Dive Brief:
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Enrollment in Centene managed care plans increased 124% from 5.1 million at the end of 2015 to 11.4 million at the end of 2016, according to its latest earnings report.
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In 2016, the insurance company's fourth quarter revenues were nearly twice as high as those for the same quarter in 2015, increasing from $6.3 billion to $11.9 billion.
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Its revenue and enrollment growth was largely attributed to the 2016 acquisition of Health Net, which brought Centene a large chunk of the managed care market in California.
Dive Insight:
The company's enrollment growth was not limited to a specific line of business. Enrollment in its Medicaid plans increased from 4.7 million in 2015 to 6.9 million in 2016, and from 37,400 to 334,300 in its Medicare plans. In addition, enrollment in Centene's individual insurance plans increased from 146,100 to 537,200.
Back when discussions of the ACA focused more on the stability of its exchanges rather than repealing and replacing the law, Centene had drawn attention for its ability to turn a profit in the individual insurance market. Cynthia Cox, associate director of the Kaiser Family Foundation Program for the Study of Health Reform and Private Insurance, attributed Centene’s success to its past experience administering Medicaid plans.
“Some companies, such as Centene, which offered Medicaid plans before entering the exchanges, are doing well financially,” Cox told Healthcare Dive. “Insurers that have experience serving low-income people who are price-sensitive have generally had more success in these markets.”
While talk of repeal has cast a shadow of doubt on the future of the ACA, the company may already be ready to shift strategies. “Change is nothing new,” Centene CEO Michael Neidorff said during the Q4 earnings call. “We have a business-as-usual approach.”