HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) today announced its inclusion on Black Enterprise magazine’s 2009 list of the “40 Best Companies for Diversity.” This is the fourth consecutive year that Aetna has received this distinction.

According to the magazine, Aetna demonstrated strengths and outperformed peers in the diversity of both its Board of Directors and senior leadership.

“At Aetna, diversity extends to all aspects of the work we do and the way we do business,” said Ronald A. Williams, chairman and CEO. “Our experience has taught us that encouraging diversity in all its aspects allows us to create innovated and personalized products and solutions that will meet the unique needs of our customers.”

According to Black Enterprise magazine, the 2009 “40 Best Companies for Diversity” were determined by surveys administered to the CEOs and diversity executives of the top 1,000 publicly traded companies, and the 50 leading global companies with strong U.S. operations.

Aetna is the only health insurance company to appear on the 2009 list. The complete special report can be seen in the July 2009 issue of Black Enterprise magazine on newsstands June 30^th.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation’s leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 37.2 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com and Aetna's Annual Report at www.aetna.com/2008annualreport.