INDIANAPOLIS, March 26 /PRNewswire/ -- WellPoint NextRx, the nation's largest health plan-owned pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) announced a new four-year agreement with Trustmark to serve as the pharmacy benefits manager for Trustmark's health insurance plan members nationwide, effective January 1, 2008. NextRx has served as Trustmark's PBM since 2006 and the renewal of this contract will extend this relationship an additional four years.

Under this agreement, NextRx will continue to provide Trustmark with pharmacy benefits management services, utilizing a fully integrated management system to provide claims processing, network management mail services, specialty drug services, formulary management and prior authorization services. WellPoint NextRx will also support Trustmark's pharmacy benefit clinical programs and drug utilization review.

"We are pleased to continue our collaboration with Trustmark and provide our customer-centric products and services," said Renwyck Elder, president of WellPoint NextRx, a division of WellPoint, Inc. "Through our collaboration with Trustmark, we have worked to help them develop programs that provide their members access to quality medications that are more affordable."

Over the past two years, Trustmark members have benefited from the unique programs and services NextRx has designed for them to help their members manage the costs of medications. The development of the "Generics on the Mark" program has introduced members to the quality and value they can find by switching to generic drugs. In 2006, Trustmark members saved nearly $2.5 million through conversion to generic drugs.

"We didn't want to leave WellPoint as they had a high satisfaction rating with our customers," said Tom Johnston, Second Vice President, Trustmark Managed Care. "WellPoint was willing to renegotiate one year in advance and presented an offer with additional, significant savings for the new contract term."

WellPoint NextRx is a registered service mark of WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP - News); services are provided by a WellPoint PBM (either NextRx Services, Inc. or NextRx, LLC, as applicable). WellPoint NextRx is a division of WellPoint, Inc.

About WellPoint, Inc.:

WellPoint's mission is to improve the lives of the people it serves and the health of its communities. WellPoint, Inc. is the largest health benefits company in terms of commercial membership in the United States. Through its nationwide networks, the company delivers a number of leading health benefit solutions through a broad portfolio of integrated health care plans and related services, along with a wide range of specialty products such as life and disability insurance benefits, pharmacy benefit management, dental, vision, behavioral health benefit services, as well as long term care insurance and flexible spending accounts. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, WellPoint is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and serves its members as the Blue Cross licensee for California; the Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee for Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area), Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (as Blue Cross Blue Shield in 10 New York City metropolitan and surrounding counties and as Blue Cross or Blue Cross Blue Shield in selected upstate counties only), Ohio, Virginia (excluding the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.), Wisconsin; and through UniCare. Additional information about WellPoint is available at http://www.wellpoint.com.

About Trustmark:

Through its subsidiaries and operating divisions, Trustmark Mutual Holding Company offers a full line of health, life and benefit administration products and services to groups and individuals through its subsidiaries and divisions Trustmark Group Benefits, Starmark, Trustmark Affinity Markets and Trustmark Individual Medical. Trustmark has assets of more than $1.7 billion and is based in Lake Forest, Ill.