Rising unemployment, swine flu and the threat of health care reform all ganged up on managed care companies in the third quarter and could hurt their performance heading into 2010. But most of the large publicly traded health insurers reported better-than-expected profit growth for the latest period, and analysts still see strong core businesses beneath the challenges facing the industry.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Health insurer Cigna Corp <CI.N> posted higher third-quarter profit on Thursday as strength in stock market investments boosted the value of variable annuity products in its reinsurance business.

Managed care company Cigna Corp.'s third-quarter profit soared 92 percent, as improving equity markets spurred a big turnaround in a discontinued business that hurt the insurer last year.

What follows is a roundup of corporate earnings reports for Thursday, Nov. 5.

Managed care stocks raced out of the trading gate Wednesday, a day after the Senate's top Democrat signaled that Congress may miss a year-end deadline for passing health care legislation.

Managed care provider Cigna Corp. reports results for the third quarter on Thursday. Here are some key developments and analyst opinions related to that period.

By JoAnne Allen

For-profit insurance companies use a smaller amount of premium dollars on medical claims than consumers are being told, according to a Senate analysis of data filed with insurance regulators.

Health insurer Humana Inc. rode its strong government business in posting a 65 percent jump in third-quarter profit Monday, as bulging membership and premiums from Medicare Advantage overcame a lackluster commercial segment hampered by the weak economy.

What follows is a roundup of corporate earnings reports for Friday, Oct. 30.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 220-215 on Saturday to pass legislation overhauling the nation's $2.5 trillion health care system.

Stocks edged up Thursday, with a brighter outlook from Procter & Gamble and a better-than-expected jobless claims report, countering a dim forecast from Monsanto.

Stocks edged up Thursday, with a brighter outlook from Procter & Gamble and a better-than-expected jobless claims report, countering a dim forecast from Monsanto.

Costs for employer-provided health plans are expected to rise more than 10 percent within the next year, a jump workers may feel in their paychecks or through changes to their insurance coverage.

For the insurance industry, long an opponent of health care reform, it was a striking change: with a new administration coming to Washington, insurers agreed to abandon some of their most controversial practices, like denying coverage to applicants with pre-existing medical conditions.