ST. LOUIS, Sept. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Centene
Corporation (NYSE: CNC) announced today that it plans to expand its
offering in the 2021 Health Insurance Marketplace. The company is
targeting expansion of its Marketplace product, branded Ambetter,
in nearly 400 new counties across 13 existing states. In
addition, Ambetter-branded Marketplace products will be offered in
two new states, New Mexico and
Michigan. This brings the total
number of states with Centene's Marketplace offerings to
22.
"At a time when many Americans are grappling with the health and
economic effects of COVID-19, it is critical that we leverage our
scale, capabilities and expertise to provide accessible,
high-quality healthcare services to our members," said Michael F. Neidorff, Chairman, President and CEO
for Centene. "We know that many Americans are struggling during
this crisis, and we are committed to expanding our Ambetter
product, offering affordable options for care during this pandemic
and beyond."
In 2020, Centene is the country's largest provider of health
insurance Marketplace plans, serving approximately 2.2 million
exchange members. Centene is in the process of seeking all
necessary regulatory approvals in targeted states for 2021.
About Centene Corporation
Centene Corporation, a
Fortune 50 company, is a leading multi-national healthcare
enterprise that is committed to helping people live healthier
lives. The Company takes a local approach – with local brands and
local teams – to provide fully integrated, high-quality, and
cost-effective services to government-sponsored and commercial
healthcare programs, focusing on under-insured and uninsured
individuals. Centene offers affordable and high-quality
products to nearly 1 in 15 individuals across the nation, including
Medicaid and Medicare members (including Medicare Prescription Drug
Plans) as well as individuals and families served by
the Health Insurance Marketplace, the TRICARE program, and
individuals in correctional facilities. The Company also serves
several international markets, and contracts with other healthcare
and commercial organizations to provide a variety of specialty
services focused on treating the whole
person. Centene focuses on long-term growth and the
development of its people, systems and capabilities so that it can
better serve its members, providers, local communities, and
government partners.
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, https://investors.centene.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements, other
than statements of current or historical fact, contained in this
press release 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). Centene (the Company, our, or
we) intends 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 we are
including this statement for purposes of complying with these
safe-harbor provisions. In particular, these statements include,
without limitation, statements about our future operating or
financial performance, market opportunity, growth strategy,
competition, expected activities in completed and future
acquisitions, including statements about the impact of our recently
completed acquisition (the WellCare Acquisition) of WellCare
Health Plans, Inc. (WellCare), other recent and future
acquisitions, investments and the adequacy of our available cash
resources. These forward-looking statements reflect our current
views with respect to future events and are based on numerous
assumptions and assessments made by us in light of our experience
and perception of historical trends, current conditions, business
strategies, operating environments, future developments and other
factors we believe 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 our or our
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 press release are based on information available
to us on the date hereof. Except as may be otherwise required by
law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise the
forward-looking statements included in this press release, whether
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise,
after the date hereof. 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 impact of COVID-19 on
global markets, economic conditions, the healthcare industry and
our results of operations, which is unknown, and the response by
governments and other third parties; uncertainty as to our
expected financial performance during the period of integration of
the WellCare Acquisition; the possibility that the expected
synergies and value creation from the WellCare Acquisition will not
be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time
period; the risk that unexpected costs will be incurred in
connection with the integration of the WellCare Acquisition or that
the integration of WellCare will be more difficult or time
consuming than expected; unexpected costs, charges or expenses
resulting from the WellCare Acquisition; the inability to retain
key personnel; disruption from the integration of the WellCare
Acquisition, 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; the risk that we may not be able to
effectively manage our expanded operations; our ability to
accurately predict and effectively manage health benefits and other
operating expenses and reserves, including fluctuations in medical
utilization rates due to the impact of COVID-19; competition;
membership and revenue declines or unexpected trends; changes in
healthcare practices, new technologies, and advances in medicine;
increased healthcare costs; changes in economic, political or
market conditions; 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 (ACA) and the Health Care and
Education Affordability Reconciliation Act, collectively referred
to as the ACA and any regulations enacted thereunder that may
result from changing political conditions or judicial actions,
including the ultimate outcome in "Texas v. United States of America"
regarding the constitutionality of the ACA; rate cuts or other
payment reductions or delays by governmental payors and other risks
and uncertainties affecting our government businesses; our ability
to adequately price products on the Health Insurance Marketplaces
and other commercial and Medicare products; tax matters; disasters
or major epidemics; the outcome of legal and regulatory
proceedings; changes in expected contract start dates; provider,
state, federal, foreign and other contract changes and timing of
regulatory approval of contracts; the expiration, suspension, or
termination of our contracts with federal or state governments
(including but not limited to Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE or other
customers); the difficulty of predicting the timing or outcome of
pending or future litigation or government investigations;
challenges to our contract awards; cyber-attacks or other privacy
or data security incidents; the possibility that the expected
synergies and value creation from acquired businesses, including
businesses we may acquire in the future, will not be realized, or
will not be realized within the expected time period; the exertion
of management's time and our 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; disruption
caused by significant completed and pending acquisitions,
including, among others, the WellCare Acquisition, making it more
difficult to maintain business and operational relationships; the
risk that unexpected costs will be incurred in connection with the
completion and/or integration of acquisition transactions; changes
in expected closing dates, estimated purchase price and accretion
for acquisitions; the risk that acquired businesses will not be
integrated successfully; restrictions and limitations in connection
with our indebtedness; our ability to maintain or achieve
improvement in 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; availability of debt and equity
financing, on terms that are favorable to us; inflation; foreign
currency fluctuations and risks and uncertainties discussed in the
reports that Centene has filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission. 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 our
business operations, financial condition and results of operations,
in our filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC), including our 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, we cannot give
assurances with respect to our future performance, including
without limitation our ability to maintain adequate premium levels
or our ability to control our future medical and selling, general
and administrative costs.
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SOURCE Centene Corporation