Boomers increasingly seek health info online

WellPoint vice president, Krista Bowers, explained the company’s decision to launch their online presence at this point in time. “We knew from our research that [baby boomers] would be more confident with the Internet than their predecessors. However, the extent to which the boomers went online exceeded even our expectations.”

While the company continues to allow customer access through traditional channels, a trend toward online access is clearly taking shape. According to a Pew Research Center study conducted last year, 76 percent of older boomers (those aged 56-64) and 81 percent of younger boomers (those aged 46-55) have experience using the Internet. In total, boomers make up 33 percent of the total Internet using population. And acquiring health-related information is one of their prime reasons for going online.