> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mso.getlemma.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Elevance Health (Anthem)

> Elevance Health profile: the Blue licensee geography, Availity-based transactions, Carelon behavioral carve-out, and why you enroll with the state entity.

**Elevance Health** — formerly Anthem — is one of the largest US health insurers, and structurally distinctive because it **operates as the Blue Cross and/or Blue Shield licensee in a substantial number of states**. That means an Elevance relationship is frequently also a Blues relationship, with the geography-specific consequences that carries.

**Payer content ages fastest of anything on this site.** Portals move, forms change, payer IDs get reassigned, and **timely filing limits are contract-specific regardless of what any table says**. Treat this page as orientation; the payer's own current documentation and **your executed contract** are authoritative. **Checked August 2026.**

## Who they are

|                       |                                                                                                                                                             |
| --------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Parent**            | Elevance Health                                                                                                                                             |
| **Operates as**       | The Blue Cross and/or Blue Shield licensee in many states; **Wellpoint** for some government business; **Carelon** for services including behavioral health |
| **Lines of business** | Commercial (fully-insured and ASO), Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, Individual/Exchange                                                                       |

**Enroll with the correct state entity.** Because Elevance holds the Blue license in specific states, its contracting entity varies by geography. A contract with one state's Elevance-operated Blue is **not** a contract with another state's — whether that other state's Blue is Elevance-operated or an independent licensee.

This is the single most common enrollment error for groups expanding into an Elevance state. See [BCBS Association](/reference/payers/profiles/bcbs-association).

## Plan types on the card

Anthem Blue Cross, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, and state-specific Blue branding; Medicare Advantage; Medicaid under state brands; and substantial **self-funded ASO** volume.

## Enrollment and credentialing

Provider transactions are largely conducted through **[Availity](https://www.availity.com/)**, which serves as the provider portal. Start there and at the state Blue's own provider site. Credentialing generally pulls from CAQH.

## EDI, ERA, and EFT

* **EDI** — through your clearinghouse
* **ERA and EFT** — via the payer's enrollment process; CAQH's EFT/ERA tool participates for some payers
* Note that **Availity is both a portal and a clearinghouse** — using it as a portal does not require using it as your clearinghouse

## Appeals

State-specific processes layered over the plan type. Determine whether the member is on a **fully-insured** or **self-funded** plan before choosing your argument.

## Quirks worth knowing

* **Behavioral carve-out** — Carelon Behavioral Health requires separate contracting
* **Blue geography** — BlueCard handles out-of-area members; it does not substitute for participating where you have an office
* **Availity dependency** — much of the operational surface runs through Availity


## Related topics

- [The US payer landscape](/concepts/payments/the-payer-landscape.md)
- [Payers vs insurance companies (they're not synonyms)](/concepts/payments/payers-vs-insurance-companies.md)
- [Enroll and contract with commercial payers](/guides/enrollment/enroll-with-commercial-payers.md)
- [Set up EDI, ERA, and EFT with each payer](/guides/enrollment/set-up-edi-era-eft.md)
- [File appeals](/guides/billing/file-appeals.md)
- [How to use the payer reference](/reference/payers/overview.md)
- [Payer enrollment & submission links](/reference/payers/enrollment-links.md)
- [Timely filing limits by payer](/reference/payers/timely-filing-limits.md)