ST. LOUIS, April 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Centene
Corporation (NYSE: CNC) announced today its OpiEnd™ Youth
Challenge, a targeted curriculum for adolescents ages nine through
14 to raise awareness about opioid misuse and prevention. As part
of the challenge, teachers and students discuss significant
attributes of addiction and opioid misuse, and students then show
their understanding by developing and submitting campaign messaging
that depicts ways to prevent misuse. The contest submissions are
open through September 20, 2019.
Winners will be announced in late October.
The OpiEnd Youth Challenge is the latest initiative as part of
Centene's OpiEnd program, which addresses the national epidemic
against opioid usage. Aligned with Centene's commitment to saving
lives and improving outcomes, Centene aims to fight the opioid
epidemic through quality enhancements and improved access to
addiction treatment.
"The widespread misuse of prescription and non-prescription
opioids affects communities across urban, suburban, and rural
areas," said Ken Yamaguchi, M.D.,
Executive Vice President, Chief Medical Officer for Centene. "As
part of OpiEnd's innovative multidimensional approach, we aim to
increase awareness and education of youth and adolescents and
empower them to be a part of the solution to combat the opioid
crisis facing the nation."
Eighty percent of the world's opioids are taken by Americans.
More than 4 million people use prescription painkillers for
non-medical use in an average month, and 44 percent of Americans
know someone addicted to a prescription pain reliever. The business
need, social impact, and proposed value of OpiEnd cannot be
understated. Preventative or early intervention substantially
reduces the burden of this disease.
OpiEnd was developed to improve the lives of Centene's members
with opioid dependency and substance use disorder across the
prevention to treatment continuum through data-driven integrated
care management and member education, pharmacy policies, provider
engagement, and community outreach interventions. OpiEnd's goal is
to effectively manage pain and prevent opioid misuse. OpiEnd
utilizes Centene's proprietary predictive analytics to identify
at-risk members for potential opioid misuse and uses targeted
clinical interventions based on leading evidence-based practices in
addiction medicine to transform the health of the community and
improve member health outcomes. This proactive approach employs
early intervention to prevent opioid misuse and helps save
lives.
"As a leading multi-national healthcare company, Centene
believes in treating the whole person, not just
the physical body," said Mary Mason,
M.D., Senior Vice President, Chief Medical Officer of Corporate
Health Initiatives for Centene. "We are excited about the potential
from this program, engaging both providers, educators and students
in a meaningful way, supporting our prevention efforts across the
country."
Another component of the OpiEnd program is quarterly training
for providers through the American Society of Addiction Medicine
(ASAM) with the goal of increasing education toward the treatments
for opioid use disorder. Offered to all health plans, Centene and
ASAM deliver free trainings to every provider across Centene's
health plans. These trainings focuses on opioid use disorder
treatment, fulfilling the waiver requirements for buprenorphine
therapy, with targeted education and mentoring on prescription
policies, as well as a targeted focus for women's health and
pregnancy.
For more information on the OpiEnd Youth Challenge, please visit
www.opiendyouthchallenge.com.
About Centene Corporation
Centene Corporation, a
Fortune 100 company, is a diversified, multi-national healthcare
enterprise that provides a portfolio of services to government
sponsored and commercial healthcare programs, focusing on
under-insured and uninsured individuals. Many receive benefits
provided under Medicaid, including the State Children's Health
Insurance Program (CHIP), as well as Aged, Blind or Disabled
(ABD), Foster Care and Long-Term Services and Supports
(LTSS), in addition to other state-sponsored
programs, Medicare (including
the Medicare prescription drug benefit commonly known as
"Part D"), dual eligible programs and programs with the U.S.
Department of Defense. Centene also provides healthcare
services to groups and individuals delivered through commercial
health plans. Centene operates local health plans and
offers a range of health insurance solutions. It also contracts
with other healthcare and commercial organizations to provide
specialty services including behavioral health management, care
management software, correctional healthcare services, dental
benefits management, commercial programs, home-based primary care
services, life and health management, vision benefits management,
pharmacy benefits management, specialty pharmacy and telehealth
services.
Centene uses its investor relations website to publish
important information about the Company, including information that
may be deemed material to investors. Financial and other
information about Centene is routinely posted and is
accessible on Centene's investor relations
website, http://www.centene.com/investors.
Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Statements
All
statements, other than statements of current or historical fact,
contained in this communication are forward-looking statements.
Without limiting the foregoing, forward-looking statements often
use words such as "believe," "anticipate," "plan," "expect,"
"estimate," "intend," "seek," "target," "goal," "may," "will,"
"would," "could," "should," "can," "continue" and other similar
words or expressions (and the negative thereof). We intend such
forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe-harbor
provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and Centene
Corporation is including this statement for purposes of
complying with these safe-harbor provisions. In particular, these
statements include, without limitation, statements
about Centene's future operating or financial
performance, market opportunity, growth strategy, competition,
expected activities in completed and future acquisitions, including
statements about the impact of Centene's proposed
acquisition of WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (the "WellCare
Transaction"), Centene's recent acquisition (the "Fidelis
Care Transaction") of substantially all the assets of New York
State Catholic Health Plan, Inc., d/b/a Fidelis Care New York
("Fidelis Care"), investments and
the adequacy of Centene's available cash resources.
These forward-looking statements
reflect Centene's current views with respect to future
events and are based on numerous assumptions and assessments made
by us in light of Centene's experience and perception of
historical trends, current conditions, business strategies,
operating environments, future developments and other
factors Centene believes appropriate. By their nature,
forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and
uncertainties and are subject to change because they relate to
events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future,
including economic, regulatory, competitive and other factors that
may cause Centene's or its industry's actual results,
levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially
different from any future results, levels of activity, performance
or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements. These statements are not guarantees of future
performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and
assumptions.
All forward-looking statements included in this filing are based
on information available to us on the date of this communication.
Except as may be otherwise required by
law, Centene undertakes no obligation to update or revise
the forward-looking statements included in this communication,
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise,
after the date of this filing. You should not place undue reliance
on any forward-looking statements, as actual results may differ
materially from projections, estimates, or other forward-looking
statements due to a variety of important factors, variables and
events including, but not limited to, the following: (i) the risk
that regulatory or other approvals required for the WellCare
Transaction may be delayed or not obtained or are obtained subject
to conditions that are not anticipated that could require the
exertion of management's time and Centene's resources or
otherwise have an adverse effect on Centene; (ii) the risk
that Centene's stockholders do not approve the issuance
of shares of Centene common stock in the WellCare
Transaction; (iii) the risk that WellCare's stockholders do not
adopt the merger agreement; (iv) the possibility that certain
conditions to the consummation of the WellCare Transaction will not
be satisfied or completed on a timely basis and accordingly the
WellCare Transaction may not be consummated on a timely basis or at
all; (v) uncertainty as to the expected financial performance of
the combined company following completion of the WellCare
Transaction; (vi) the possibility that the expected synergies and
value creation from the WellCare Transaction will not be realized,
or will not be realized within the expected time period; (vii) the
exertion of management's time and Centene's resources,
and other expenses incurred and business changes required, in
connection with complying with the undertakings in connection with
any regulatory, governmental or third party consents or approvals
for the WellCare Transaction; (viii) the risk that unexpected costs
will be incurred in connection with the completion and/or
integration of the WellCare Transaction or that the integration of
WellCare will be more difficult or time consuming than expected;
(ix) the risk that potential litigation in connection with the
WellCare Transaction may affect the timing or occurrence of the
WellCare Transaction or result in significant costs of defense,
indemnification and liability; (x) a downgrade of the credit rating
of Centene's indebtedness, which could give rise to an
obligation to redeem existing indebtedness; (xi) unexpected costs,
charges or expenses resulting from the WellCare Transaction; (xii)
the possibility that competing offers will be made to acquire
WellCare; (xiii) the inability to retain key personnel; (xiv)
disruption from the announcement, pendency and/or completion of the
WellCare Transaction, including potential adverse reactions or
changes to business relationships with customers, employees,
suppliers or regulators, making it more difficult to maintain
business and operational relationships; and (xv) the risk that,
following the WellCare Transaction, the combined company may not be
able to effectively manage its expanded operations.
Additional factors that may cause actual results to differ
materially from projections, estimates, or other forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, the following:
(i) Centene's ability to accurately predict and
effectively manage health benefits and other operating expenses and
reserves; (ii) competition; (iii) membership and revenue declines
or unexpected trends; (iv) changes in healthcare practices, new
technologies, and advances in medicine; (v) increased healthcare
costs, (vi) changes in economic, political or market conditions;
(vii) changes in federal or state laws or regulations, including
changes with respect to income tax reform or government healthcare
programs as well as changes with respect to the Patient Protection
and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education
Affordability Reconciliation Act, collectively referred to as the
Affordable Care Act ("ACA"), and any regulations enacted thereunder
that may result from changing political conditions or judicial
actions, including the ultimate outcome of the District Court
decision in "Texas v. United
States of America" regarding the constitutionality of the ACA;
(viii) rate cuts or other payment reductions or delays by
governmental payors and other risks and uncertainties
affecting Centene's government businesses;
(ix) Centene's ability to adequately price products on
federally facilitated and state-based Health Insurance
Marketplaces; (x) tax matters; (xi) disasters or major epidemics;
(xii) the outcome of legal and regulatory proceedings; (xiii)
changes in expected contract start dates; (xiv) provider, state,
federal and other contract changes and timing of regulatory
approval of contracts; (xv) the expiration, suspension, or
termination of Centene's contracts with federal or state
governments (including but not limited
to Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE or other customers); (xvi)
the difficulty of predicting the timing or outcome of pending or
future litigation or government investigations; (xvii) challenges
to Centene's contract awards; (xviii) cyber-attacks or
other privacy or data security incidents; (xix) the possibility
that the expected synergies and value creation from acquired
businesses, including, without limitation, the Fidelis Care
Transaction, will not be realized, or will not be realized within
the expected time period; (xx) the exertion of management's time
and Centene's resources, and other expenses incurred and
business changes required in connection with complying with the
undertakings in connection with any regulatory, governmental or
third party consents or approvals for acquisitions, including the
Fidelis Care Transaction; (xxi) disruption caused by significant
completed and pending acquisitions, including, among others, the
Fidelis Care Transaction, making it more difficult to maintain
business and operational relationships; (xxii) the risk that
unexpected costs will be incurred in connection with the completion
and/or integration of acquisition transactions, including, among
others, the Fidelis Care Transaction; (xxiii) changes in expected
closing dates, estimated purchase price and accretion for
acquisitions; (xxiv) the risk that acquired businesses,
including Fidelis Care, will not be integrated successfully;
(xxv) the risk that, following the Fidelis Care
Transaction, Centene may not be able to effectively
manage its expanded operations; (xxvi) restrictions and limitations
in connection with Centene's indebtedness;
(xxvii) Centene's ability to maintain the Centers
for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Star ratings and
maintain or achieve improvement in other quality scores in each
case that can impact revenue and future growth; (xxviii)
availability of debt and equity financing, on terms that are
favorable to us; (xxxix) inflation; and (xxx) foreign currency
fluctuations.
This list of important factors is not intended to be exhaustive.
We discuss certain of these matters more fully, as well as certain
other factors that may affect Centene's business
operations, financial condition and results of operations,
in Centene's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "SEC"),
including Centene's Annual Report on Form 10-K, quarterly
reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. Due to
these important factors and risks, Centene cannot give
assurances with respect to Centene's future performance,
including without limitation Centene's ability to
maintain adequate premium levels or Centene's ability to
control its future medical and selling, general and administrative
costs.
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SOURCE Centene Corporation