CHICAGO and Tampa, Fla., Oct.19, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --
Harmony Health Plan, Inc. ("Harmony"), a subsidiary of WellCare
Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG), announced today it signed a
contract with the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family
Services (HFS) to administer the state's new Medicaid managed care
program statewide.
Under the new contract, the state's existing Family Health
Plan/Affordable Care Act (FHP/ACA) and the Integrated Care and
Managed Long-term Care programs will be combined into a single
integrated care delivery system and will expand statewide. The new
program is expected to serve approximately 2.7 million
beneficiaries in Illinois.
Harmony's healthcare delivery approach integrates a member's
primary care physician, specialists, behavioral health needs and
social support into a single comprehensive and coordinated care
model. This care model is designed to improve preventative care and
reduce preventable trips to an emergency room.
"Harmony is proud to have served Illinois families and individuals for 20 years
in partnership with the state," said David
Reynolds, acting president of Harmony and the north division
senior vice president of WellCare. "This has provided us with an
in-depth knowledge of Illinois
that will allow us to continue to affect the lives of the people we
serve through improved health outcomes and ensure people have the
right care at the right time."
Harmony, in addition to six other plans, expects to begin
services under a new four-year contract on January 1, 2018.
WellCare expects to provide additional details on its third
quarter 2017 earnings call that is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. EDT on Tuesday,
October 31, 2017.
As of June 30, 2017 WellCare and
Harmony Health Plan serve approximately 196,000 members in
Illinois, including 145,000
Medicaid members, 17,000 Medicare Advantage plan members and 34,000
Medicare Prescription Drug Plan members.
About WellCare Health Plans, Inc.
Headquartered in Tampa, Fla.,
WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) focuses exclusively on
providing government-sponsored managed care services, primarily
through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug
Plans, to families, children, seniors and individuals with complex
medical needs. WellCare serves approximately 4.4 million members
nationwide as of June 30, 2017. For
more information about WellCare, please visit the company's website
at www.wellcare.com or view the company's videos at
https://www.youtube.com/user/WellCareHealthPlan.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
This news release contains "forward-looking"
statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements
that are predictive in nature, that depend upon or refer to future
events or conditions, or that include words such as "expects,"
"will," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates,"
and similar expressions are forward-looking statements. For
example, statements regarding the date for commencement of services
and membership under the new program contain forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown
risks and uncertainties that may cause WellCare's actual future
results to differ materially from those projected or contemplated
in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties
include, but are not limited to, the outcome of any protests and
litigation related to the Medicaid awards, the approval of the
contract by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, any
changes to the program or contract, WellCare's ability to address
operational challenges relating to the implementation of the
contract requirements, including, but not limited to, meeting the
requirements of readiness reviews, WellCare's progress on top
priorities such as integrating care management, advocating for our
members, building advanced relationships with providers and
government partners, ensuring a competitive cost position, and
delivering prudent, profitable growth, WellCare's ability to
effectively estimate and manage growth, WellCare's ability to meet
the requirements of readiness reviews, potential reductions in
Medicaid revenue, WellCare's ability to estimate and manage medical
benefits expense effectively, including through its vendors and its
ability to negotiate actuarially sound rates, especially in new
programs with limited experience. Given the risks and uncertainties
inherent in forward-looking statements, any of WellCare's
forward-looking statements could be incorrect and investors are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on any of our forward-looking
statements.
Additional information concerning these and other important
risks and uncertainties can be found in the Company's filings with
the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), included under
the captions "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in the
Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2016, and the Company's
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2017, and other filings by WellCare with
the SEC, which contain discussions of WellCare's business and the
various factors that may affect it. Subsequent events and
developments may cause actual results to differ, perhaps
materially, from WellCare's forward-looking statements. WellCare
undertakes no duty to update these forward-looking statements to
reflect any future events, developments, or otherwise.
View original content with
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/harmony-health-plan-selected-to-participate-in-the-statewide-illinois-managed-care-medicaid-program-300540170.html
SOURCE WellCare Health Plans, Inc.