Aetna CFO to Leave Firm, Return to Finance

Aetna Inc. said its chief financial officer, Alan Weber, will leave the No. 1 health insurance company to return to finance. The move comes a day after the Hartford, Conn.-based insurer’s credit rating was cut a notch to BBB+ from A- by Standard & Poor’s Corp. Aetna has struggled to keep earnings up against the pressure of rising health care costs and class-action lawsuits. Weber joined Aetna in 1998 from Citigroup Inc.’s Citibank International, where he had served as chairman. Weber has been planning to leave Aetna for a while, said Aetna spokesman Roy Clauson, adding that his decision had “absolutely nothing to do” with the company saying this week that its 2001 profit could be lower than forecast. Alan Bennett, Aetna’s comptroller, will serve as interim chief financial officer until a successor is found.