Yahoo Finance Centene (CNC) to Continue Serving Kansas' Medicaid Members
Centene Corporation CNC recently unveiled that its Kansas unit, Sunflower Health Plan, was awarded a Medicaid managed care contract from the Kansas Department of Administration to serve members of the State of Kansas' Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program, KanCare.
The new program will be in effect from the very beginning of 2025 and will run for a period of three years, further holding renewal options for two times for 12 months each.
The contract win has endowed the CNC subsidiary with an opportunity to continue leveraging its innovative coordinated care model and offer enhanced access to its services and an extensive network of providers. The ulterior aim remains to minimize healthcare disparities, provide whole-person care and bring about improved health outcomes for KanCare members.
The Centene unit will benefit from the opportunity to attract more beneficiaries of the KanCare program and consequently, bolster the Medicaid customer base and its footprint across the state. Presently, Sunflower caters to more than 141,000 Kansans, which also include 7,900-plus Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) members, thereby substantiating the expansive statewide footprint of the CNC subsidiary.
The strength in CNC’s Medicaid business is likely to have prompted the Kansas Department of Administration to pick Sunflower as one of the three Medicaid managed care organizations to receive the KanCare contract. Growing membership as a result of the recent move is likely to provide higher premiums for Centene, which contribute a massive chunk to the health insurer’s overall revenues. The company derived $21.5 billion in premiums from its Medicaid business line in the first quarter.
The Medicaid business is an important unit for CNC as it makes up for a significant chunk of its overall membership. Through its affiliates, the health insurer caters to more than 13 million Medicaid members across 31 states and boasts the largest managed LTSS footprint in the United States.
In addition to the recent contract win in Kansas, Centene received Medicaid contracts from the state authorities of Michigan and New Hampshire this year so far. The health insurer remains active in further strengthening its Medicaid business through provider collaborations and significant investments. Apart from Medicaid plans, CNC also distributes Medicare and Marketplace plans in the United States, with the number of members under the two businesses being 1.1 million and 4.3 million, respectively, as of Mar 31, 2024.
Shares of Centene have gained 17.4% in the past year compared with the industry’s 7.4% growth. CNC currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
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