Rising Managed-Care Enrollment Drives PacifiCare Income Up 13%

PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. of Cypress said net income rose 13% in the fiscal third quarter, reflecting a surge in enrollment in managed-care plans.

Net income increased to $30.3 million, or 97 cents a share, from $26.8 million, or 95 cents a share, for the comparable quarter last year. Revenue for the quarter ended June 30 rose 30% to $981.2 million from $752.3 million.

PacifiCare said it is adding 9,000 new members each month to its Medicare programs. The company’s newest program, Medicaid, almost tripled in size during the past year to more than 50,000 members.

For the first nine months of the fiscal year, the company earned $77.7 million, or $2.64 a share, compared with $68 million, or $2.43 a share for the corresponding year-earlier period. The earnings a year ago included a gain of $5.7 million from an accounting change. Revenue rose 29% to $2.7 billion from $2.1 billion.