2001, these assets were amortized over their useful lives and were tested periodically to determine if they were recoverable from operating earnings on an undiscounted basis over their useful lives.

The Company is required to make estimates of fair value and apply certain assumptions, such as a discount factor in applying these annual impairment tests. Such estimates could produce significantly different results if other assumptions, which could also be considered reasonable, were to be used. Intangible assets with definite useful lives are being amortized using a straight-line basis or the timing of related cash flows over periods ranging from 1.5 to

25 years. An intangible asset subject to amortization must be reviewed for impairment pursuant to Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 144, “Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets.”

In accordance with SFAS No. 142, the Company completed the annual evaluation of its goodwill and other intangible assets at December 31, 2003 and determined that there was no impairment loss. Goodwill and other intangible assets totaled $3.3 billion as of March 31, 2004 and as of December 31, 2003. (See Note 5 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion of the Company’s goodwill and other intangible assets.)

Investments

As of March 31, 2004, the Company’s current investment securities at fair value, totaled $7.6 billion, of which 88.3% was invested in fixed-income securities and the remaining 11.7% was invested in equity securities. As of December 31, 2003, the Company’s current investment securities at fair value totaled $6.7 billion, of which 87.6% was invested in fixed-income securities and the remaining 12.4% was invested in equity securities. These investment securities are generally used to support current operations and, accordingly, have been classified as current assets. The Company’s long-term investments as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003 were $148.1 million and $161.8 million, respectively, and consisted primarily of restricted assets, certain equities and other investments. Total current and long-term investments at fair value, comprised 48.3% and 46.6% of total assets as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, respectively.

With the majority of investments in fixed-income securities, the Company maintains an investment portfolio that is primarily structured to maximize total return while preserving the principal asset base and provide a source of liquidity for operating needs. The Company records investment income when earned, and realized gains or losses when sold, as determined using the first-in-first-out method.

The Company regularly evaluates the appropriateness of investments relative to its internal investment guidelines. The Company operates within these guidelines by maintaining a well-diversified portfolio, both across and within asset classes. The Company has from time to time retained an independent consultant to advise the Company on the appropriateness of its investment policy. The Company performs a quarterly evaluation of its investment securities, using both quantitative and qualitative factors to determine whether a decline in investment value is other-than-temporary. When a decline in an investment’s fair value is determined to be other-than-temporary, a loss is recorded against investment income. When determining whether a decline in an investment’s fair value is other-than-temporary, the Company considers the extent and duration to which a security’s market value has been less than its cost, the financial condition and future earnings potential of the issuer, recommendations and opinions from outside investment managers and the current economic environment. For the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, the Company recorded investment losses that the Company believed to be other-than-temporary of less than $0.1 million and $23.9 million,

respectively. The Company believes that it has performed an adequate review for impairment of the investment portfolio and that investments are carried at fair value. Changing economic and market conditions in the future, however, may cause the Company to reassess its judgment regarding impairment, which could result in realized losses relating to other-than-temporary declines being charged against future income.

As of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003, net unrealized gains from the Company’s fixed-income securities totaled $190.1 million and $131.6 million, respectively, primarily resulting from a general decrease in interest rates. The Company had a net unrealized gain in its equity securities portfolio as of March 31, 2004 and December 31, 2003 of $202.7 million and $157.2 million, respectively. The Company believes that these fluctuations are temporary as a result of current market conditions.

The following table illustrates the gross unrealized losses included in the Company’s investment portfolio aggregated by investment category. The table also illustrates the length of time the securities have been in an unrealized loss position as of March 31, 2004.

	March 31, 2004 Gross Unrealized Losses
	Months in Unrealized Loss Position
	Less than 12 months		12 months or more		Total
	(In thousands)

U.S. Treasury and agency securities	$	602	$	10	$	612
Municipal securities	1,430		—		1,430
Mortgage-backed securities	3,599		100		3,699
Corporate and other securities	1,704		111		1,815
Total debt securities	7,335		221		7,556
Equity and other investments	12,288		251		12,539
Total investment securities	$	19,623	$	472	$	20,095

Factors That May Affect Future Results of Operations

Certain statements contained in “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” such as statements concerning the Company’s geographic expansion and other business strategies, the effect of recent health care reform legislation, changes in the competitive environment and small group membership growth and other statements contained herein regarding matters that are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements (as such term is defined in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended). Such statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ from those projected. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to, those discussed below. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof.

Completion of the Company’s pending merger with Anthem is contingent upon, among other things, receipt of necessary approvals from certain federal and state agencies and from the stockholders of both companies on or before November 30, 2004. Broad latitude in administering the applicable regulations is given to the federal and state agencies from which WellPoint and Anthem must seek approvals. There can be no assurance that the companies will obtain these approvals. As a condition to approval of the transaction, regulatory agencies may seek to impose requirements or limitations or costs on the way that the combined company conducts business after consummation of the transaction. If the Company or Anthem were to agree to any material requirements or limitations in order to obtain any necessary approvals, such requirements or limitations or additional costs could adversely affect the combined company’s ability to integrate the operations of the Company with those of Anthem, and could result in a material adverse effect on the combined company’s revenues or results of operations. In addition, achieving the anticipated benefits of the merger will depend in part upon whether the two companies integrate their businesses in an efficient and effective manner. Because of the complex nature of the integration process, WellPoint cannot provide any assurances regarding the ultimate success of these integration activities.

The Company’s operations are subject to substantial regulation by federal, state and local agencies in all jurisdictions in which the Company operates. Many of these agencies have increased their scrutiny of managed health care companies in recent periods or are expected to increase their scrutiny as newly passed legislation becomes effective. From time to time, the Company and its subsidiaries receive requests for information from regulatory agencies or are

notified that such agencies are conducting reviews, investigations or other proceedings with respect to certain of the Company’s activities. The Company also provides insurance products to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries in various states, including to Medi-Cal beneficiaries in various California counties under contracts with the California Department of Health Services (or delegated local agencies), and provides administrative services to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in various capacities (including serving as the largest Medicare Part A fiscal intermediary). There can be no assurance that acting as a government contractor in these circumstances will not increase the risk of heightened scrutiny by such government agencies or that such scrutiny will not have a material adverse effect on the Company, either through negative publicity about the Company or through an adverse impact on the Company’s results of operations. In addition, profitability from this business may be adversely affected by inadequate premium rate increases due to governmental budgetary issues. Future actions by any regulatory agencies may have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business.

In connection with the RightCHOICE, Cerulean, and Cobalt transactions, the Company incurred significant additional indebtedness to fund the cash payments made to the acquired companies’ stockholders. In addition, the Company may incur additional indebtedness to fund potential future acquisitions. This existing or new indebtedness may result in a significant percentage of the Company’s cash flow being applied to the payment of interest, and there can be no assurance that the Company’s operations will generate sufficient future cash flow to service this indebtedness. The Company’s current indebtedness, as well as any indebtedness that the Company may incur in the future (such as indebtedness incurred to fund repurchases of its Common Stock or to fund potential future acquisitions), may adversely affect the Company’s ability to finance its operations and could limit the Company’s ability to pursue business opportunities that may be in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders.

As part of the Company’s business strategy, the Company has acquired substantial operations in new geographic markets over the last seven years. These businesses, some of which include substantial indemnity-based insurance operations, have experienced varying profitability or losses in recent periods. Since the relevant dates of acquisition of Cerulean, RightCHOICE, MethodistCare and Cobalt, the Company has continued to work extensively on the integration of these businesses. However, there can be no assurances regarding the ultimate success of the Company’s integration efforts or regarding the ability of the Company to maintain or improve the results of operations of the acquired businesses. The Company has incurred and will, among other things, need to continue to incur considerable expenditures for provider networks, distribution channels and information systems in addition to the costs associated with the integration of these acquisitions. The integration of these complex businesses may result in, among other things, temporary increases in claims inventory or other service-related issues that may negatively affect the Company’s relationship with its customers and contribute to increased attrition of such customers. The Company’s results of operations could be adversely affected in the event that the Company experiences such problems or is otherwise unable to implement fully its expansion strategy.

The Company and certain of its subsidiaries are subject to capital surplus requirements by the California Department of Managed Health Care, the California, Delaware, Georgia, Missouri

and Wisconsin Departments of Insurance, various other state Departments of Insurance and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Although the Company believes that it is currently in compliance in all material respects with all applicable requirements, there can be no assurances that applicable requirements will not be increased in the future.

From time to time, the Company and certain of its subsidiaries are parties to various legal proceedings, many of which involve claims for coverage encountered in the ordinary course of business. The Company, like HMOs and health insurers generally, excludes certain health care services from coverage under its HMO, PPO and other plans. The Company is, in its ordinary course of business, subject to the claims of its enrollees arising out of decisions to restrict treatment or reimbursement for certain services. The loss of even one such claim, if it results in a significant punitive damage award, could have a material adverse effect on the Company. In addition, the risk of potential liability under punitive damage theories may increase significantly the difficulty of obtaining reasonable settlements of coverage claims.

allowed to re-commence on September 30, 2002. On September 26, 2002, Judge Moreno issued an additional order certifying a nationwide class of physicians in the Shane matter, setting a trial date in May 2003 and ordering the parties to participate in non-binding mediation. In October 2002, the defendants, among other things, moved to compel arbitration of most claims (which motion was granted in part in September 2003). In October 2002, the Company also filed a motion with the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals seeking to appeal Judge Moreno’s class-certification order. The motion was granted. The 11th Circuit heard oral argument on September 11, 2003 on the Company’s appeal. A mediator has been appointed by Judge Moreno and the parties are currently conducting court-ordered mediation. On April 30, 2004, Judge Moreno set a new trial date in March 2005 and extended the deadline for discovery to September 29, 2004, which may be further extended.

In May 2003, a lawsuit entitled Thomas, et al. v. Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, et al. was filed in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Florida. The attorneys representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit are primarily the attorneys representing the plaintiffs in the Shane litigation described above. The defendants in Thomas are the Company’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield-licensed subsidiaries, the BCBSA and all of the other current Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensees. The lawsuit alleges that each of the defendants engaged in similar activities and conduct as that alleged in the Shane litigation. The case has been assigned to Judge Moreno. The defendants have moved to compel arbitration and to dismiss the complaint.

On March 26, 2003, a lawsuit entitled Irwin v. AdvancePCS, et al. was filed in the California Superior Court in Alameda County, California. WellPoint and certain of its wholly owned subsidiaries are named as defendants in the lawsuit. The complaint alleges that the defendants violated California Business and Professions Code Section 17200 by engaging in unfair, fraudulent and unlawful business practices. The complaint alleges, among other things, that pharmacy benefit management companies (such as the Company’s subsidiary that does business under the tradename WellPoint Pharmacy Management) engage in unfair practices such as negotiating discounts in prices of drugs from pharmacies and negotiating rebates from drug manufacturers and retaining such discounts and rebates for their own benefit. The complaint also alleges that drugs are included in formularies in exchange for rebates and that the defendants charge patient co-payments that exceed the actual cost of generic drugs.

In early 2003, a lawsuit entitled Knecht v. Cigna, et al. was filed in U.S. District Court in Oregon. This litigation has subsequently been transferred to Judge Moreno of the U.S. District

Court for the Southern District of Florida. This litigation is a putative class action lawsuit on behalf of chiropractors in the western United States. The Company is a named defendant in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that each of the defendants engaged in similar activities and conduct as that alleged in the Shane litigation. The case is currently stayed.

In October 2003, a lawsuit entitled Solomon, et al. v. Cigna, et al. was filed in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District in Florida. The Company is a named defendant in this lawsuit, although the Company has not yet been served. This lawsuit is also a putative class action brought on behalf of chiropractors, podiatrists and certain other types of health care practitioners nationwide. This lawsuit also alleges that the defendants engaged in similar activities and conduct as that alleged in the Shane litigation. On December 15, 2003, this lawsuit was transferred to Judge Moreno, and the case was consolidated with the Knecht lawsuit for pre-trial purposes. Both of these cases are currently stayed. In December 2003, the plaintiffs in Solomon, et al. v. Cigna, et al. filed a similar lawsuit against the Company, the Company’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield-licensed subsidiaries, the BCBSA and all of the other current Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensees. The lawsuit is entitled Solomon, et al. v. Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, et al. and was filed in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District in Florida. On January 7, 2004, this lawsuit was transferred to Judge Moreno. On March 9, 2004, Judge Moreno issued an order restoring this case to the active docket and placing it on a coordinated track with the Thomas lawsuit.

The financial and operational impact that these and other evolving theories of recovery will have on the managed care industry generally, or the Company in particular, is at present unknown.

The Company’s future results will depend in part on its ability to accurately predict health care costs and to manage future health care costs through product and benefit design, underwriting criteria, medical management and negotiation of favorable provider contracts. Changes in utilization rates, demographic characteristics, the regulatory environment and health care practices, inflation, new pharmaceuticals/technologies, clusters of high-cost cases and numerous other factors are beyond the control of any health plan provider and may adversely affect the Company’s ability to predict and control health care costs and claims, as well as the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Periodic renegotiations of hospital and other provider contracts, coupled with continued consolidation of physician, hospital and other provider groups, may result in increased health care costs and limit the Company’s ability to negotiate favorable rates. In recent years, large physician practice management companies have experienced extreme financial difficulties, including bankruptcy, which may subject the Company to increased credit risk related to provider groups and cause the Company to incur duplicative health care services expense. Additionally, the Company faces competitive pressure to contain premium prices. Fiscal concerns regarding the continued viability of government-sponsored programs such as Medicare and Medicaid may cause decreasing reimbursement rates for these programs. Any limitation on the Company’s ability to increase or maintain its premium levels, design products, implement underwriting criteria or negotiate competitive provider contracts may adversely affect the Company’s financial condition or results of operations.

Managed care organizations, both inside and outside California, operate in a highly competitive environment that has undergone significant change in recent years as a result of business consolidations, new strategic alliances, aggressive marketing practices by competitors and other market pressures. Additional increases in competition (including competition from market entrants offering Internet-based products and services) could adversely affect the Company’s financial condition, cash flows or results of operations.

The Company is dependent on the services of independent agents and brokers in the marketing of its health care plans, particularly with respect to individuals, seniors and small employer group members. Such independent agents and brokers are typically not exclusively dedicated to the Company and may frequently also market health care plans of the Company’s competitors. The Company faces intense competition for the services and allegiance of independent agents and brokers.

As a result of the Company’s acquisitions, the Company operates on a select geographic basis nationally and offers a spectrum of health care and specialty products through various risk-sharing arrangements. The Company’s health care products include a variety of managed care offerings as well as traditional fee-for-service coverage. With respect to product type, fee-for-service products are generally less profitable than managed care products. A component of the Company’s expansion strategy is to transition over time the traditional insurance members of the Company’s acquired businesses to more managed care products.

With respect to the risk-sharing nature of products, managed care products that involve greater potential risk to the Company generally tend to be more profitable than management services products and those managed care products where the Company is able to shift risks to employer groups. Individuals and small employer groups are more likely to purchase the Company’s higher-risk managed care products because such purchasers are generally unable or unwilling to bear greater liability for health care expenditures. Typically, government-sponsored programs involve the Company’s higher-risk managed care products. Over the past few years, the Company has experienced a slight decline in margins in its higher-risk managed care products and to a lesser extent on its lower-risk managed care and management services products. This decline is primarily attributable to product mix change, product design, competitive pressure and greater regulatory restrictions applicable to the small employer group market. From time to time, the Company has implemented price increases in certain of its managed care businesses. While these price increases are intended to improve profitability, there can be no assurance that this will occur. Subsequent unfavorable changes in the relative profitability between the Company’s various products could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations and on the continued merits of the Company’s geographic expansion strategy.

One of the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries operates as a pharmacy benefit manager (“PBM”) under the trade name WellPoint Pharmacy Management. The PBM industry faces a number of risks and uncertainties in addition to those facing the Company’s core health plan business. Such risks and uncertainties include the application of federal and state anti-remuneration laws (generally known as “anti-kickback” laws), whether PBMs operate as fiduciaries under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) and are in

compliance with their fiduciary obligations under ERISA in connection with the development and implementation of items such as formularies, preferred drug listings and therapeutic intervention programs, and potential liability regarding the use of patient-identifiable medical information. In addition, a number of federal and state legislative proposals are being considered that could affect a variety of PBM industry practices, such as the receipt of rebates from pharmaceutical manufacturers. The Company believes that its PBM business is currently being conducted in compliance in all material respects with applicable legal requirements. However, there can be no assurance that the Company’s PBM business will not be subject to challenge under various laws and regulations, or that any such challenge will not have a material adverse effect upon the Company’s results of operations or financial condition. In addition, future legislative enactments affecting the PBM industry could have a material adverse effect upon the Company’s results of operations and financial condition.

Substantially all of the Company’s investment assets are in interest-yielding debt securities of varying maturities or equity securities. The value of fixed-income securities is highly sensitive to fluctuations in short- and long-term interest rates, with the value decreasing as such rates increase and increasing as such rates decrease. In addition, the value of equity securities can fluctuate significantly with changes in market conditions. Changes in the value of the Company’s investment assets, as a result of interest rate fluctuations, can affect the Company’s results of operations and stockholders’ equity. There can be no assurances that interest rate fluctuations will not have a material adverse effect on the results of operations or financial condition of the Company.

The Company’s operations are dependent on retaining existing employees, attracting additional qualified employees and achieving productivity gains from the Company’s investment in technology. The Company faces intense competition for qualified information technology personnel and other skilled professionals. There can be no assurances that an inability to retain existing employees or attract additional employees will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations.

In December 2000, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company completed its acquisition of certain mail order pharmaceutical service assets and now conducts business as a mail order pharmacy. The pharmacy business is subject to extensive federal, state and local regulations that are in many instances different from those under which the Company’s core health plan business currently operates. The failure to properly adhere to these and other applicable regulations could result in the imposition of civil and criminal penalties, which could adversely affect the Company’s results of operations or financial condition. In addition, pharmacies are exposed to risks inherent in the packaging and distribution of pharmaceuticals and other health care products. Although the Company currently maintains and intends to continue to maintain professional liability and errors and omissions liability insurance, there can be no assurances that the coverage limits under such insurance programs will be adequate to protect against future claims or that the Company will be able to maintain insurance on acceptable terms in the future.

Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, there have been various incidents of suspected bioterrorist activity in the United States. To date, these incidents have resulted in related isolated incidents of illness and death. However, federal and state law enforcement officials have issued public warnings about additional potential terrorist activity involving biological and other weapons. If the United States were to experience more widespread bioterrorist or other attacks, the Company’s covered medical expenses could rise and the Company could experience a material adverse effect on its results of operations, financial condition and cash flow.

In April and May 2002, one of the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries acting as a pharmacy benefit management business under the trade name WellPoint Pharmacy Management received two administrative subpoenas duces tecum issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston Massachusetts. The Company does not believe that its pharmacy benefit management business is presently a target of investigation by the U.S. Attorney. The subpoenas appear to focus

primarily on WellPoint Pharmacy Management’s relationship with TAP Pharmaceuticals, including TAP’s drugs Lupron and Prevacid. The Company has responded to the subpoenas by producing certain requested documents. The Company believes that it is in compliance in all material respects with all laws and regulations applicable to the pharmacy benefit management business.

As a result of the general nationwide economic downturn, many states are currently experiencing budget deficits. State legislators are exploring a variety of alternatives to address this situation. In order to address the budget shortfalls, various states may propose reductions in payments received by Medicaid managed care providers such as the Company. For instance, the California Legislature in 2003 enacted legislation reducing rates paid for Medi-Cal (California’s Medicaid program) coverage. Alternatively, state legislators may seek to impose greater state taxes. Any significant reduction in payments received by the Company in connection with its Medicaid managed care business could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations or financial condition. Additionally, any increase in state taxes could prolong or exacerbate the current economic downturn, which could in turn have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations or financial condition. Budget cutbacks could also result in reduced employment levels in public sector accounts for which the Company provides insured or administrative services products or could result in public sector accounts switching from insured products to administrative services products.

Review by Independent Accountants

With respect to the unaudited consolidated financial information of WellPoint Health Networks Inc. for the three-month periods ended March 31, 2004 and 2003, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PricewaterhouseCoopers”) reported that they have applied limited procedures in accordance with professional standards for a review of such information. However, their separate report dated April 19, 2004, except Note 14 as to which the date is May 7, 2004, appearing herein states that they did not audit and they do not express an opinion on that unaudited consolidated financial information. Accordingly, the degree of reliance on their report on such information should be restricted in light of the limited nature of the review procedures applied. PricewaterhouseCoopers is not subject to the liability provisions of Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933 for their report on the unaudited consolidated financial information because that report is not a “report” or a “part” of the registration statement prepared or certified by PricewaterhouseCoopers within the meaning of Sections 7 and 11 of the Act.

ITEM 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

The Company regularly evaluates its asset and liability interest rate risks, as well as the appropriateness of investments, relative to its internal investment guidelines. The Company operates within these guidelines by maintaining a well-diversified portfolio, both across and within asset classes. The Company has from time to time retained an independent consultant to advise the Company on the appropriateness of its investment policy.

Asset interest rate risk is managed within a duration band tied to the Company’s liability interest rate risk. Credit risk is managed by maintaining high average quality ratings and a well-diversified portfolio.

The Company’s use of derivative instruments is generally limited to hedging purposes and has principally consisted of forward exchange contracts and interest rate swaps. The Company’s investment policy prohibits the use of derivatives for leveraging purposes as well as the creation of risk exposures not otherwise allowed within the policy.

From time to time, the Company has entered into interest rate swap agreements primarily to minimize significant, unanticipated earnings fluctuations caused by interest rate volatility. The Company’s goal is to maintain a balance between fixed and floating interest rates on its long-term debt. The Company believes that this allows it to better anticipate its interest payments while helping to manage the asset-liability relationship.

Interest Rate Risk

The Company is exposed to market rate risks associated with its investments and borrowings. Market risk represents the risk of loss in value of a financial instrument resulting from changes in interest rates and equity prices.

As of March 31, 2004, the Company’s current investment securities at fair value, totaled $7.6 billion, of which 88.3% was invested in fixed-income securities and the remaining 11.7% was invested in equity securities. The Company has evaluated the pre-tax net impact to the fair value of its fixed-income investments over a 12-month period from a hypothetical change in all interest rates of 100, 200 and 300 basis points (“bp”). In doing so, optionality was addressed through Monte Carlo simulation of the price behavior of securities with embedded options. In addressing prepayments on mortgage-backed securities, the model follows the normal market practice of estimating a non-interest rate sensitive component (primarily related to relocations) and an interest-sensitive component (primarily related to refinancings) separately. The model is based on statistical techniques applied to historical prepayment and market data, and then incorporates forward-looking mortgage market research and judgments about future prepayment behavior. Changes in the fair value of the investment portfolio, net of tax, are reflected in the balance sheet through stockholders’ equity. The results of this analysis as of March 31, 2004 are shown in the table below. The table also shows the change in valuation of the $200.0 million notional amount 6 ³/₈% fixed for LIBOR-based floating interest rate swap agreement as of March 31, 2004.

	Decrease in fair value given an interest rate increase of:
	100 bp			200 bp			300 bp
	(In millions)

Fixed Income Portfolio	$	(201.5	)	$	(413.4	)	$	(627.5	)
Valuation of Interest Rate Swap Agreement	(3.9		)	(7.8		)	(11.5		)
	$	(205.4	)	$	(421.2	)	$	(639.0	)

The Company believes that an interest rate shift in a 12-month period of 100 bp represents a moderately adverse outcome, while a 200 bp shift is significantly adverse and a 300 bp shift is unlikely given historical precedents. Although the Company holds its bonds as “available for sale” for purposes of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115, “Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities,” the Company’s cash flows and the short duration of its investment portfolio should allow it to hold securities to maturity, thereby avoiding the recognition of losses should interest rates rise significantly.

Interest Rate Swap Agreements

On January 15, 2002, the Company entered into a $200.0 million notional amount interest rate swap agreement with respect to its 2006 Notes. The swap agreement is a contract to exchange a fixed 6 ³/₈% rate for a LIBOR-based floating rate. The Company recognized settlement income of $1.9 million for each of the quarters ended March 31, 2004 and 2003 made from this swap agreement. (See Note 8 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.)

The Company has from time to time entered into additional interest rate swap agreements in order to reduce the volatility of interest expense resulting from changes in interest rates. As of December 31, 2001, the Company had entered into $200.0 million of floating to fixed-rate swap agreements, which consisted of a $150.0 million notional amount swap agreement at 6.99% and a $50.0 million notional amount swap agreement at 7.06%. As of December 31, 2001, the Company also had $235.0 million of LIBOR-based floating rate debt outstanding. In September 2002, the Company terminated these two fixed-rate swap agreements with an aggregate cash settlement of $17.6 million, of which $1.8 million was accrued interest and the remaining $15.8 million represented the fair value of the swap agreements at the time of termination and is being amortized over the term of the original swap agreements. As of March 31, 2004, the remaining balance of the swap agreements was $4.9 million. (See Note 8 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion.)

Equity Price Risk

As of March 31, 2004, the Company’s equity securities were comprised primarily of domestic stocks. Assuming an immediate decrease of 10% in market value, as of March 31, 2004, the hypothetical pre-tax loss in fair value of stockholders’ equity is estimated to be approximately $88.8 million.

ITEM 4. Controls and Procedures

The Company maintains “disclosure controls and procedures,” as such term is defined under Rule 13a-14(c) of the rules and regulations under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). These disclosure controls and procedures are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Company’s Exchange Act reports is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and forms of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), and that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, including its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosures. As of March 31, 2004, the Company has carried out an evaluation under the supervision and with the participation of the Company’s management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures. Based upon their evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective in ensuring that material information relating to the Company is made known to the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer by others within the Company during the period in which this quarterly report on Form 10-Q was being prepared.

There has been no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting during the period covered by this quarterly report on Form 10-Q that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

PART II. OTHER INFORMATION

ITEM 1. Legal Proceedings

See “Factors That May Affect Future Results of Operations” for a discussion of additional various pending legal matters involving the Company and its subsidiaries. The Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2003, as amended by Amendment No. 1 on Form 10-K/A also contains a discussion of various pending legal matters.

ITEM 2. Changes in Securities, Use of Proceeds and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

During the three months ended March 31, 2004, the Company had one outstanding stock repurchase program. The Company's stock repurchase program is primarily intended to reduce the dilutive effect of its employee stock option and stock purchase plans. The amount the Company spends and the number of shares repurchased varies based on a variety of factors, including employee stock option grants and the stock price.

A summary of the Company's repurchase activity for the three months ended March 31, 2004 is as follows:

	Total Number of Shares Purchased (1)		Average Price Paid per Share			Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Program	Maximum Number of Shares that May Yet Be Purchased Under the Program (2)
January 1 - January 31	—		$	—		—	6,198,400
February 1 - February 29	1,670		106.91			—	6,198,400
March 1 - March 31	843,948		108.87			—	6,198,400
Total	845,618	(3)			108.86

(1) The total number of shares purchased is due to shares delivered to or withheld by the Company in connection with stock-for-stock stock option exercises and employee payroll tax withholding upon exercise of stock options and vesting of restricted stock.

(2) The board of directors of the Company has previously authorized the Company to repurchase up to 35.5 million shares of the Company's Common Stock.

(3) Shares purchased for the purposes described in footnote 1 above are reported net of actual stock grants in the Consolidated Statement of Changes in Stockholders' Equity.

ITEM 6. Exhibits and Reports on Form 8-K

(a) Exhibits

See Exhibit Index.

(b) Reports on Form 8-K

On January 9, 2004, the Company furnished a current report on Form 8-K dated January 6, 2004, which attached a copy of the Company’s press release dated January 6, 2004 and portions of a transcript of a conference call held by the Company on January 7, 2004 relating to additional anticipated financial results for the year ended December 31, 2003.

On January 29, 2004, the Company furnished a current report on Form 8-K dated January 28, 2004, which attached a copy of the Company’s press release dated January 28, 2004 regarding the Company’s earnings for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2003.

On February 3, 2004, the Company furnished a current report on Form 8-K dated February 3, 2004, which attached the text of certain information provided and to be provided by the Company during various investor conferences.

The information furnished pursuant to the current reports on Form 8-K described above was intended to be furnished under Item 12 of the Form 8-K and is not to be considered “filed” under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, nor shall it be incorporated by reference into this filing or future filings by the Company under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended or under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, unless the

Company expressly sets forth in such future filing that such information is to be considered “filed” or incorporated by reference therein.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

	WELLPOINT HEALTH NETWORKS INC.
	Registrant

Date: May 10, 2004	By:	/s/ LEONARD D. SCHAEFFER
	Leonard D. Schaeffer
	Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer


Date: May 10, 2004	By:	/s/ DAVID C. COLBY
	David C. Colby
	Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Date: May 10, 2004	By:	/s/ KENNETH C. ZUREK
	Kenneth C. Zurek
	Senior Vice President, Controller and Taxation

EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit Number		Exhibit

2.01		Amended and Restated Recapitalization Agreement dated as of March 31, 1995 by and among the Registrant, Blue Cross of California, Western Health Partnerships and Western Foundation for Health Improvement, incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 dated April 8, 1996.

2.02		Agreement and Plan of Merger dated as of October 17, 2001 by and among the Registrant, RightCHOICE Managed Care, Inc. and RWP Acquisition Corp., incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 (Registration No. 333-73382).

2.03		Amended and Restated Agreement and Plan of Merger effective as of October 26, 2003 among Anthem, Inc., Anthem Holding Corp. and the Registrant, incorporated by reference to Appendix A to the Registration Statement on Form S-4 (Registration No. 333-110830) filed by Anthem, Inc.

3.01		Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant, incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K dated August 4, 1997 (File No. 001-13083).

3.02		Bylaws of the Registrant, incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (Registration No. 333-112933).

4.01		Specimen of Common Stock certificate of the Registrant, incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.01 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2002.

4.02		Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant (included in Exhibit 3.01).

4.03		Bylaws of the Registrant (included in Exhibit 3.02).

4.04		Amended and Restated Indenture dated as of June 8, 2001 by and between the Registrant and the Bank of New York, as trustee, incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K dated June 7, 2001.

4.05		Form of Note evidencing the Registrant’s 6 ³/ 8% Notes due 2006, incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K dated June 12, 2001.

4.06		Form of Note evidencing the Registrant’s 6 ³/ 8% Notes due 2012, incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K dated January 11, 2002.

10.01		Amendment to the WellPoint 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan effective as of February 28, 2004.

10.02		Amendment to the WellPoint 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan effective as of April 23, 2004.

15.01		Letter on unaudited interim financial information.

31.01		Certifications.

32.01		Certification of Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350.

32.02		Certification of Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350.