PacifiCare Posts Record Profit, Revenue for Latest Fiscal Year

Citing a boost from the nation’s move toward managed care, PacifiCare Health Systems Inc., the county’s largest health maintenance organization, reported record profit and revenue for its latest fiscal year.

“The genie’s out of the bottle,” said PacifiCare Chief Executive Alan Hoops. “What is happening is that the market is moving toward (managed care systems in) a more purposeful way.”

For PacifiCare, that trend has meant a jump in enrolled membership, which grew at a 15% rate for fiscal year 1993 to 1.09 million members.

For its 1993 fiscal year ending Sept. 30, PacifiCare reported profit of $62.7 million, or $2.25 a share, up a record 44% from $43.6 million, or $1.78 a share.

Annual revenue jumped 32%, to $2.2 billion from revenue of $1.7 billion.

Hoops said membership in PacifiCare’s program for Medicare recipients, Secure Horizons, grew by 75,000. Membership among those who belong to employer-provided medical plans grew by almost 65,000.

“In terms of absolute growth, this has been a very rewarding year on both sides of our business,” Hoops said.

PacifiCare stock, traded on the Nasdaq market, closed at $39.75 a share, up 50 cents a share from Monday.