Document

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
 
 Form 10-K
(Mark One)
x
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016
or
 o TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
 
For the transition period from             to             
 Commission file number: 001-31826
 Centene Corporation
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware
 
42-1406317
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
 
(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)
 
 
 
7700 Forsyth Boulevard
 
 
St. Louis, Missouri
 
63105
(Address of principal executive offices)
 
(Zip Code)
 Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (314) 725-4477
 Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
 
Common Stock, $0.001 Par Value
 
New York Stock Exchange
Title of Each Class
 
Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered
 Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
None
(Title of Each Class)
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes o    No  x
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was require to submit and post such files). Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.  x
 Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer”, “accelerated filer” and “small reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
x    Large accelerated filer                          o Accelerated filer    
o    Non-accelerated filer  (do not check if a smaller reporting company)        o Smaller reporting company 
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes o No  x
The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the registrant, based upon the last reported sale price of the common stock on the New York Stock Exchange on June 30, 2016, was $12.2 billion.
As of February 17, 2017, the registrant had 172,028,161 shares of common stock issued and outstanding.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Portions of the Proxy Statement for the registrant's 2017 annual meeting of stockholders are incorporated by reference in Part III, Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14.





CENTENE CORPORATION
ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K
TABLE OF CONTENTS
 
 
 
 
PAGE
Part I
Item 1.
  
Item 1A.
 
Item 1B.
 
Item 2.
  
Item 3.
  
Item 4.
 
Part II
Item 5.
  
Item 6.
  
Item 7.
  
Item 7A.
  
Item 8.
  
Item 9.
  
Item 9A.
  
Item 9B.
  
Part III
Item 10.
  
Item 11.
  
Item 12.
  
Item 13.
  
Item 14.
  
Part IV
Item 15.
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 







CAUTIONARY STATEMENT ON FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

All statements, other than statements of current or historical fact, contained in this filing or incorporated by reference herein are forward-looking statements. 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 we are including this statement for purposes of complying with these safe-harbor provisions. We have attempted to identify these statements by terminology including “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) in connection with, among other things, any discussion of future operating or financial performance. In particular, these statements include without limitation statements about our market opportunity, our growth strategy, competition, expected activities and future acquisitions, investments and the adequacy of our available cash resources. These statements may be found in the various sections of this filing, such as Part II, Item 7. “Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” Part I, Item 3. “Legal Proceedings,” and Part I, Item 1A. “Risk Factors.”  Readers are cautioned that matters subject to forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, 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 filing are based on information available to us on the date of this filing. Except as may be otherwise required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements included in this filing, 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, including but not limited to:

our ability to accurately predict and effectively manage health benefits and other operating expenses and reserves;
competition;
membership and revenue declines or unexpected trends;
changes in healthcare practices, new technologies, and advances in medicine;
increased health care costs;
changes in economic, political or market conditions;
changes in federal or state laws or regulations, including changes with respect to government health care programs as well as changes with respect to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act and any regulations enacted thereunder that may result from changing political conditions;
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 federally facilitated and state based Health Insurance Marketplaces;
tax matters;
disasters or major epidemics;
the outcome of legal and regulatory proceedings;
changes in expected contract start dates;
provider, state, federal 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, and TRICARE);
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, without limitation, the acquisition of Health Net, Inc., will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period, including, but not limited to, as a result of conditions, terms, obligations or restrictions imposed by regulators in connection with their approval of, or consent to, the acquisition;
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 certain regulatory approvals;
disruption from the acquisition making it more difficult to maintain business and operational relationships;
the risk that unexpected costs will be incurred in connection with, among other things, the acquisition and/or the integration;
changes in expected closing dates, estimated purchase price and accretion for acquisitions;
the risk that acquired businesses will not be integrated successfully;
our ability to maintain or achieve improvement in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Star ratings and other quality scores that impact revenue;

i



availability of debt and equity financing, on terms that are favorable to us;
inflation; and
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 risk factors that may affect our business operations, financial condition and results of operations, in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. Item 1A. “Risk Factors” of Part I of this filing contains a further discussion of these and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ from expectations. 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 costs.

ii



Non-GAAP Financial Presentation
The Company is providing certain non-GAAP financial measures in this report as the Company believes that these figures are helpful in allowing investors to more accurately assess the ongoing nature of the Company's operations and measure the Company's performance more consistently across periods. The Company uses the presented non-GAAP financial measures internally to allow management to focus on period-to-period changes in the Company's core business operations. Therefore, the Company believes that this information is meaningful in addition to the information contained in the GAAP presentation of financial information. The presentation of this additional non-GAAP financial information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP.

Specifically, the Company believes the presentation of non-GAAP financial information that excludes Health Net acquisition related expenses, amortization of acquired intangible assets, as well as other items, allows investors to develop a more meaningful understanding of the Company's performance over time. The tables below provide reconciliations of non-GAAP items ($ in millions, except per share data):
 
Year Ended December 31,
 
 
2016
 
2015
 
2014
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
GAAP net earnings from continuing operations
$
559

 
$
356

 
$
268

 
Health Net acquisition related expenses
234

 
27

 

 
Amortization of acquired intangible assets
147

 
24

 
16

 
California minimum medical loss ratio change (1)
(195
)
 

 

 
Charitable contribution (2)
50

 

 

 
Debt extinguishment (3)
11

 

 

 
Income tax effects of adjustments (4)
(79
)
 
(20
)
 
(6
)
 
Adjusted net earnings from continuing operations
$
727

 
$
387

 
$
278

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

(1) A favorable impact associated with the retroactive contract amendment received in the fourth quarter of 2016 that changed the minimum medical loss ratio (MLR) calculation under California’s Medicaid expansion program, $195 million of which relates to periods prior to 2016 for the legacy Centene business and prior to the acquisition date for the legacy Health Net business

(2) In connection with the additional revenue associated with the California minimum MLR change, the Company committed to a charitable contribution to its foundation of $50 million in the fourth quarter of 2016

(3) Additional expense of $11 million associated with the early redemption of the Centene 5.75% Senior Notes due 2017 and the Health Net 6.375% Senior Notes due 2017. 

(4) The income tax effects of adjustments are based on the effective income tax rates applicable to adjusted (non-GAAP) results. The amounts are based on the effective income tax rate that would increase or decrease based on the exclusion of these adjustments.

iii




 
Year Ended December 31,
 
 
2016
 
2015
 
2014
 
GAAP diluted earnings per share (EPS)
$
3.41

 
$
2.89

 
$
2.23

 
Health Net acquisition related expenses (1)
0.98

 
0.14

 

 
Amortization of acquired intangible assets (2)
0.57

 
0.11

 
0.08

 
California minimum MLR change (3)
(0.76
)
 

 

 
Charitable contribution (4)
0.19

 

 

 
Debt extinguishment (5)
0.04

 

 

 
Adjusted Diluted EPS
$
4.43

 
$
3.14

 
$
2.31

 

(1) The Health Net acquisition related expenses per diluted share are net of the income tax benefit of $0.45 and $0.08 for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

(2) The amortization of acquired intangible assets per diluted share are net of the income tax benefit of $0.33, $0.08, and $0.05 for the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

(3) The impact associated with the retroactive contract amendment received in the fourth quarter of 2016 that changed the minimum MLR calculation per diluted share is net of the income tax expense of $(0.43) for the year ended December 31, 2016.

(4) The charitable contribution per diluted share is net of the income tax benefit of $0.11 for the year ended December 31, 2016.

(5) The debt extinguishment cost per diluted share is net of the income tax benefit of $0.03 for the year ended December 31, 2016.

 
Year Ended December 31,
 
2016
 
2015
 
2014
GAAP selling, general and administrative expenses
$
3,676

 
$
1,802

 
$
1,298

Health Net acquisition related expenses
234

 
27

 

Selling, general and administrative expenses, excluding Health Net acquisition related expenses
$
3,442

 
$
1,775

 
$
1,298


 
 
Year Ended December 31,
 
 
2016
 
2015
Net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Centene Corporation
 
$
559

 
$
356

Income tax expense
 
599

 
339

Interest expense
 
217

 
43

Depreciation and amortization
 
281

 
112

Non-cash stock compensation expense
 
148

 
71

Adjusted EBITDA (1)
 
$
1,804

 
$
921

 
(1)
Adjusted EBITDA represents net earnings attributable to Centene Corporation excluding income tax expense, interest expense, depreciation, amortization (excluding senior note premium amortization) and non-cash stock compensation expense.


iv



PART I
ITEM 1. Business

OVERVIEW

We are a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that provides a portfolio of services to government sponsored healthcare programs, focusing on under-insured and uninsured individuals. We provide member-focused services through locally based staff by assisting in accessing care, coordinating referrals to related health and social services and addressing member concerns and questions. We also provide education and outreach programs to inform and assist members in accessing quality, appropriate healthcare services. We believe our local approach, including member and provider services, enables us to provide accessible, quality, culturally-sensitive healthcare coverage to our communities. Our health management, educational and other initiatives are designed to help members best utilize the healthcare system to ensure they receive appropriate, medically necessary services and effective management of routine, severe and chronic health problems, resulting in better health outcomes. We combine our decentralized local approach for care with a centralized infrastructure of support functions such as finance, information systems and claims processing.

On March 24, 2016, we acquired all of the issued and outstanding shares of Health Net, Inc. (Health Net) a publicly traded managed care organization that delivers healthcare services through health plans and government-sponsored managed care plans. The transaction was valued at approximately $5,990 million, including the assumption of $703 million of outstanding debt. The acquisition allows us to offer a more comprehensive and scalable portfolio of solutions and provides opportunity for additional growth across the combined company's markets.

We operate in two segments: Managed Care and Specialty Services. Our Managed Care segment provides health plan coverage to individuals through government subsidized programs, including Medicaid, that also encompasses the State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Long Term Care (LTC), Foster Care, dual-eligible individuals (Duals), the Supplemental Security Income Program, also known as the Aged, Blind or Disabled Program (ABD), Medicare, and Health Insurance Marketplace. The Managed Care segment also includes the operations previously included in Health Net's Western Region Operations Segment, with the exception of certain operations of its pharmaceutical services and behavioral health subsidiaries. The portions of Health Net's Western Region Operations segment included in the Managed Care segment consist of the following Health Net operations: commercial, Medicare, Medicaid and dual eligible health plans, primarily in Arizona, California, Oregon and Washington. Our Specialty Services segment consists of our specialty companies offering diversified healthcare services and products to state programs, correctional facilities, healthcare organizations, employer groups and other commercial organizations, as well as to our own subsidiaries. The Specialty Services segment also includes the operations previously included in the Government Contracts segment of Health Net as well as certain operations of its pharmaceutical services and behavioral health subsidiaries, the latter of which Health Net previously included in its Western Region Operations segment. The Government Contracts business includes our government-sponsored managed care support contract with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) under the TRICARE program in the North Region, the Military Family and Life Counseling (MFLC) contract with the DoD, and other health care related government contracts, including the Patient Centered Community Care (PC3) with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). For the year ended December 31, 2016, our Managed Care and Specialty Services segments accounted for 92% and 8%, respectively, of our total external revenues.

Our managed care membership totaled 11.4 million as of December 31, 2016. For the year ended December 31, 2016, our total revenues and net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Centene were $40.6 billion and $559 million, respectively, and our total cash flow from operations was $1,851 million.

Our subsidiary, Kentucky Spirit Health Plan (Kentucky Spirit), ceased serving members in Kentucky as of July 6, 2013. Accordingly, the results of operations for Kentucky Spirit are classified as discontinued operations for all periods presented in our consolidated financial statements. The following discussion and analysis, with the exception of cash flow information, is presented in the context of continuing operations unless otherwise identified.

Our initial health plan commenced operations in Wisconsin in 1984. We were organized in Wisconsin in 1993 as a holding company for our initial health plan and reincorporated in Delaware in 2001. Our corporate office is located at 7700 Forsyth Boulevard, St. Louis, Missouri 63105, and our telephone number is (314) 725-4477. Our stock is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “CNC.”

1




INDUSTRY

We provide a full spectrum of managed healthcare products and services, primarily through Medicaid, which includes CHIP, LTC, Foster Care, Duals, and ABD, Medicare, Health Insurance Marketplace, TRICARE, and other state and federal programs, including programs for the uninsured. We also offer a variety of individual, small group, and large group commercial health care products, both to employers and directly to members.

Medicaid

Established in 1965, Medicaid is the largest publicly funded program in the United States, and provides health insurance to low-income families and individuals with disabilities. Authorized by Title XIX of the Social Security Act, Medicaid is an entitlement program funded jointly by the federal and state governments and administered by the states. The majority of funding is provided at the federal level. Each state establishes its own eligibility standards, benefit packages, payment rates and program administration within federal standards. As a result, there are 56 Medicaid programs - one for each U.S. state, each U.S. territory and the District of Columbia. Eligibility is based on a combination of household income and assets, often determined by an income level relative to the federal poverty level. Historically, children have represented the largest eligibility group. Many states have selected Medicaid managed care as a means of delivering quality healthcare and controlling costs. We refer to these states as mandated managed care states.  

Established in 1972, and authorized by Title XVI of the Social Security Act of 1935, as amended, ABD covers low-income persons with chronic physical disabilities or behavioral health impairments. ABD beneficiaries represent a growing portion of all Medicaid recipients. In addition, ABD recipients typically utilize more services because of their critical health issues. 

The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 created CHIP to help states expand coverage primarily to children whose families earned too much to qualify for Medicaid, yet not enough to afford private health insurance. Some states include the parents of these children in their CHIP programs. Costs related to the largest eligibility group, children, are primarily composed of pediatrics and family care. These costs tend to be more predictable than those associated with other healthcare issues which predominantly affect the adult population.

CMS estimated the total Medicaid market was approximately $545 billion in 2015, and estimate the market will grow to $973 billion by 2025. Medicaid spending increased by 9.7% in 2015 and is projected to increase at an average annual rate of 5.9% between 2016 and 2025.

LTC is a Medicaid product that covers Institutional/Residential Care (Nursing Facilities, Intermediate Care Facilities) and Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) for beneficiaries requiring assistance with their activities of daily living, such as bathing, dressing and transferring. The most common HCBS services include personal care, adult day care, non-emergent transportation, home-delivered meals and personal emergency response systems. LTC services are provided for individuals requiring nursing home level of care, receiving waiver services, or who are entitled to state Medicaid LTC benefits. The largest group receiving LTC, by spending, are older individuals and individuals with physical disabilities ($93 billion in 2014), followed by individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities ($42 billion in 2014), those with serious mental illness and/or serious emotional disturbance ($9 billion in 2014) and other populations ($8 billion in 2014). States are increasingly turning to managed care as a solution to provide coordinated, holistic care to their LTC beneficiaries. According to the National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities, 22 states utilize some form of LTC up from eight in 2004.

While Medicaid programs have directed funds to many individuals who cannot afford or otherwise maintain health insurance coverage, they did not initially address the inefficient and costly manner in which the Medicaid population tends to access healthcare. Medicaid recipients in non-managed care programs typically have not sought preventive care or routine treatment for chronic conditions, such as asthma and diabetes. Rather, they have sought healthcare in hospital emergency rooms, which tends to be more expensive. As a result, many states have found that the costs of providing Medicaid benefits have increased while the medical outcomes for the recipients remained unsatisfactory.

We believe recognition of the value of managed care as a means of delivering improved health outcomes for Medicaid beneficiaries and effectively controlling costs will continue to strengthen. A growing number of states have mandated that their Medicaid recipients enroll in managed care plans. Other states are considering moving to a mandated managed care approach. As a result, we believe a significant market opportunity exists for managed care organizations with operations and programs focused on the distinct socio-economic, cultural and healthcare needs of the uninsured population and the Medicaid, CHIP, LTC, Foster Care and ABD populations.

2




Medicare


We contract with CMS under the Medicare Advantage program to provide Medicare Advantage products directly to Medicare beneficiaries as well as through employer and union groups. We provide or arrange health care benefits for services normally covered by Medicare, plus a broad range of health care benefits for services not covered by traditional Medicare, usually in exchange for a fixed monthly premium per member from CMS that varies based upon the county in which the member resides, demographic factors of the member such as age, gender and institutionalized status, and the health status of the member. Any benefits that are not covered by Medicare may result in an additional monthly premium charged to the enrollee or through portions of payments received from CMS that may be allocated to these benefits, according to CMS regulations and guidance. Many of our Medicare Advantage members pay no monthly premium to us for these additional benefits.

We provide a wide range of Medicare products, including Medicare Advantage plans with and without prescription drug coverage and Medicare supplement products that supplement traditional fee-for-service Medicare coverage. Our subsidiaries have a number of contracts with CMS under the Medicare Advantage program authorized under Title XVIII of the Social Security Act of 1935, as amended.

A portion of Medicaid beneficiaries are dual-eligible, low-income seniors and people with disabilities who are enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare. According to CMS, there were approximately 10.4 million dual-eligible enrollees in 2016. These dual-eligible members may receive assistance from Medicaid for benefits, such as nursing home care, HCBS, and/or assistance with Medicare premiums and cost sharing. Dual-eligibles also use more services due to their tendency to have more chronic health issues. We serve dual-eligibles through our ABD, LTC, Medicare-Medicaid Plan (MMP) and Medicare Advantage Dual Special Needs Plan lines of business.

CMS developed the Medicare Advantage Star Ratings system to help consumers choose among competing plans, awarding between 1.0 and 5.0 stars to Medicare Advantage plans based on performance in certain measures of quality. The Star Ratings are used by CMS to award quality bonus payments to Medicare Advantage plans. Beginning with the 2014 Star Rating (calculated in 2013), Medicare Advantage plans were required to achieve a minimum of 4.0 Stars to qualify for a quality bonus payment in 2016. The methodology and measures included in the Star Ratings system can be modified by CMS annually and Star Ratings thresholds are based on performance of Medicare Advantage plans nationally.

CMS estimated the total Medicare market was approximately $646 billion in 2015, and estimate the market will grow to $1.3 trillion by 2025. Medicare spending increased 4.5% in fiscal 2015 and is projected to increase at an average annual rate of 7.1% between 2016 and 2025.

Commercial

We offer commercial health care products to individuals and large and small employer groups as well as products to individuals through the Health Insurance Marketplace. Our health maintenance organization (HMO) plans offer comprehensive benefits generally for a fixed fee or premium that does not vary with the extent or frequency of medical services actually received by the member. We offer HMO plans with differing benefit designs and varying levels of co-payments at different premium rates. These plans are offered generally through contracts with participating network physicians, hospitals and other providers. When an individual enrolls in one of our HMO plans, he or she selects a primary care physician (PCP) from among the physicians participating in our network. Our preferred provider organization (PPO) plans offer coverage for services received from any health care provider, with benefits generally paid at a higher level when care is received from a participating network provider. Coverage typically is subject to deductibles and copayments or coinsurance. Our point of service (POS) plans and our elect open access (EOA) plans blend the characteristics of HMO, PPO and indemnity plans. Members can have comprehensive HMO-style benefits for services received from participating network providers with lower copayments (particularly within the medical group), but also have coverage, generally at higher copayment or coinsurance levels or with coverage limitations, for services received outside the network. Our Exclusive Provider Organization (EPO) plans and Healthcare Service Plans (HSPs) similarly blend elements of traditional HMO and PPO plans. 


3



In 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the accompanying Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act collectively referred to as the Affordable Care Act (ACA), were enacted. While the constitutionality of the ACA was subsequently challenged in a number of legal actions, in June 2012, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the ACA, with one limited exception relating to the Medicaid expansion provision (Medicaid Expansion). The Supreme Court held that states could not be required to expand Medicaid and risk losing all federal money for their existing Medicaid programs. Under the ACA, Medicaid coverage was expanded to all individuals under age 65 with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level beginning January 1, 2014, subject to the states' elections. The federal government will pay the entire costs for Medicaid Expansion coverage for newly eligible beneficiaries from 2014 through 2016. Assuming that the current program remains in effect unchanged, in 2017 the federal share is scheduled to decline to 95%; in 2018 it would be 94%; in 2019 it would be 93%; and it would be 90% in 2020 and subsequent years.

Health Insurance Marketplaces are a key component of the ACA and provide an opportunity for individuals and small businesses to obtain health insurance. States have the option of operating their own Marketplace or partnering with the federal government. States choosing neither option currently default to a federally-facilitated Marketplace. Premium and cost-sharing subsidies are available to make coverage more affordable and access to Marketplaces is limited to U.S. citizens and legal immigrants. Insurers are required to offer a minimum level of benefits with three levels of coverage that vary based on premiums and out-of-pocket costs. Premium subsidies are provided to families without access to other coverage and with incomes between 100-400% of the federal poverty level to help them purchase insurance through the Marketplaces. These subsidies are offered on a sliding scale basis.  

4




OUR COMPETITIVE STRENGTHS

Our approach is based on the following key attributes:

Strong Historic Operating Performance. We have increased revenues as we have grown in existing markets, expanded into new markets and broadened our product offerings. We entered the Wisconsin market in 1984 as a single health plan and have grown to serve 29 states. Our operating performance has been demonstrated by the following:
 
 
2016
 
2015
 
% Change
2015 - 2016
Total membership (in millions)
 
11.4

 
5.1

 
124%
Total revenues ($ in billions)
 
$
40.6

 
$
22.8

 
78%
Net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Centene Corporation ($ in millions)
 
$
559

 
$
356

 
57%
Diluted earnings per share (EPS)
 
$
3.41

 
$
2.89

 
18%
Adjusted Diluted EPS
 
$
4.43

 
$
3.14

 
41%
Adjusted EBITDA
 
$
1,804

 
$
921

 
96%

For the year ended December 31, 2016, total revenues of $40.6 billion produced a five year Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 51%.

Innovative Technology and Scalable Systems. The ability to access data and translate it into meaningful information is essential to operating across a multi-state service area in a cost-effective manner. Our centralized information systems support our core processing functions under a set of integrated databases and are designed to be both replicable and scalable to accommodate organic growth and growth from acquisitions. We continue to enhance our systems in order to leverage the platform we have developed for our existing states for configuration into new states or health plan acquisitions. We believe our predictive modeling technology enables our medical management operations to proactively case and disease manage specific high risk members. It can recommend medical care opportunities using a mix of company defined algorithms and evidence based medical guidelines. Interventions are determined by the clinical indicators, the ability to improve health outcomes, and the risk profile of members. We believe our integrated approach helps to assure that consistent sources of claim and member information are provided across all of our health plans. Our membership and claims processing system is capable of expanding to support additional members in an efficient manner.

Expertise in Government Sponsored Programs. For more than 30 years, we have developed a specialized government services expertise that has helped us establish and maintain relationships with members, providers and state governments. We have implemented programs developed to achieve savings for state governments and improve medical outcomes for members by reducing inappropriate emergency room use, inpatient days and high cost interventions, as well as by managing care of chronic illnesses. We work with state agencies in order to maximize the effectiveness of their programs. Our approach is to accomplish this while maintaining adequate levels of provider compensation and protecting our profitability.

Diversified Business Lines. We continue to broaden our service offerings to address areas that we believe have been traditionally under-served by Medicaid managed care organizations. In addition to our Medicaid and Medicaid-related managed care services, our service offerings include behavioral health management, care management software, correctional healthcare services, dental benefits management, Commercial, in-home health services, life and health management, managed vision, pharmacy benefits management, specialty pharmacy and telehealth services. With the acquisition of Health Net, we further broadened our service offerings in 2016, which added government-sponsored care under its federal contracts with the Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), as well as Medicare Advantage. Through the utilization of a multi-business line approach, we are able to improve the quality of care, improve outcomes, diversify our revenues and help control our medical costs.


5



Localized Approach with Centralized Support Infrastructure. We take a localized approach to managing our subsidiaries, including provider and member services. This approach enables us to facilitate access by our members to high quality, culturally sensitive healthcare services. Our systems and procedures have been designed to address these community-specific challenges through outreach, education, transportation and other member support activities. For example, our community outreach programs work with our members and their communities to promote health and self-improvement through education on how best to access care. We complement this localized approach with a centralized infrastructure of support functions such as finance, information systems and claims processing, which allows us to minimize selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses and to integrate and realize synergies from acquisitions. We believe this combined approach allows us to efficiently integrate new business opportunities in both Medicaid and specialty services while maintaining our local accountability and improved access.

Quality and Innovation. Our innovative medical management programs focus on improving quality of care in areas that have the greatest impact on our members. We concentrate on serving the whole person to impact outcomes and costs. We recognize the importance of member-focused delivery of quality managed care services and have developed award winning education and outreach programs including the CentAccount program, Start Smart For Your Baby, and MemberConnections.

 OUR BUSINESS STRATEGY

Key components of our current business strategy include: 

Increase Penetration of Existing State Markets. We seek to continue to increase our Medicaid and Medicare membership in states in which we currently operate through alliances with key providers, outreach efforts, development and implementation of community-specific products and acquisitions. For example, in 2016, we began serving the STAR Kids Medicaid population in seven delivery areas in Texas. In 2017, we expect to expand our Medicare Advantage footprint into four of our existing states.

Diversify Business Lines. We seek to broaden our business lines into areas that complement our existing business to enable us to grow and diversify our revenue. In 2016, we served managed care members in 24 states through over 250 product solutions. We are constantly evaluating new opportunities for expansion both domestically and abroad. For example, in 2016, we acquired Health Net, which broadened our service offerings and added government-sponsored care. We employ a disciplined acquisition strategy that is based on defined criteria including internal rate of return, accretion to earnings per share, market leadership and compatibility with our information systems. We engage our executives in the relevant operational units or functional areas to ensure consistency between the diligence and integration process.

Address Emerging State Needs. We work to assist the states in which we operate in addressing the operating challenges they face. We seek to assist the states in balancing premium rates, benefit levels, member eligibility, policies and practices, provider compensation and minimizing fraud, waste, and abuse. By helping states structure appropriate programs to cover a wide range of populations including Medicaid, CHIP, LTC, ABD, IDD, and specialty services, among others. We seek to ensure that we are able to continue to provide those services on terms that achieve targeted gross margins, provide an acceptable return and grow our business.

Develop and Acquire Additional Markets. We continue to leverage our experience to identify and develop new domestic and international markets by seeking both to acquire existing business and to build our own operations. Domestically, we focus expansion in states where Medicaid recipients are mandated to enroll in managed care organizations because we believe member enrollment levels are more predictable in these states. In addition, we provide solutions to states looking to deliver the highest quality of care within their budgetary constraints. In 2014, we entered the international market with our investment in Ribera Salud, S.A. (Ribera Salud), a Spanish health management group. In 2015, we began managing care for Medicaid members in Oregon and also began managing care for members who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid in Michigan. In 2016, we increased our ownership interest to 75% in The Practice (Group) Limited (TPG), one of the largest provider networks for NHS England.


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Leverage Established Infrastructure to Enhance Operating Efficiencies. We intend to continue to invest in infrastructure to further drive efficiencies in operations and to add functionality to improve the service provided to members and other organizations at a low cost. Information technology, or IT, investments complement our overall efficiency goals by increasing the automated processing of transactions and growing the base of decision-making analytical tools. We believe that our centralized functions and common systems enable us to add members and markets quickly and economically.

Maintain Operational Discipline. We seek to operate in markets that allow us to meet our internal metrics including membership growth, plan size, market leadership and operating efficiency. We use multiple techniques to monitor and reduce our medical costs, including on-site hospital review by staff nurses and involvement of medical management in significant cases. Our executive dashboard is utilized to quickly identify cost drivers and medical trends. Our management team regularly evaluates the financial impact of proposed changes in provider relationships, contracts, changes in membership and mix of members, potential state rate changes and cost reduction initiatives. We may divest contracts or health plans in markets where the environment, over a long term basis, does not allow us to meet our targeted performance levels.  For example, due to under performance, we exited the Arizona individual PPO business, effective January 1, 2017. In addition, in 2016, we took various rate and product design actions for 2017 to address issues and improve profitability in connection with certain lines of business acquired with the Health Net acquisition.

We have subsidiaries offering healthcare services in each state we serve. The table below provides summary data for the state markets we currently serve:
State
 
Health Plan Name
 
First Year of Operations
 
Managed Care Membership at
December 31, 2016 1
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
 
 
 
 
598,300

 
 
Cenpatico Integrated Care
 
2005
 
 
 
 
Bridgeway Health Solutions
 
2006
 
 
 
 
Health Net of Arizona, Inc.
 
1981
 
 
 
 
Health Net Access, Inc.
 
2013
 
 
 
 
Health Net Life Insurance Company
 
1987
 
 
Arkansas
 
Arkansas Health and Wellness
 
2014
 
58,600

California
 
 
 
 
 
2,973,500

 
 
California Health and Wellness
 
2013
 
 
 
 
Health Net of California, Inc.
 
1979
 
 
 
 
Health Net Community Solutions, Inc.
 
2005
 
 
 
 
Health Net Life Insurance Company
 
1987
 
 
Florida
 
 
 
 
 
716,100

 
 
Sunshine State Health Plan
 
2009
 
 
 
 
Celtic Insurance Company
 
2016
 
 
Georgia
 
 
 
 
 
488,000

 
 
Peach State Health Plan
 
2006
 
 
 
 
Ambetter of Peach State Inc.
 
2016
 
 
Illinois
 
 
 
 
 
237,700

 
 
IlliniCare Health
 
2011
 
 
 
 
Celtic Insurance Company
 
2016
 
 
Indiana
 
 
 
 
 
285,800

 
 
Managed Health Services
 
1996
 
 
 
 
Celtic Insurance Company
 
2015
 
 
Kansas
 
Sunflower Health Plan
 
2013
 
139,700

Louisiana
 
Louisiana Healthcare Connections
 
2012
 
472,800


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State
 
Health Plan Name
 
First Year of Operations
 
Managed Care Membership at
December 31, 2016 1
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Massachusetts
 
 
 
 
 
48,300

 
 
CeltiCare Health
 
2009
 
 
 
 
Massachusetts Partnership for Correctional Healthcare LLC
 
2013
 
 
Michigan
 
Fidelis SecureCare of Michigan, Inc.
 
2005
 
2,000

Minnesota
 
Centurion of Minnesota LLC
 
2014
 
9,400

Mississippi
 
 
 
 
 
310,200

 
 
Magnolia Health
 
2011
 
 
 
 
Centurion of Mississippi LLC
 
2015
 
 
 
 
Ambetter of Magnolia Inc.
 
2015
 
 
Missouri
 
Home State Health
 
2012
 
105,700

New Hampshire
 
 
 
 
 
77,400

 
 
New Hampshire Healthy Families
 
2013
 
 
 
 
Celtic Insurance Company
 
2016
 
 
New Mexico
 
Centurion Correctional Healthcare of New Mexico LLC
 
2016
 
7,100

Ohio
 
Buckeye Health Plan
 
2004
 
316,000

Oregon
 
 
 
 
 
217,800

 
 
Trillium Community Health Plan
 
2001
 
 
 
 
Health Net Health Plan of Oregon, Inc.
 
1989
 
 
 
 
Health Net Life Insurance Company
 
1987
 
 
South Carolina
 
Absolute Total Care
 
2007
 
122,500

Tennessee
 
Centurion of Tennessee LLC
 
2013
 
21,700

Texas
 
 
 
 
 
1,072,400

 
 
Superior HealthPlan
 
1999
 
 
 
 
Superior HealthPlan Network
 
2004
 
 
 
 
Celtic Insurance Company
 
2016
 
 
Vermont
 
Centurion of Vermont LLC
 
2015
 
1,600

Washington
 
Coordinated Care
 
2012
 
238,400

Wisconsin
 
Managed Health Services Insurance Corp
 
1984
 
73,800

Total at-risk membership
 
8,594,800

TRICARE eligibles
 
1988
 
2,847,000

Total
 
11,441,800

 
1 Table includes members served in each of our states through our government sponsored programs, commercial, and correctional healthcare services.

Substantially all of our revenue is derived from operations within the United States and its territories, and all of the Company's long lived assets are based in the United States and its territories. We generally receive a fixed premium per member per month pursuant to our state contracts. Our medical costs have a seasonality component due to cyclical illness, for example cold and flu season, resulting in higher medical expenses beginning in the fourth quarter and continuing throughout the first quarter of the following year. Our managed care subsidiaries in California and Texas had revenues from their respective state governments that each exceeded 10% of our consolidated total revenues in 2016. In addition, the federal government is a significant customer to our Specialty Services segment due to our Federal Services business.


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MANAGED CARE

Benefits to Customers

We feel that our ability to establish and maintain a leadership position in the markets we serve results primarily from our demonstrated success in providing quality care while reducing and managing costs, and from our specialized programs in working with state governments. Among the benefits we are able to provide to the states with which we contract are:

Significant cost savings and budget predictability compared to state paid reimbursement for services. We bring experience relating to quality of care improvement methods, utilization management procedures, an efficient claims payment system, and provider performance reporting, as well as managers and staff experienced in using these key elements to improve the quality of and access to care. We generally receive a contracted premium on a per member basis and are responsible for the medical costs and as a result, provide budget predictability.

Data-driven approaches to balance cost and verify eligibility. We seek to ensure effective outreach procedures for new members, then educate them and ensure they receive needed services as quickly as possible. Our IT department has created mapping/translation programs for loading membership and linking membership eligibility status to all of Centene's subsystems. We utilize predictive modeling technology to proactively case and disease manage specific high risk members. In addition, we have developed Centelligence, our enterprise data warehouse system to provide a seamless flow of data across our organization, enabling providers and case managers to access information, apply analytical insight and make informed decisions.

Establishment of realistic and meaningful expectations for quality deliverables. We have collaborated with state agencies in redefining benefits, eligibility requirements and provider fee schedules with the goal of maximizing the number of individuals covered through Medicaid.

Managed care expertise in government subsidized programs. Our expertise in Medicaid has helped us establish and maintain strong relationships with our constituent communities of members, providers and state governments. We provide access to services through local providers and staff that focus on the cultural norms of their individual communities. To that end, systems and procedures have been designed to address community-specific challenges through outreach, education, transportation and other member support activities.

Improved quality and medical outcomes. We have implemented programs to enhance the ability of providers to improve the quality of healthcare delivered to our members including Start Smart for your Baby, Living Well With Sickle Cell and The CentAccount Program.

Timely payment of provider claims. We are committed to ensuring that our information systems and claims payment systems meet or exceed state requirements. We continuously endeavor to update our systems and processes to improve the timeliness of our provider payments.

Provider outreach and programs. Our health plans have adopted a physician-driven approach where network providers are actively engaged in developing and implementing healthcare delivery policies and strategies. We prepare provider comparisons on a severity adjusted basis. This approach is designed to eliminate unnecessary costs, improve services to members and simplify the administrative burdens placed on providers.

Care management for complex populations. Through our experience with Medicaid populations and long-time presence in states with experience in long term care for children and adolescents in the foster care system, we have developed care management, service coordination and crisis prevention/response programs that increase opportunities for successful outcomes for members. This experience has led to partnerships with specialized networks and community advocates as states transition to managed care programs for vulnerable and complex populations.

Responsible collection and dissemination of utilization data. We gather utilization data from multiple sources, allowing for an integrated view of our members' utilization of services. These sources include medical, vision and behavioral health claims and encounter data, pharmacy data, dental vendor claims and authorization data from the authorization and case management system utilized by us to coordinate care.

Timely and accurate reporting. Our information systems have reporting capabilities which have been instrumental in identifying the need for new and/or improved healthcare and specialty programs. For state agencies, our reporting capability is important in demonstrating an auditable program.

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Fraud, waste and abuse prevention. We have several systems in place to help identify, detect and investigate potential waste, abuse and fraud including pre and post payment review software.  We collaborate with state and federal agencies and assist with investigation requests. We use nationally recognized standards to benchmark our processes. 

Member Programs and Services

We recognize the importance of member-focused delivery of quality managed care services. Our locally-based staff assists members in accessing care, coordinating referrals to related health and social services and addressing member concerns and questions. While covered healthcare benefits vary from customer to customer and program to program, our health plans generally provide the following services:

primary and specialty physician care
inpatient and outpatient hospital care
emergency and urgent care
prenatal care
laboratory and x-ray services
home health care
provision of durable medical equipment
behavioral health and substance abuse services
24-hour nurse advice line

 

transportation assistance
vision care
dental care
immunizations
prescriptions and limited over-the-counter drugs
specialty pharmacy
therapies
social work services
care coordination

We also provide a comprehensive set of education and outreach programs to inform, assist and incentivize members to access quality, appropriate healthcare services in an efficient manner. Many of these programs have been recognized with awards for their excellence in education, outreach and/or case management techniques including Case In Point, Hermes Awards, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and National Health Information Awards.

Start Smart For Your Baby, or Start Smart, is our award winning prenatal and infant health program designed to increase the percentage of pregnant women receiving early prenatal care, reduce the incidence of low birth weight babies, identify high-risk pregnancies, increase participation in the federal Women, Infant and Children program, prevent hospital admissions in the first year of life and increase well-child visits.

Connections Plus is a cell phone program developed for high-risk members who have limited or no safe and reliable access to telephone. This program seeks to eliminate lack of safe, reliable access to a telephone as a barrier to coordinating care, thus reducing avoidable adverse events such as inappropriate emergency room utilization, hospital admissions and premature birth. 

MemberConnections is a community face-to-face outreach and education program designed to create a link between the member and the provider and help identify potential challenges or risk elements to a member's health, such as nutritional challenges and health education shortcomings. 

The ScriptAssist for Hepatitis C Adherence Program seeks to empower patients towards Hepatitis C virus treatment success through a series of telephonic interventions. Goals of the program include preventing premature treatment discontinuation due to medication side effects and access to therapy. NurseWise clinicians and AcariaHealth patient care coordinators collaborate throughout a patient’s treatment course to ensure appropriate therapy management and regimen access.

Health Initiatives for Children is aimed at educating child members on a variety of health topics. In order to empower and educate children, we have partnered with a nationally recognized children's author to develop our own children's book series on topics such as obesity prevention and healthy eating, asthma, diabetes, foster care, the ills of smoking, anti-bullying and heart health. 

Health Initiatives for Teens is aimed at empowering, educating and reinforcing life skills with our teenage members. We have developed an educational series that addresses health issues, dealing with chronic diseases including diabetes and asthma, as well as teen pregnancy.

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Living Well with Sickle Cell is our innovative program that assists with coordination of care for our sickle cell members. Our program ensures that sickle cell members have established a medical home and work on strategies to reduce unnecessary emergency room visits through proper treatment to control symptoms and chronic complications, as well as promote self-management.

My Route for Health is our adult educational series used with our case management and disease management programs. The topics of this series include how to manage asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), diabetes, heart disease and HIV.

The Diabetes Management Program is an innovative program that is a collaboration with our life and health management subsidiary and our health plans that targets diabetic patients and educates them on their disease state.

Community Health Record, our patient-centric electronic database, collects patient demographic data, clinician visit records, dispensed medications, vital sign history, lab results, allergy charts, and immunization data. Providers can directly input additional or updated patient data and documentation into the database. All information is accessible anywhere, anytime to all authorized users, including health plan staff, greatly facilitating coordinated care among providers. 

The CentAccount Program offers members financial incentives for performing certain healthy behaviors. The incentives are delivered through a restricted-use prepaid debit card. This incentive-based approach effectively increases the utilization of preventive services while strengthening the relationships between members and their primary care providers.

The Asthma Management Program integrates a hands-on approach with a flexible outreach methodology that can be customized to suit different age groups and populations affected by asthma. We provide proactive identification of members, stratification into appropriate levels of intervention including home visits, culturally sensitive education, and robust outcome reporting. The program also includes aggressive care coordination to ensure patients have basic services such as transportation to the doctor, electricity to power the nebulizer, and a clean, safe home environment.

Fluvention is an outreach program aimed at educating members on preventing the transmission of the influenza virus by encouraging members to get the seasonal influenza vaccines and take everyday precautions to prevent illness.

Preventive Care Programs are designed to educate our members on the benefits of Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment, or EPSDT, services. We have a systematic program of communicating, tracking, outreach, reporting and follow-through that promotes state EPSDT programs.

Readmission Reduction Program utilizes a proprietary scoring methodology to evaluate members' risks on preventable readmissions. Members with higher risk scores are identified at the point of admission to an acute care setting, then concurrently managed during the in-patient stay, and followed up with post discharge outreach to provide effective transition of care.

Clinical Programs Library (CPL) is a highly collaborative initiative that empowers partners across the organization to develop evidence based clinical programs to promote best practice information sharing, and to establish measurable outcomes for clinical studies. The CPL also serves as a repository of enterprise pilots and programs intended to improve the member's health outcomes.

Promotores Health Network (PHN) is a volunteer-driven community health network designed to improve the community's health through health education specific to health conditions impacting their community and providing guidance and linkage to healthcare services and local resources. PHN provides face-to-face education to members where they live, shop, worship and congregate.

myStrength ("The health club for your mind") is a web and mobile self-help resource to manage depression, anxiety, substance use, and chronic pain. myStrength empowers members to be active participants in their journey to becoming and staying mentally and physically healthy.

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Providers

For each of our service areas, we establish a provider network consisting of primary and specialty care physicians, hospitals and ancillary providers. Our network of primary care physicians is a critical component in care delivery, management of costs and the attraction and retention of new members. Primary care physicians include family and general practitioners, pediatricians, internal medicine physicians and obstetricians and gynecologists. Specialty care physicians provide medical care to members generally upon referral by the primary care physicians. Specialty care physicians include, but are not limited to, orthopedic surgeons, cardiologists and otolaryngologists. We also provide education and outreach programs to inform and assist members in accessing quality, appropriate healthcare services. 

Our health plans facilitate access to healthcare services for our members primarily through contracts with our providers. Our contracts with primary and specialty care physicians and hospitals usually are for one to two-year periods and renew automatically for successive one-year terms, but generally are subject to termination by either party upon 90 to 120 days prior written notice. In the absence of a contract, we typically pay providers at applicable state or federal reimbursement levels, depending on the product timeline (e.g., Medicaid or Medicare). We pay providers under a variety of methods, including fee-for-service, capitation arrangements, or risk-sharing performance-based arrangements.

Under our fee-for-service contracts with providers, we pay a negotiated fee for covered services. This model is characterized as having no financial risk for the provider.

Under our capitated contracts, providers can be paid a set amount for their services as outlined in their respective provider agreements. A provider group's financial instability or failure to pay secondary providers for services rendered could lead secondary providers to demand payment from us, even though we have made our regular capitated payments to the provider group. Depending on state law and the regulatory environment, it may be necessary for us to pay such claims.

Under risk-sharing performance-based arrangements, providers are paid under a capitated or fee-for-service arrangement. The arrangement, however, contains provisions for additional payments to the providers or reimbursement from the providers based upon cost and quality measures.

In addition, we maintain a network of qualified physicians, facilities, and ancillary providers in the prime service areas of our T-3 contract for the TRICARE North Region. Services are provided on a fee-for-service basis. We also maintain a provider network in Regions 1, 2, and 4 in support of VA's PC3 program.

We work with physicians to help them operate efficiently by providing financial and utilization information, physician and patient educational programs and disease and medical management programs. Our programs are also designed to help the physicians coordinate care rendered by other providers.

We believe our local and collaborative approach with physicians and other providers gives us a competitive advantage in entering new markets. Our physicians serve on local committees that assist us in implementing preventive care programs, managing costs and improving the overall quality of care delivered to our members, while also simplifying the administrative burdens on our providers. This approach has enabled us to strengthen our provider networks through improved physician recruitment and retention that, in turn, have helped to increase our membership base. The following are among the services we provide to support physicians:
  
Customized Utilization Reports provide certain of our contracted physicians with information that enables them to run their practices more efficiently and focuses them on specific patient needs. For example, quarterly detail reports update physicians on their status within their risk pools. Equivalency reports provide physicians with financial comparisons of capitated versus fee-for-service arrangements.

Case Management Support helps the physician coordinate specialty care and ancillary services for patients with complex conditions and direct members to appropriate community resources to address both their health and socio-economic needs.

Web-based Claims and Eligibility Resources have been implemented to provide physicians with on-line access to perform claims and eligibility inquiries. 


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Our contracted physicians also benefit from several of the services offered to our members, including the MemberConnections, EPSDT case management and health management programs. For example, the MemberConnections staff facilitates doctor/patient relationships by connecting members with physicians, the EPSDT programs encourage routine checkups for children with their physicians and the health management programs assist physicians in managing their patients with chronic disease.

Where appropriate, our health plans contract with our specialty services organizations to provide services and programs such as behavioral health management, care management software, dental benefits management, in-home health services, life and health management, managed vision, pharmacy benefits management, specialty pharmacy and telehealth services. When necessary, we also contract with third-party providers on a negotiated fee arrangement for physical therapy, home healthcare, dental, diagnostic laboratory tests, x-ray examinations, transportation, ambulance services and durable medical equipment.

Quality Management 

Our medical management programs focus on improving quality of care in areas that have the greatest impact on our members. We employ strategies, including health management and complex case management, which are adjusted for implementation in our individual markets by a system of physician committees chaired by local physician leaders. This process promotes physician participation and support, both critical factors in the success of any clinical quality improvement program.

We have implemented specialized information systems to support our medical quality management activities. Information is drawn from our data warehouse, clinical databases and our membership and claims processing system to identify opportunities to improve care and to track the outcomes of the interventions implemented to achieve those improvements. Some examples of these intervention programs include:

appropriate leveling of care for neonatal intensive care unit hospital admissions, other inpatient hospital admissions, and observation admissions, in accordance with Interqual or Milliman criteria.

tightening of our pre-authorization list and more stringent review of durable medical equipment and injectibles.

Emergency room program designed to collaboratively work with hospitals to steer non-emergency care away from the costly emergency room setting (through patient education, on-site alternative urgent care settings, etc.).

increase emphasis on case management and clinical rounding where case managers are nurses or social workers who are employed by the health plan to assist selected members with the coordination of healthcare services in order to meet a member's specific healthcare needs.

incorporation of disease management, which is a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, collaborative approach to chronic illnesses such as asthma and diabetes.

Start Smart For Your Baby, a prenatal case management program aimed at helping women with high-risk pregnancies deliver full-term, healthy infants.

Pharmacy treatment compliance programs driven by clinical policy and focused on identifying the appropriate medication in the correct dose, delivered in an efficient format and utilized for the correct duration.

We provide reporting on a regular basis using our data warehouse. State and Health Employer Data and Information Set, or HEDIS, reporting constitutes the core of the information base that drives our clinical quality performance efforts. This reporting is monitored by Plan Quality Improvement Committees and our corporate medical management team. 

In an effort to ensure the quality of our provider networks, we undertake to verify the credentials and background of our providers using standards that are supported by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, or NCQA.

It is our objective to provide access to the highest quality of care for our members.  As a validation of that objective, we often pursue accreditation by independent organizations that have been established to promote healthcare quality. The NCQA Health Plan Accreditation and URAC Health Plan Accreditation programs provide unbiased, third party reviews to verify and publicly report results on specific quality care metrics. While we have achieved or are pursuing accreditation for all of our plans, accreditation is only one measure of our ability to provide access to quality care for our members. We currently have 19 of 26 eligible health plans with NCQA accreditation.

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CMS developed the Medicare Advantage Star Ratings system to help consumers choose among competing plans, awarding between 1.0 and 5.0 stars to Medicare Advantage plans based on performance in certain measures of quality. For the 2017 Star rating (calculated in 2016 for the quality bonus payment in 2018), our Oregon HMO contract received 4.5 out of 5.0 Stars. The Arizona Bridgeway, California HMO, California PPO, Texas Superior and Wisconsin MHS contracts were measured at 4.0 Stars, our Oregon PPO contract was measured at 3.5 Stars and our Arizona HMO, Ohio Buckeye and Oregon Trillium contracts received 3.0 Stars. In addition, we carry a 4 Star parent organization rating.

SPECIALTY SERVICES 

Our specialty services are a key component of our healthcare strategy and complement our core Managed Care business. Our provision of specialty services diversifies our revenue stream, enhances the quality of health outcomes for our members and others, and allows Centene to manage costs. In 2015, we launched Envolve, a new brand that brings together our extensive portfolio of specialty healthcare solutions. Envolve leverages our collective expertise in pharmacy solutions; health, triage, wellness and disease management; and vision and dental services, to provide integrated and comprehensive healthcare for members. Our specialty services are provided primarily as follows: 

Pharmacy Solutions. Envolve Pharmacy Solutions utilizes innovative, flexible solutions and customized care management. Under the new brand, we will continue to offer traditional pharmacy benefits management as well as comprehensive specialized pharmacy benefit services through our specialty pharmacy, AcariaHealth. Our traditional pharmacy benefits management program offers progressive pharmacy benefits management services that are specifically designed to improve quality of care while containing costs. This is achieved through a low cost strategy that helps optimize clients' pharmacy benefits. Services that we provide include claims processing, pharmacy network management, benefit design consultation, drug utilization review, formulary and rebate management, online drug management tools, mail order pharmacy services, home delivery services, analytics and clinical consulting and patient and physician intervention. AcariaHealth offers specialized care management services for complex diseases and enhances the patient care offering through collaboration with providers and the capture of relevant data to measure patient outcomes. Acquired with the Health Net transaction, Health Net Pharmaceutical Services (HNPS) provides pharmacy benefit management (PBM) services to Medicare and dual eligible members. HNPS manages these benefits in an effort to achieve the highest quality outcomes at the lowest cost for legacy Health Net members. HNPS contracts with national health care providers, vendors, drug manufacturers and pharmacy distribution networks, oversees pharmacy claims and administration, reviews and evaluates new FCA-approved drugs for safety and efficacy and manages data collection efforts to facilitate our health plans' disease management programs.

Health, Triage, Wellness, and Disease Management Services. Envolve PeopleCare brings together our behavioral health, nurse advice, telehealth, and health, wellness and disease guidance programs, allowing for a focus on individual health management through education and empowerment. Our life and health management programs specialize to encourage healthy behaviors, promote healthier workplaces, improve workforce and societal productivity and reduce healthcare costs. Health risk appraisals, biometric screenings, interactive wellness programs, disease management and work-life/employee assistance services are areas of focus. We utilize telephonic health and work/life balance coaching, in-home and online interactions and informatics processes to deliver effective clinical outcomes, enhanced patient-provider satisfaction and lower overall healthcare costs. We offer telehealth services where members engage with bilingual customer service representatives and nursing staff members who provide health education and triage advice and offer continuous access to health plan functions. Our staff can arrange for urgent pharmacy refills, transportation and qualified behavioral health professionals for crisis stabilization assessments. Our behavioral health networks feature a full range of services and levels of care to help people with mental illness reach their recovery and wellness goals. Acquired with the Health Net acquisition, Managed Health Network, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively MHN) administers and arranges behavioral health benefits and services. MHN offers behavioral health and substance abuse programs on an insured and self-funded basis to groups in various states. The programs and services are included as a standard part of most of our commercial health plans and are also sold in conjunction with other commercial and Medicare products and on a stand-alone basis to unaffiliated health plans and employer groups.

Vision and Dental Services. Envolve Benefit Options coordinates benefits beyond traditional medical benefits to offer fully integrated vision and dental health services. Our vision benefit program administers routine and medical surgical eye care benefits through a contracted national network of eye care providers. Through the dental benefit, we are dedicated to improving oral health through a contracted network of dental healthcare providers.


14



Care Management Software. Casenet is a software provider of innovative care management solutions that automate the clinical, administrative and technical components of care management programs, which is used by our health plans and available for sale to third parties.

Correctional Healthcare Services. Centurion, our joint venture subsidiary with MHM Services Inc., provides comprehensive healthcare services to individuals incarcerated in Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Tennessee and Vermont state correctional facilities. In 2016, we began providing healthcare services to individuals incarcerated in Florida and New Mexico.

In-Home Health Services. U.S. Medical Management, our majority owned subsidiary acquired in January 2014, provides in-home health services for high acuity populations.

Integrated Long-Term Care. LifeShare provides home and community-based support for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, children in the child welfare system and people of all ages and abilities, with a focus on those that are often marginalized by society. In addition, LifeShare operates school-based programs that focus on students with special needs.

Federal Services. Health Net Federal Services, which was acquired with the Health Net acquisition, has a Managed Support Contract in the North Region for the DoD TRICARE program. The services that are provided are structured as cost reimbursement arrangements for health care costs plus administrative fees received in the form of fixed prices, fixed unit prices, and contingent fees and payments based on various incentives and penalties. We provide administrative services to Military Health System eligible beneficiaries, which includes eligible active duty service members and their families, retired service members and their families, survivors of retired service members and qualified former spouses. In July 2016, it was announced that the DoD awarded Health Net Federal Services, the TRICARE West Region contract. In connection with this latest generation of TRICARE contracts, the Department of Defense has consolidated the prior North, South and West TRICARE regions into two: the West and East Regions. We expect health care delivery for this new contract to begin in the second half of 2017. Additionally, our wholly owned subsidiary, MHN Government Services, is party to a MFLC contract that was awarded by the DoD to implement, administer and monitor the non-medical counseling MFLC program. The Patient Centered Community Care (PC3) program, acquired with the Health Net acquisition, provides eligible veterans coordinated, timely access to care through a comprehensive network of non-VA providers who meet VA quality standards when a local VA medical center cannot readily provide the care.

We currently have NCQA accreditation and URAC accreditation for several of our specialty companies.

CORPORATE COMPLIANCE

Our Corporate Ethics and Compliance Program provides controls to help us assure that our values are reflected in everything we do, further enhancing operations, improving access to quality care and helping to safeguard against fraud, waste and abuse.

Three standards by which corporate compliance programs in the healthcare industry are measured are the Federal Organizational Sentencing Guidelines, the CMS Chapter Guidance and the Compliance Program Guidance series issued by the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the Inspector General (OIG). Our program contains each of the seven elements suggested by the Sentencing Guidelines and the OIG guidance. These key components are:

written standards of conduct
designation of a corporate compliance officer and compliance committee
effective training and education  
effective lines for reporting and communication  
enforcement of standards through well publicized disciplinary guidelines and actions  
internal monitoring and auditing
prompt response to detected offenses and development of corrective action plans

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The goal of our program is to build a culture of ethics and compliance, which is assessed periodically to measure the integrity of the organization. Our internal Corporate Compliance intranet site, accessible to all employees, contains our Business Ethics and Conduct Policy (Code of Conduct), Compliance Program description and resources for employees to report concerns or ask questions. If needed, employees have access to the contact information for the members of our Board of Directors' Audit Committee to report concerns. Our Ethics and Compliance Helpline is a toll-free number and web-based reporting tool operated by a third party independent of the Company and allows employees or other persons to report suspected incidents of misconduct, fraud, waste, abuse or other compliance violations anonymously. Furthermore, the Board of Directors has established a Corporate Compliance committee that, among other things, reviews ethics and compliance reports on a quarterly basis.

COMPETITION  

We operate in a highly competitive environment in an industry subject to ongoing significant changes resulting from the ACA, business consolidations, new strategic alliances, market pressures, and regulatory and legislative reform including but not limited to the federal and state health care reform legislation described under the heading "Regulation." In addition, changes to the political environment, including recent changes resulting from the 2016 election cycle and related uncertainties, may drive additional changes to the competitive landscape.

In our business, our principal competitors for customers, members, and providers consist of the following types of organizations: 

Medicaid Managed Care Organizations focus on providing healthcare services to Medicaid recipients. These organizations consist of national and regional organizations, as well as not-for-profits and smaller organizations that operate in one city or state and are owned by providers, primarily hospitals.

National and Regional Commercial Managed Care Organizations have Medicaid and Medicare members in addition to members in private commercial plans. Some of these organizations offer a range of specialty services including pharmacy benefits management, behavioral health management, health management, and nurse triage call support centers.

Primary Care Case Management Programs are programs established by the states through contracts with primary care providers. Under these programs, physicians provide primary care services to Medicaid recipients, as well as limited medical management oversight.     

Accountable Care Organizations are groups of doctors, hospitals, and other health care providers, who come together to give coordinated high quality care to their patients.

We compete with other managed care organizations and specialty companies for state, federal, and commercial contracts. Before granting a contract, state and federal government agencies consider many factors. These factors include quality of care, financial condition, stability and resources and established or scalable infrastructure with a demonstrated ability to deliver services and establish adequate provider networks. Our specialty companies compete with other providers, such as disease management companies, individual health insurance companies, and pharmacy benefits managers for non-governmental contracts.

We also compete to enroll new members and retain existing members. People who wish to enroll in a managed healthcare plan or to change healthcare plans typically choose a plan based on the quality of care and services offered, ease of access to services, a specific provider being part of the network and the availability of supplemental benefits. We believe that the principal competitive features affecting our ability to retain and increase membership include the range and prices of benefit plans offered, size and quality of provider network, quality of service, responsiveness to customer demands, financial stability, comprehensiveness of coverage, diversity of product offerings, market presence and reputation. The relative importance of each of these factors and the identity of our key competitors varies by market and product. We believe that we compete effectively against other health care industry participants.

We also compete with other managed care organizations in establishing provider networks. When contracting with various health plans, we believe that providers consider existing and potential member volume, reimbursement rates, medical management programs, speed of reimbursement and administrative service capabilities. See “Risk Factors - Competition may limit our ability to increase penetration of the markets that we serve.” 


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The relative importance of each of the aforementioned competitive factors and the identity of our key competitors varies by market, including by geography and by product.


REGULATION

Our operations are comprehensively regulated at both state and federal levels. Government regulation of the provision of healthcare products and services is a changing area of law that varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Regulatory agencies generally have substantial discretion to issue regulations and interpret and enforce laws and rules. Changes in the regulatory environment and applicable laws and rules also may occur periodically, including in connection with changes in political party or administration at the state, federal or national level. For example, the new administration and certain members of Congress have affirmatively indicated that they will pursue full repeal of or significant amendment to the ACA. Even if the ACA is not amended or repealed, the new administration could propose changes impacting implementation of the ACA. The ultimate content and timing of any legislation enacted under the new administration that would impact the current implementation of the ACA remains uncertain.

The ACA transformed the U.S. health care system through a series of complex initiatives. Some of the ACA's most significant provisions include the imposition of significant fees, assessments and taxes, including the non-deductible tax (technically called a "fee") on health insurers based on prior year net premiums written (the "health insurer fee" or "HIF"); the establishment of federally-facilitated and state-based Health Insurance Marketplaces where individuals and small groups may purchase health coverage; the implementation of certain premium stabilization programs designed to apportion risk amongst insurers; and the optional Medicaid Expansion. State and federal regulators have continued to provide additional guidance and specificity to the ACA, and we continue to monitor this new information and evaluate its potential impact on our business. For a further discussion of the implementation of the ACA, as well as the potential repeal of, or changes to, the ACA, see the risk factor below entitled “The implementation of Health Reform Legislation, as well as potential repeal of or changes to Health Reform Legislation, could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.”

Our regulated subsidiaries are licensed to operate as health maintenance organizations (HMOs), preferred provider organizations (PPOs), third party administrators, utilization review organizations, pharmacies, direct care providers and/or insurance companies in their respective states. In each of the jurisdictions in which we operate, we are regulated by the relevant insurance, health and/or human services departments, departments of insurance, boards of pharmacy and other health care providers, and departments of health that oversee the activities of managed care organizations and health plans providing or arranging to provide services to enrollees.  

The process for obtaining authorization to operate as a managed care organization, health insurance plan and provider organizations is complex and requires us to demonstrate to the regulators the adequacy of the health plan's organizational structure, financial resources, utilization review, quality assurance programs, complaint procedures, provider network and procedures for covering emergency medical conditions. Under both state managed care organization statutes and insurance laws, our health plan subsidiaries, as well as our applicable specialty companies, must comply with minimum statutory capital and other financial solvency requirements, such as deposit and surplus requirements. Insurance regulations may also require prior state approval of acquisitions of other managed care organization businesses and the payment of dividends, as well as notice for loans or the transfer of funds. Our subsidiaries are also subject to periodic state and federal reporting requirements. In addition, each health plan and individual health care provider must meet criteria to secure the approval of state regulatory authorities before implementing certain operational changes, including without limitation changes to existing offerings, the development of new product offerings, certain organizational restructurings and, in some states, the expansion of service areas. 

States have adopted a number of regulations that may affect our business and results of operations. These regulations in certain states include:

premium taxes or similar assessments imposed on us;
stringent prompt payment laws requiring us to pay claims within a specified period of time;
disclosure requirements regarding provider fee schedules and coding procedures; and
programs to monitor and supervise the activities and financial solvency of provider groups.

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Federal law has also implemented other health programs that are partially funded by the federal government, such as the Medicaid program. Our Medicaid programs are regulated and administered by various state regulatory bodies. Federal funding remains critical to the viability of these programs. Federal law permits the federal government to oversee and, in some cases, to enact, regulations and other requirements that must be followed by states with respect to these programs. Medicaid is administered at the federal level by CMS. Comprehensive legislation, specifically Title XVIII of the Social Security Act of 1935, as amended, governs our Medicare program. In addition, our Medicare contracts are subject to regulation by CMS. CMS has the right to audit Medicare contractors and the health care providers and administrative contractors who provide certain services on their behalf to determine the quality of care being rendered and the degree of compliance with CMS contracts and regulations.

We are regulated as an insurance holding company and are subject to the insurance holding company acts of the states in which our insurance company and HMO subsidiaries are domiciled. These acts contain certain reporting requirements as well as restrictions on transactions between an insurer or HMO and its affiliates. These holding company laws and regulations generally require insurance companies and HMOs within an insurance holding company system to register with the insurance department of each state where they are domiciled and to file with those states' insurance departments reports describing capital structure, ownership, financial condition, intercompany transactions and general business operations. In addition, depending on the size and nature of the transaction, there are various notice and reporting requirements that generally apply to transactions between insurance companies and HMOs and their affiliates within an insurance holding company structure. Some insurance holding company laws and regulations require prior regulatory approval or, in certain circumstances, prior notice of certain material intercompany transfers of assets as well as certain transactions between insurance companies, HMOs, their parent holding companies and affiliates. Among other provisions, state insurance and HMO laws may restrict the ability of our regulated subsidiaries to pay dividends.  

Additionally, the holding company acts of the states in which our subsidiaries are domiciled restrict the ability of any person to obtain control of an insurance company or HMO without prior regulatory approval. Under those statutes, without such approval or an exemption, no person may acquire any voting security of an insurance holding company, which controls an insurance company or HMO, or merge with such a holding company, if as a result of such transaction such person would “control” the insurance holding company. “Control” is generally defined as the direct or indirect power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of a company and is presumed to exist if a person directly or indirectly owns or controls 10% or more of the voting securities of a company.

PPO regulation also varies by state and covers all or most of the subject area referred to above.

Our pharmacies must be licensed to do business as pharmacies in the states in which they are located. Our pharmacies must also register with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and individual state controlled substance authorities to dispense controlled substances. In many of the states where our pharmacies deliver pharmaceuticals, there are laws and regulations that require out-of-state mail order pharmacies to register with that state’s board of pharmacy or similar regulatory body. These states generally permit the pharmacy to follow the laws of the state in which the mail order pharmacy is located, although some states require that we also comply with certain laws in that state.

Our health care providers must be licensed to practice medicine and do business as care providers in the state in which they are located. In addition, they must be in good standing with the applicable medical board, board of nursing or other applicable entity. Furthermore, they cannot be excluded from participation at both the state and federal levels. Our facilities are periodically reviewed by state departments of health and other regulatory agencies to ensure the environment is safe to provide care.

We must also comply with, and are faceted by, laws and regulations related to the award, administration and performance of U.S. Government contracts. Government contract laws and regulations affect how we do business with our customers and, in some instances, impose added costs on our business. In addition, as a result of our international operations, we are also subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and similar worldwide anti-corruption laws, including the U.K. Bribery Act of 2010, which generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to non-U.S. officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. A violation of specific laws and regulations by us and/or our agents could result in among other things, the imposition of fines and penalties on us, changes to our business practices, the termination of our contracts or debarment from bidding on contracts.


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State and Federal Contracts

In addition to being a licensed insurance company or HMO, in order to be a Medicaid managed care organization in each of the states in which we operate, we generally must operate under a contract with the state's Medicaid agency. States generally use either a formal proposal process, reviewing a number of bidders, or award individual contracts to qualified applicants that apply for entry to the program. Under these state Medicaid program contracts, we receive monthly payments based on specified capitation rates determined on an actuarial basis. These rates differ by membership category and by state depending on the specific benefits and policies adopted by each state. In addition, several of our Medicaid contracts require us to maintain Medicare Advantage special needs plans, which are regulated by CMS, for dual eligible individuals within the state. We also contract with states to provide healthcare services to correctional facilities.

We provide Medicare Advantage, Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs), and Medicare-Medicaid Plans (MMP) which are provided under contracts with CMS and subject to federal regulation regarding the award, administration and performance of such contracts.  CMS also has the right to audit our performance to determine our compliance with these contracts, as well as other CMS regulations and the quality of care we provide to Medicare beneficiaries under these contracts.  We additionally provide behavioral and other healthcare services to correctional systems under contracts in certain states which are also subject to state regulation.

Our government contracts include government-sponsored managed care and administrative services contracts through the TRICARE program, the Department of Defense Military and Family Life Counseling program, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Patient Centered Community Care program and certain other health care-related government contracts.

Our state and federal contracts and the regulatory provisions applicable to us generally set forth the requirements for operating in the Medicaid and Medicare sectors, including provisions relating to:

eligibility, enrollment and dis-enrollment processes
covered services
eligible providers
subcontractors
record-keeping and record retention
periodic financial and informational reporting
quality assurance
accreditation
 
health education and wellness and prevention programs
timeliness of claims payment
financial standards
safeguarding of member information
fraud, waste and abuse detection and reporting
grievance procedures
organization and administrative systems


A health plan or individual health insurance provider's compliance with these requirements is subject to monitoring by state regulators and by CMS. A health plan is also subject to periodic comprehensive quality assurance evaluations by a third-party reviewing organization and generally by the insurance department of the jurisdiction that licenses the health plan. A health plan or individual health insurance provider must also submit reports to various regulatory agencies, including quarterly and annual statutory financial statements and utilization reports.

The table below sets forth certain terms of our contracts and provides details regarding related renewal or extension and termination provisions. The contracts generally are subject to termination for cause, an event of default or lack of funding, among other things.

State Contract
 
Expiration Date
 
Renewal or Extension
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona - Behavioral Health
 
September 30, 2018
 
Renewable for two additional two-year terms.
Arizona - LTC
 
September 30, 2017
 
RFP following expiration of contract term.
Arizona - Special Needs Plan (Medicare)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Arizona - Medicaid (Maricopa County)
 
September 30, 2017
 
One year option to extend.
Arizona - Medicare Advantage HMO (includes Special Needs Plan)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Arkansas - Arkansas Works
 
December 31, 2016*
 
Program extended until December 31, 2021. The current Arkansas Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) expired December 31, 2016.
 
 
 
 
 

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State Contract
 
Expiration Date
 
Renewal or Extension
 
 
 
 
 
California - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
September 30, 2019
 
Renewable for up to five additional one-year terms.
California - Medicaid & ABD (Imperial and Northern 18 counties)
 
October 31, 2018
 
Renewable up to three additional one-year terms.
California - Medicaid Dental Contract (Los Angeles County)
 
January 31, 2018
 
Two 12-month extensions.
California - Medicaid Dental Contract (Sacramento County)
 
July 31, 2017
 
Two 12-month extensions.
California - Medicaid (Los Angeles County)
 
March 31, 2019
 
Renewable through the state's procurement process.
California - Medicaid (Kern, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, & Tulare Counties)
 
December 31, 2022
 
Renewable through the state's procurement process.
California - Medicaid (Sacramento County)
 
December 31, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's procurement process.
California - Medicaid (San Diego County)
 
June 30, 2020
 
Renewable through the state's procurement process.
California - Dual Eligible Demonstration (Los Angeles and San Diego Counties)
 
December 31, 2017
 
May be extended if the Demonstration is funded beyond 2017.
California - Medicare Advantage HMO (includes Special Needs Plan)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
California - Medicare Advantage PPO (Employer Group Health Plan only)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Florida - Medicaid, ABD, LTC & Foster Care
 
December 31, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's recertification process.
Florida - CHIP
 
December 31, 2017
 
May be extended for two additional one-year terms.
Florida - Special Needs Plan (Medicare)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Florida - Special Needs Plan (Medicaid)
 
December 31, 2017
 
May be extended for up to three additional years.
Florida - Medicare Advantage
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Florida - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
January 31, 2018
 
Renewable for up to three years, or any portion thereof.
Georgia - Medicaid & CHIP
 
June 30, 2017
 
RFP awarded for an initial one-year term to begin July 1, 2017 and renewable for five additional one-year terms.
Georgia - Special Needs Plan (Medicare)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Illinois - ABD & LTC
 
April 30, 2021
 
RFP following expiration of the contract term.
Illinois - Duals
 
December 31, 2019
 
May be extended based on terms to be determined by CMS and the Illinois Demonstration Project.
Illinois - Medicaid
 
June 30, 2019
 
May be extended for up to five additional years.
Illinois - Medicaid Long Term Support Services
 
December 31, 2019
 
Renewable for up to six additional years.
Indiana - ABD
 
March 31, 2019
 
May be extended for two additional one-year terms.
Indiana - Medicaid, CHIP & Hybrid (Healthy Indiana Plan)
 
December 31, 2020
 
Renewable for two additional one-year terms subject to state signature.
Kansas - Medicaid, ABD, CHIP, LTC & Foster Care
 
December 31, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's reprocurement process.
Louisiana - Medicaid, CHIP, ABD, Foster Care & Behavioral Health
 
January 31, 2018
 
May be extended for up to two additional one-year terms.
Massachusetts - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
June 30, 2018
 
Renewable for two additional two-year terms.

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State Contract
 
Expiration Date
 
Renewal or Extension
 
 
 
 
 
Massachusetts - Medicaid
 
September 30, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Michigan - Duals
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable through the state's reprocurement process.
Minnesota - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
June 30, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's reprocurement process.
Mississippi - Medicaid, ABD & Foster Care
 
June 30, 2017
 
May be extended for up to two additional one-year terms.
Mississippi - CHIP
 
June 30, 2017
 
May be extended for up to two additional one-year terms.
Mississippi - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
June 30, 2019
 
Renewable at the discretion of MDOC for two one-year extensions, not to exceed two.
Missouri - Medicaid, CHIP & Foster Care
 
April 30, 2017
 
RFP awarded for an initial term of May 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018. Renewable for four additional one-year terms.
Nebraska - Medicaid, ABD, CHIP, Foster Care and LTC
 
December 31, 2022
 
Renewable for two additional one-year terms.
New Hampshire - Medicaid, CHIP, Foster Care & ABD
 
June 30, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's reprocurement process.
New Hampshire - Premium Assistance Program
 
December 31, 2018
 
Memorandum of Understanding with the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services has been renewed through 2018.
New Mexico - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
May 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for up to three additional one-year terms.
Ohio - Duals
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually through December 31, 2019.
Ohio - Medicaid, CHIP & ABD
 
June 30, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Ohio - Special Needs Plan (Medicare)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Oregon - Medicaid, ABD, CHIP & Foster Care
 
December 31, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's reprocurement process.
Oregon - Medicare Advantage HMO (Includes Special Needs Plan)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Oregon - Medicare Advantage PPO
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
South Carolina - Medicaid & ABD
 
June 30, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's recertification process.
South Carolina - Duals
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable for one additional one-year term.
Tennessee - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
February 28, 2017
 
Renewable through the state’s reprocurement process.
Texas - ABD Dallas Expansion
 
August 31, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's reprocurement process.
Texas - ABD MRSA
 
August 31, 2017
 
May be extended for up to five additional years.
Texas - CHIP Rural Service Area
 
August 31, 2018
 
Renewable through the state's reprocurement process.
Texas - Foster Care
 
August 31, 2018
 
May be extended for up to five additional years.
Texas - Medicaid, CHIP & ABD
 
August 31, 2018
 
May be extended for up to one and a half additional years.
Texas - Duals
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable for one-year term.
Texas - Special Needs Plan (Medicare)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
Texas - STAR Kids
 
August 31, 2019
 
Renewable for up to five years.
 
 
 
 
 

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State Contract
 
Expiration Date
 
Renewal or Extension
 
 
 
 
 
Vermont - Correctional Healthcare Services
 
January 31, 2018
 
May be extended for up to two additional one-year terms.
Washington - Medicaid, CHIP & ABD
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable through the state's recertification process.
Washington - Foster Care
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable through the state's recertification process.
Wisconsin - Medicaid, CHIP & ABD
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable through the state's recertification process every two years.
Wisconsin - Network Health Plan Subcontract
 
December 31, 2020
 
Renews automatically for successive three-year terms.
Wisconsin - Special Needs Plan (Medicare)
 
December 31, 2017
 
Renewable annually for successive 12-month periods.
 
 
 
 
 
Federal Contract
 
Expiration Date
 
Renewal or Extension
 
 
 
 
 
Department of Defense - TRICARE Managed Care Support (North Region)
 
March 31, 2017
 
Contract has been extended until TRICARE West Region contract effective date.
Department of Defense - TRICARE Managed Care Support (West Region)
 
September 30, 2017
 
Contract currently in base period transition-in status. Renewable for five additional one-year option periods.
Department of Defense - Military & Family Life Counseling
 
August 14, 2017
 
We currently expect that the Department of Defense will procure this contract in advance of the August 2017 expiration. If so, we expect to submit a bid.
Department of Veterans Affairs - Patient Centered Community Care / Veterans Choice
 
September 30, 2017
 
Although contract is renewable for one additional one-year option period, the Veterans Choice Program modification to the contract is scheduled to end on August 7, 2017.

* We are operating under the same terms of the 2016 MOU until the 2017 MOU is executed.

Marketplace Contracts

We operate in 15 states under federally facilitated and state-based Marketplace contracts with CMS that expire annually.  In 2016, we began operating in a federally facilitated Marketplace in New Hampshire, as well as Arizona and California that were added with the Health Net Acquisition.

In addition, we operate under a contract with the Arkansas Department of Human Services Division of Medical Services and the Arkansas Insurance Department to participate in the Medicaid expansion model that Arkansas has adopted (referred to as "Arkansas Works"). In 2016, we started operating under a contract with the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services to participate in the Medicaid expansion model that New Hampshire has adopted (referred to as the “Premium Assistance Program”).

Privacy Regulations

We are subject to various federal, state and local laws and rules regarding the use, security and disclosure of protected health information, personal information, and other categories of confidential or legally protected data that our businesses handle. Such laws and rules include, without limitation, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the Federal Trade Commission Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Modernization Act of 1999 (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act), state privacy and security laws such as the California Confidentiality of Medical Information Act and the California Online Privacy Protection Act. Privacy and security laws and regulations often change due to new or amended legislation, regulations or administrative interpretation. A variety of state and federal regulators enforce these laws, including but not limited to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Federal Trade Commission, state attorneys general and other state regulators.   


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HIPAA is designed to improve the portability and continuity of health insurance coverage, simplify the administration of health insurance through standard transactions and ensure the privacy and security of individual health information. Among the requirements of HIPAA are the Administrative Simplification provisions which include: standards for processing health insurance claims and related transactions (Transactions Standards); requirements for protecting the privacy and limiting the use and disclosure of medical records and other personal health information (Privacy Rule); and standards and specifications for safeguarding personal health information which is maintained, stored or transmitted in electronic format (Security Rule). The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act amended certain provisions of HIPAA and enhanced data security obligations for covered entities and their business associates. HITECH also mandated individual notifications in instances of a data breach, provided enhanced penalties for HIPAA violations, and granted enforcement authority to states' Attorneys Generals in addition to the HHS Office for Civil Rights. The HIPAA Omnibus Rule further enhanced the changes under the HITECH Acts and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) which clarified that genetic information is protected under HIPAA and prohibits most health plans from using or disclosing genetic information for underwriting purposes. This Omnibus rule enhances the privacy protections and strengthens the government's ability to enforce the law. These regulations also establish significant criminal penalties and civil sanctions for non-compliance. The preemption provisions of HIPAA provide that the federal standards will not preempt state laws that are more stringent than the related federal requirements.

The Privacy and Security Rules and HITECH/Omnibus enhancements established requirements to protect the privacy of medical records and safeguard personal health information maintained and used by healthcare providers, health plans, healthcare clearinghouses, and their business associates.

The Security Rule requires healthcare providers, health plans, healthcare clearinghouses, and their business associates to implement administrative, physical and technical safeguards to ensure the privacy and confidentiality of health information electronically stored, maintained or transmitted. The HITECH Act and Omnibus Rule enhanced a federal requirement for notification when the security of protected health information is breached. In addition, there are state laws that have been adopted to provide for, among other things, private rights of action for breaches of data security and mandatory notification to persons whose identifiable information is obtained without authorization.

The requirements of the Transactions Standards apply to certain healthcare related transactions conducted using "electronic media." Since "electronic media" is defined broadly to include "transmissions that are physically moved from one location to another using portable data, magnetic tape, disk or compact disk media," many communications are considered to be electronically transmitted. Under HIPAA, health plans and providers are required to have the capacity to accept and send all covered transactions in a standardized electronic format. Penalties can be imposed for failure to comply with these requirements. The transaction standards were modified on October 1, 2015 with the implementation of the ICD-10 coding system.

In addition, we process and maintain personal card data, particularly in connection with our Marketplace business. As a result, we are subject to the requirements under the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard, which is a multifaceted security standard that is designed to protect credit card account data as mandated by payment card industry entities.

Other Fraud, Waste and Abuse Laws

Investigating and prosecuting healthcare fraud, waste and abuse continues to be a top priority for state and federal law enforcement entities. The focus of these efforts has been directed at participants in public government healthcare programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. The fraud, waste and abuse laws include the federal False Claims Act, which prohibits the known filing of a false claim or the known use of false statements to obtain payment from the federal government. Many states have false claim act statutes that closely resemble the federal False Claims Act. The laws and regulations relating to fraud, waste and abuse and the requirements applicable to health plans and providers participating in these programs are complex and change regularly. Compliance with these laws may require substantial resources. We are constantly looking for ways to improve our waste, fraud and abuse detection methods. While we have both prospective and retrospective processes to identify abusive patterns and fraudulent billing, we continue to increase our capabilities to proactively detect inappropriate billing prior to payment.

EMPLOYEES

As of December 31, 2016, we had approximately 30,500 employees. None of our employees are represented by a union. We believe our relationships with our employees are positive.


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EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT

The following table sets forth information regarding our executive officers, including their ages, at February 17, 2017:  
Name
 
Age
 
Position
Michael F. Neidorff
 
74

 
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Christopher D. Bowers
 
61

 
Executive Vice President, Markets
Cynthia J. Brinkley
 
57

 
Executive Vice President, Global Corporate Development
Mark J. Brooks
 
47

 
Senior Vice President, Chief Information Officer
Jesse N. Hunter
 
41

 
Executive Vice President, Products
Christopher R. Isaak
 
50

 
Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller and Chief Accounting Officer
Jeffrey A. Schwaneke
 
41

 
Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
Keith H. Williamson
 
64

 
Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary
 

Michael F. Neidorff. Mr. Neidorff has served as our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since May 2004. From May 1996 to May 2004, Mr. Neidorff served as President, Chief Executive Officer and as a member of our Board of Directors.

Christopher D. Bowers. Mr. Bowers is our Executive Vice President of Markets since November 2016. From March 2007 to November 2016, he served as our Senior Vice President of Health Plans.

Cynthia J. Brinkley. Ms. Brinkley has served as our Executive Vice President, Global Corporate Development since January 2016. From November 2014 to January 2016, she served as Executive Vice President, International Operations and Business Integration.  Prior to joining Centene, she served as Vice President of Global Human Resources at General Motors from 2011 to 2013. 

Mark J. Brooks. Mr. Brooks is our Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer since April 2016. Prior to joining Centene, he served as the Chief Information Officer at Health Net from 2012 to 2016. He previously served as Health Net's Chief Technology Officer from 2008 to 2012.

Jesse N. Hunter. Mr. Hunter has served as our Executive Vice President, Products since January 2016. From December 2012 to January 2016, he served as Executive Vice President, Chief Business Development Officer. From February 2012 to December 2012, he served as our Executive Vice President, Operations. He previously served as our Executive Vice President, Corporate Development from April 2008 to February 2012.

Christopher R. Isaak. Mr. Isaak is our Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller and Chief Accounting Officer since April 2016. Prior to joining Centene, he served as Vice President, Corporate Controller at TTM Technologies from 2015 to 2016 and Vice President, Corporate Controller at Viasystems Group, Inc. from 2006 to 2015 and served as Chief Accounting Officer from 2010 to 2015.

Jeffrey A. Schwaneke. Mr. Schwaneke has served as our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer since March 2016. From July 2008 to March 2016, he served as our Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller and served as our Chief Accounting Officer from September 2008 to March 2016.

Keith H. Williamson. Mr. Williamson has served as our Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary since November 2012. He served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel from November 2006 to November 2012.

Available Information

We are subject to the reporting and information requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (Exchange Act) and, as a result, we file periodic reports and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC. We make these filings available on our website free of charge, the URL of which is http://www.centene.com, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. The SEC maintains a website (http://www.sec.gov) that contains our annual, quarterly and current reports and other information we file electronically with the SEC. You can read and copy any materials we file with the SEC at the SEC's Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, N.E., Room 1850, Washington, D.C. 20549. You may obtain information on the operation of the Public Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. Information on our website does not constitute part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.


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ITEM 1A. Risk Factors

FACTORS THAT MAY AFFECT FUTURE RESULTS AND THE
TRADING PRICE OF OUR COMMON STOCK

You should carefully consider the risks described below before making an investment decision. The trading price of our common stock could decline due to any of these risks, in which case you could lose all or part of your investment. You should also refer to the other information in this filing, including our consolidated financial statements and related notes. The risks and uncertainties described below are those that we currently believe may materially affect our Company. Additional risks and uncertainties that we are unaware of or that we currently deem immaterial also may become important factors that affect our Company.

Reductions in funding, changes to eligibility requirements for government sponsored healthcare programs in which we participate and any inability on our part to effectively adapt to changes to these programs could substantially affect our financial position, results of operations and cash flows.

The majority of our revenues come from government subsidized healthcare programs including Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE, VA, CHIP, LTC, ABD, Foster Care and Health Insurance Marketplace premiums. Under most programs, the base premium rate paid for each program differs, depending on a combination of factors such as defined upper payment limits, a member’s health status, age, gender, county or region and benefit mix. Since Medicaid was created in 1965, the federal government and the states have shared the costs for this program, with the federal share currently averaging around 57%. We are therefore exposed to risks associated with U.S. and state government contracting or participating in programs involving a government payor, including but not limited to the general ability of the federal and/or state government to terminate contracts with it, in whole or in part, without prior notice, for convenience or for default based on performance; potential regulatory or legislative action that may materially modify amounts owed; and our dependence upon Congressional or legislative appropriation and allotment of funds and the impact that delays in government payments could have on our operating cash flow and liquidity. For example, future levels of funding and premium rates may be affected by continuing government efforts to contain healthcare costs and may further be affected by state and federal budgetary constraints. Governments periodically consider reducing or reallocating the amount of money they spend for Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE, VA, CHIP, LTC, ABD and Foster Care. Furthermore, Medicare remains subject to the automatic spending reductions imposed by the Budget Control Act of 2011 and the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (“sequestration”), subject to a 2% cap. In addition, reductions in defense spending could have an adverse impact on certain government programs in which we currently participate by, among other things, terminating or materially changing such programs, or by decreasing or delaying payments made under such programs. Adverse economic conditions may continue to put pressures on state budgets as tax and other state revenues decrease while the population that is eligible to participate in these programs increases, creating more need for funding. We anticipate this will require government agencies to find funding alternatives, which may result in reductions in funding for programs, contraction of covered benefits, and limited or no premium rate increases or premium rate decreases. A reduction (or less than expected increase), a protracted delay, or a change in allocation methodology in government funding for these programs, as well as termination of the contract for the convenience of the government, may materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows. In addition, if a federal government shutdown were to occur for a prolonged period of time, federal government payment obligations, including its obligations under Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE, VA, CHIP, LTC, ABD, Foster Care and the Health Insurance Marketplaces, may be delayed. Similarly, if state government shutdowns were to occur, state payment obligations may be delayed. If the federal or state governments fail to make payments under these programs on a timely basis, our business could suffer, and our financial position, results of operations or cash flows may be materially affected.

There can be no assurance that we will avoid payment delays from government payors in the future, which, if extended for any significant period of time, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial position, cash flows or liquidity. In addition, delays in obtaining, or failure to obtain or maintain, governmental approvals, or moratoria imposed by regulatory authorities, could adversely affect our revenue or membership, increase costs or adversely affect our ability to bring new products to market as forecasted. Other changes to our government programs could affect our willingness or ability to participate in any of these programs or otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.


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Finally, changes in these programs could reduce the number of persons enrolled in or eligible for these programs or increase our administrative or healthcare costs under these programs. For example, recent legislation generally requires that eligibility levels be maintained, but this could cause states to reduce reimbursement or reduce benefits in order for states to afford to maintain eligibility levels. If any state in which we operate were to decrease premiums paid to us or pay us less than the amount necessary to keep pace with our cost trends, it could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

Our Medicare programs are subject to a variety of risks that could adversely impact our financial results.

If we fail to design and maintain programs that are attractive to Medicare participants; if our Medicare operations are subject to program audits, sanctions or penalties; if we do not submit adequate bids in our existing markets or any expansion markets; if our existing contracts are terminated; or if we fail to maintain or improve our star ratings, our current Medicare business and our ability to expand our Medicare operations could be materially and adversely affected, negatively impacting our financial performance. There are also specific additional risks under Title XVIII, Part D of the Social Security Act associated with our provision of Medicare Part D prescription drug benefits as part of our Medicare Advantage plan offerings. These risks include potential uncollectibility of receivables, inadequacy of pricing assumptions, inability to receive and process information and increased pharmaceutical costs, as well as the underlying seasonality of this business, and extended settlement periods for claims submissions. Our failure to comply with Part D program requirements can result in financial and/or operational sanctions on our Part D products, as well as on our Medicare Advantage products that offer no prescription drug coverage.
 
Failure to accurately estimate and price our medical expenses or effectively manage our medical costs or related administrative costs could negatively affect our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Our profitability, to a significant degree, depends on our ability to estimate and effectively manage expenses related to health benefits through, among other things, our ability to contract favorably with hospitals, physicians and other healthcare providers. For example, our Medicaid revenue is often based on bids submitted before the start of the initial contract year. If our actual medical expense exceeds our estimates, our health benefits ratio (HBR), or our expenses related to medical services as a percentage of premium revenue, would increase and our profits would decline. Because of the narrow margins of our health plan business, relatively small changes in our HBR can create significant changes in our financial results. Changes in healthcare regulations and practices, the level of utilization of healthcare services, hospital and pharmaceutical costs, disasters, the potential effects of climate change, major epidemics, pandemics or newly emergent viruses, including the Zika virus, new medical technologies, new pharmaceutical compounds, increases in provider fraud and other external factors, including general economic conditions such as inflation and unemployment levels, are generally beyond our control and could reduce our ability to accurately predict and effectively control the costs of providing health benefits. In addition, the 2017 marketplace for individual products may be less stable than in 2016 because, among other things, other health plans have changed or stopped offering their Health Insurance Marketplace products in the states we expect to serve in 2017. Also, member behavior could be influenced by uncertainty of potential changes to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the accompanying Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act, collectively referred to as the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Our medical expense includes claims reported but not paid, estimates for claims incurred but not reported, and estimates for the costs necessary to process unpaid claims at the end of each period. Our development of the medical claims liability estimate is a continuous process which we monitor and refine on a monthly basis as claims receipts and payment information as well as inpatient acuity information becomes available. As more complete information becomes available, we adjust the amount of the estimate, and include the changes in estimates in medical expense in the period in which the changes are identified. Given the uncertainties inherent in such estimates, there can be no assurance that our medical claims liability estimate will be adequate, and any adjustments to the estimate may unfavorably impact our results of operations and may be material.

Additionally, when we commence operations in a new state, region or product, we have limited information with which to estimate our medical claims liability. For a period of time after the inception of the new business, we base our estimates on government-provided historical actuarial data and limited actual incurred and received claims and inpatient acuity information. The addition of new categories of eligible individuals as well as evolving Health Insurance Marketplace plans may pose difficulty in estimating our medical claims liability.

From time to time in the past, our actual results have varied from our estimates, particularly in times of significant changes in the number of our members. If it is determined that our estimates are significantly different than actual results, our results of operations and financial position could be adversely affected. In addition, if there is a significant delay in our receipt of premiums, our business operations, cash flows, or earnings could be negatively impacted.


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The implementation of Health Reform Legislation, as well as potential repeal of or changes to Health Reform Legislation, could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

In March 2010, ACA was enacted. While the constitutionality of the ACA was generally upheld by the Supreme Court in 2012, the Court determined that states could elect to opt out of the Medicaid expansion portion of ACA without losing all federal money for their existing Medicaid programs.

Under the ACA, Medicaid coverage was expanded to all individuals under age 65 with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level beginning January 1, 2014, subject to each states' election. The federal government pays the entire costs for Medicaid coverage for newly eligible beneficiaries for three years (2014 through 2016). Beginning in 2017, the federal share begins to decline, ending at 90% for 2020 and subsequent years. As of December 31, 2016, 31 states and the District of Columbia have expanded Medicaid eligibility, and additional states continue to discuss expansion. The ACA also maintained CHIP eligibility standards through September 2019.

The ACA required the establishment of Health Insurance Marketplaces for individuals and small employers to purchase health insurance coverage commencing in January 2014. The ACA required insurers participating on the Health Insurance Marketplaces to offer a minimum level of benefits and included guidelines on setting premium rates and coverage limitations.

Any failure to adequately price products offered in the Health Insurance Marketplaces may have a negative impact on our results of operations, financial position and cash flow. Among other things, we may be adversely selected by individuals who have a higher acuity level than the anticipated pool of participants. In addition, the risk corridor, reinsurance and risk adjustment ("three Rs") provisions of the ACA established to apportion risk amongst insurers may not be effective in appropriately mitigating the financial risks related to the Marketplace product. Further, the three Rs may not be adequately funded. Moreover, changes in the competitive marketplace over time may exacerbate the uncertainty in these relatively new markets. For example, competitors seeking to gain a foothold in the changing market may introduce pricing that we may not be able to match, which may adversely affect our ability to compete effectively. Competitors may also choose to exit the market altogether or otherwise suffer financial difficulty, which could adversely impact the pool of potential insured, require us to increase premium rates or result in funding issues under the three Rs. These potential exits and other continued volatility in this market may be further exacerbated by the conclusion of the risk corridor and reinsurance programs as of January 1, 2017. Our continued success in the exchanges is dependent on our ability to successfully respond to these changes in the market over time. Any significant variation from our expectations regarding acuity, enrollment levels, adverse selection, the three Rs, or other assumptions utilized in setting adequate premium rates could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has stated that it will consider a limited number of premium assistance demonstration proposals from States that want to privatize Medicaid expansion. States must provide a choice between at least two qualified health plans and offer very similar benefits as those available in the Health Insurance Marketplaces. Arkansas became the first state to obtain federal approval to use Medicaid funding to purchase private insurance for low-income residents and we began operations under the program beginning January 1, 2014.

The ACA imposed an annual insurance industry assessment of $8.0 billion in 2014, and $11.3 billion in each of 2015 and 2016, with increasing annual amounts thereafter. Such assessments are not deductible for federal and most state income tax purposes. The fee is allocated based on health insurers' premium revenues in the previous year. Each health insurer's fee is calculated by multiplying its market share by the annual fee. Market share is based on commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid premium revenue. Not-for-profit insurers may have a competitive advantage since they are exempt from paying the fee if they receive at least 80% of their premium revenue from Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP, and other not-for-profit insurers are allowed to exclude 50% of their premium revenue from the fee calculation. The health insurer fee payable in 2017 was suspended by the Consolidated Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2016. If we are not reimbursed by the states for the cost of the federal premium assessment (including the associated tax impact), or if we are unable to otherwise adjust our business model to address this new assessment, our results of operations, financial position and cash flows may be materially adversely affected.

There are numerous steps required to implement the ACA, including the promulgation of a substantial number of new and potentially more onerous federal regulations. For example, in April 2016, CMS issued final regulations that revised existing Medicaid managed care rules by establishing a minimum MLR standard for Medicaid of 85% and strengthening provisions related to network adequacy and access to care, enrollment and disenrollment protections, beneficiary support information, continued service during beneficiary appeals, and delivery system and payment reform initiatives, among others. If we fail to effectively implement or appropriately adjust our operational and strategic initiatives with respect to the implementation of healthcare reform, or do not do so as effectively as our competitors, our results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

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In addition, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. circuit has granted a motion to put a lawsuit challenging the ACA’s cost-sharing subsidies on hold until the new administration takes over. Now that the U.S. Court of Appeals has stayed the case, the new administration and Congress will decide how they want to proceed, including whether to seek policy changes such as ACA repeal or replacement that affect the issues under review in this case.

Changes to, or repeal of, the ACA, which the new administration and certain members of Congress have affirmatively indicated that they will pursue, could materially and adversely affect our business and financial position, results of operations or cash flows. Even if the ACA is not amended or repealed, the new administration could propose changes impacting implementation of the ACA, which could materially and adversely affect our financial position or operations. However, the ultimate content, timing or effect of any potential future legislation enacted under the new administration cannot be predicted.

Our business activities are highly regulated and new laws or regulations or changes in existing laws or regulations or their enforcement or application could force us to change how we operate and could harm our business.

Our business is extensively regulated by the states in which we operate and by the federal government. In addition, the managed care industry has received negative publicity that has led to increased legislation, regulation, review of industry practices and private litigation in the commercial sector. Such negative publicity may adversely affect our stock price and damage our reputation in various markets.

In each of the jurisdictions in which we operate, we are regulated by the relevant insurance, health and/or human services or government departments that oversee the activities of managed care organizations providing or arranging to provide services to Medicaid, Medicare, Health Insurance Marketplace enrollees or other beneficiaries. For example, our health plan subsidiaries, as well as our applicable specialty companies, must comply with minimum statutory capital and other financial solvency requirements, such as deposit and surplus requirements.

The frequent enactment of, changes to, or interpretations of laws and regulations could, among other things: force us to restructure our relationships with providers within our network; require us to implement additional or different programs and systems; restrict revenue and enrollment growth; increase our healthcare and administrative costs; impose additional capital and surplus requirements; and increase or change our liability to members in the event of malpractice by our contracted providers. In addition, changes in political party or administrations at the state, federal or country level may change the attitude towards healthcare programs and result in changes to the existing legislative or regulatory environment.

Additionally, the taxes and fees paid to federal, state and local governments may increase due to several factors, including:  enactment of, changes to, or interpretations of tax laws and regulations, audits by governmental authorities, geographic expansions into higher taxing jurisdictions and the effect of expansions into international markets.

Our contracts with states may require us to maintain a minimum HBR or may require us to share profits in excess of certain levels. In certain circumstances, our plans may be required to return premium back to the state in the event profits exceed established levels or HBR does not meet the minimum requirement. Other states may require us to meet certain performance and quality metrics in order to maintain our contract or receive additional or full contractual revenue.

The governmental healthcare programs in which we participate are subject to the satisfaction of certain regulations and performance standards. For example, under Health Reform Legislation, Congress authorized CMS and the states to implement managed care demonstration programs to serve dually eligible beneficiaries to improve the coordination of their care. Participation in these demonstration programs is subject to CMS approval and the satisfaction of conditions to participation, including meeting certain performance requirements. Our inability to improve or maintain adequate quality scores and star ratings to meet government performance requirements or to match the performance of our competitors could result in limitations to our participation in or exclusion from these or other government programs. Specifically, several of our Medicaid contracts require us to maintain a Medicare health plan. Although we strive to comply with all existing regulations and to meet performance standards applicable to our business, failure to meet these requirements could result in financial fines and penalties. Also, states or other governmental entities may not allow us to continue to participate in their government programs, or we may fail to win procurements to participate in such programs which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.


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In addition, as a result of the expansion of our businesses and operations conducted in foreign countries, we face political, economic, legal, compliance, regulatory, operational and other risks and exposures that are unique and vary by jurisdiction. These foreign regulatory requirements with respect to, among other items, environmental, tax, licensing, intellectual property, privacy, data protection, investment, capital, management control, labor relations, and fraud and corruption regulations are different than those faced by our domestic businesses. In addition, we are subject to U.S. laws that regulate the conduct and activities of U.S.-based businesses operating abroad, such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Our failure to comply with laws and regulations governing our conduct outside the United States or to successfully navigate international regulatory regimes that apply to us could adversely affect our ability to market our products and services, which may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our businesses providing pharmacy benefit management (PBM) and specialty pharmacy services face regulatory and other risks and uncertainties which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

We provide PBM and specialty pharmacy services, including through our Envolve Pharmacy Solutions product. These businesses are subject to federal and state laws that govern the relationships of the business with pharmaceutical manufacturers, physicians, pharmacies, customers and consumers. We also conduct business as a mail order pharmacy and specialty pharmacy, which subjects these businesses to extensive federal, state and local laws and regulations. In addition, federal and state legislatures regularly consider new regulations for the industry that could materially and adversely affect current industry practices, including the receipt or disclosure of rebates from pharmaceutical companies, the development and use of formularies, and the use of average wholesale prices.

Our PBM and specialty pharmacy businesses would be materially and adversely affected by an inability to contract on favorable terms with pharmaceutical manufacturers and other suppliers, including with respect to the pricing of new specialty and generic drugs. In addition, our PBM and specialty pharmacy businesses could face potential claims in connection with purported errors by our mail order or specialty pharmacies, including in connection with the risks inherent in the authorization, compounding, packaging and distribution of pharmaceuticals and other healthcare products. Disruptions at any of our mail order or specialty pharmacies due to an event that is beyond our control could affect our ability to process and dispense prescriptions in a timely manner and could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

If any of our government contracts are terminated or are not renewed on favorable terms or at all, or if we receive an adverse finding or review resulting from an audit or investigation, our business may be adversely affected.

A substantial portion of our business relates to the provision of managed care programs and selected services to individuals receiving benefits under governmental assistance or entitlement programs. We provide these and other healthcare services under contracts with government entities in the areas in which we operate. Our government contracts are generally intended to run for a fixed number of years and may be extended for additional specified number of years if the contracting entity or its agent elects to do so. When our contracts with the government expire, they may be opened for bidding by competing healthcare providers, and there is no guarantee that our contracts will be renewed or extended. Competitors may buy their way into the market by submitting bids with lower pricing. Even if our responsive bids are successful, the bids may be based upon assumptions or other factors which could result in the contracts being less profitable than we had anticipated. Further, our government contracts contain certain provisions regarding eligibility, enrollment and dis-enrollment processes for covered services, eligible providers, periodic financial and informational reporting, quality assurance, timeliness of claims payment and agreement to maintain a Medicare plan in the state and financial standards, among other things, and are subject to cancellation if we fail to perform in accordance with the standards set by regulatory agencies.

We are also subject to various reviews, audits and investigations to verify our compliance with the terms of our contracts with various governmental agencies, as well as compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Any adverse review, audit or investigation could result in, among other things: cancellation of our contracts; refunding of amounts we have been paid pursuant to our contracts; imposition of fines, penalties and other sanctions on us; loss of our right to participate in various programs; increased difficulty in selling our products and services; loss of one or more of our licenses; or require changes to the way we do business. In addition, under government procurement regulations and practices, a negative determination resulting from a government audit of our business practices could result in a contractor being fined, debarred and/or suspended from being able to bid on, or be awarded, new government contracts for a period of time.


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If any of our government contracts are terminated, not renewed, renewed on less favorable terms, or not renewed on a timely basis, or if we receive an adverse finding or review resulting from an audit or investigation, our business and reputation may be adversely impacted, our goodwill could be impaired and our financial position, results of operations or cash flows may be materially affected.

We contract with independent third party vendors and service providers who provide services to us and our subsidiaries or to whom we delegate selected functions. Violations of, or noncompliance with, laws and regulations governing our business by such third parties, or governing our dealings with such parties, could, among other things, subject us to additional audits, reviews and investigations and other adverse effects.

Ineffectiveness of state-operated systems and subcontractors could adversely affect our business.

A number of our health plans rely on other state-operated systems or subcontractors to qualify, solicit, educate and assign eligible members into managed care plans. The effectiveness of these state operations and subcontractors can have a material effect on a health plan’s enrollment in a particular month or over an extended period. When a state implements new programs to determine eligibility, new processes to assign or enroll eligible members into health plans, or chooses new subcontractors, there is an increased potential for an unanticipated impact on the overall number of members assigned to managed care plans.

Our investment portfolio may suffer losses which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations or liquidity.
 
We maintain a significant investment portfolio of cash equivalents and short term and long term investments in a variety of securities, which are subject to general credit, liquidity, market and interest rate risks and will decline in value if interest rates increase or one of the issuers’ credit ratings is reduced. As a result, we may experience a reduction in value or loss of our investments, which may have a negative adverse effect on our results of operations, liquidity and financial condition.

Execution of our growth strategy may increase costs or liabilities, or create disruptions in our business.
 
Our growth strategy includes, without limitation, the acquisition of health plans participating in government sponsored healthcare programs and specialty services businesses, contract rights and related assets of other health plans both in our existing service areas and in new markets and start-up operations in new markets or new products in existing markets. Although we review the records of companies or businesses we plan to acquire, it is possible that we could assume unanticipated liabilities or adverse operating conditions, or an acquisition may not perform as well as expected or may not achieve timely profitability. We also face the risk that we will not be able to effectively integrate acquisitions into our existing operations effectively without substantial expense, delay or other operational or financial problems and we may need to divert more management resources to integration than we planned.

In connection with start-up operations, we may incur significant expenses prior to commencement of operations and the receipt of revenue. For example, in order to obtain a certificate of authority in most jurisdictions, we must first establish a provider network, have systems in place and demonstrate our ability to administer a state contract and process claims. We may experience delays in operational start dates. As a result of these factors, start-up operations may decrease our profitability. In addition, we are planning to expand our business internationally and we will be subject to additional risks, including, but not limited to, political risk, an unfamiliar regulatory regime, currency exchange risk and exchange controls, cultural and language differences, foreign tax issues, and different labor laws and practices.

If we are unable to effectively execute our growth strategy, our future growth will suffer and our results of operations could be harmed.

If competing managed care programs are unwilling to purchase specialty services from us, we may not be able to successfully implement our strategy of diversifying our business lines.

We are seeking to diversify our business lines into areas that complement our government sponsored health plan business in order to grow our revenue stream and balance our dependence on risk reimbursement. In order to diversify our business, we must succeed in selling the services of our specialty subsidiaries not only to our managed care plans, but to programs operated by third-parties. Some of these third-party programs may compete with us in some markets, and they therefore may be unwilling to purchase specialty services from us. In any event, the offering of these services will require marketing activities that differ significantly from the manner in which we seek to increase revenues from our government sponsored programs. Our ineffectiveness in marketing specialty services to third-parties may impair our ability to execute our business strategy.


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Adverse credit market conditions may have a material adverse effect on our liquidity or our ability to obtain credit on acceptable terms.
 
In the past, the securities and credit markets have experienced extreme volatility and disruption. The availability of credit, from virtually all types of lenders, has at times been restricted. In the event we need access to additional capital to pay our operating expenses, fund subsidiary surplus requirements, make payments on or refinance our indebtedness, pay capital expenditures, or fund acquisitions, our ability to obtain such capital may be limited and the cost of any such capital may be significant, particularly if we are unable to access our existing credit facility.
 
Our access to additional financing will depend on a variety of factors such as prevailing economic and credit market conditions, the general availability of credit, the overall availability of credit to our industry, our credit ratings and credit capacity, and perceptions of our financial prospects. Similarly, our access to funds may be impaired if regulatory authorities or rating agencies take negative actions against us. If a combination of these factors were to occur, our internal sources of liquidity may prove to be insufficient, and in such case, we may not be able to successfully obtain sufficient additional financing on favorable terms, within an acceptable time, or at all.

If state regulators do not approve payments of dividends and distributions by our subsidiaries to us, we may not have sufficient funds to implement our business strategy.

We principally operate through our health plan subsidiaries. As part of normal operations, we may make requests for dividends and distributions from our subsidiaries to fund our operations. These subsidiaries are subject to regulations that limit the amount of dividends and distributions that can be paid to us without prior approval of, or notification to, state regulators. If these regulators were to deny our subsidiaries’ request to pay dividends, the funds available to us would be limited, which could harm our ability to implement our business strategy.

We derive a majority of our premium revenues from operations in a limited number of states, and our financial position, results of operations or cash flows would be materially affected by a decrease in premium revenues or profitability in any one of those states.

Operations in a limited number of states have accounted for most of our premium revenues to date. If we were unable to continue to operate in any of those states or if our current operations in any portion of one of those states were significantly curtailed, our revenues could decrease materially. Our reliance on operations in a limited number of states could cause our revenue and profitability to change suddenly and unexpectedly depending on legislative or other governmental or regulatory actions and decisions, economic conditions and similar factors in those states. For example, states we currently serve may open the bidding for their Medicaid program to other health insurers through a request for proposal process. Our inability to continue to operate in any of the states in which we operate could harm our business.

Competition may limit our ability to increase penetration of the markets that we serve.

We compete for members principally on the basis of size and quality of provider networks, benefits provided and quality of service. We compete with numerous types of competitors, including other health plans and traditional state Medicaid programs that reimburse providers as care is provided, among others. In addition, the impact of healthcare reform legislation and potential growth in our segment may attract new competitors.

Some of the health plans with which we compete have greater financial and other resources and offer a broader scope of products than we do. In addition, significant merger and acquisition activity has occurred in the managed care industry, as well as complementary industries, such as the hospital, physician, pharmaceutical, medical device and health information systems businesses. To the extent that competition intensifies in any market that we serve, as a result of industry consolidation or otherwise, our ability to retain or increase members and providers, or maintain or increase our revenue growth, pricing flexibility and control over medical cost trends may be adversely affected.


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If we are unable to maintain relationships with our provider networks, our profitability may be harmed.

Our profitability depends, in large part, upon our ability to contract at competitive prices with hospitals, physicians and other healthcare providers. Our provider arrangements with our primary care physicians, specialists and hospitals generally may be canceled by either party without cause upon 90 to 120 days prior written notice. We cannot provide any assurance that we will be able to continue to renew our existing contracts or enter into new contracts on a timely basis or under favorable terms enabling us to service our members profitably. Healthcare providers with whom we contract may not properly manage the costs of services, maintain financial solvency or avoid disputes with other providers. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on the provision of services to our members and our operations.

In any particular market, physicians and other healthcare providers could refuse to contract, demand higher payments, or take other actions that could result in higher medical costs or difficulty in meeting regulatory or accreditation requirements, among other things. In some markets, certain healthcare providers, particularly hospitals, physician/hospital organizations or multi-specialty physician groups, may have significant market positions or near monopolies that could result in diminished bargaining power on our part. In addition, accountable care organizations, practice management companies, which aggregate physician practices for administrative efficiency and marketing leverage, and other organizational structures that physicians, hospitals and other healthcare providers choose may change the way in which these providers interact with us and may change the competitive landscape. Such organizations or groups of healthcare providers may compete directly with us, which could adversely affect our operations, and our results of operations, financial position and cash flows by impacting our relationships with these providers or affecting the way that we price our products and estimate our costs, which might require us to incur costs to change our operations. Provider networks may consolidate, resulting in a reduction in the competitive environment. In addition, if these providers refuse to contract with us, use their market position to negotiate contracts unfavorable to us or place us at a competitive disadvantage, our ability to market products or to be profitable in those areas could be materially and adversely affected.

From time to time healthcare providers assert or threaten to assert claims seeking to terminate non-cancelable agreements due to alleged actions or inactions by us. If we are unable to retain our current provider contract terms or enter into new provider contracts timely or on favorable terms, our profitability may be harmed. In addition, from time to time, we may be subject to class action or other lawsuits by healthcare providers with respect to claim payment procedures or similar matters. For example, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Health Net Life Insurance Company (“HNL”), is and may continue to be subject to such disputes with respect to HNL’s payment levels in connection with the processing of out-of-network provider reimbursement claims for the provision of certain substance abuse related services. HNL expects to vigorously defend its claims payment practices. Nevertheless, in the event HNL receives an adverse finding in any related legal proceeding or from a regulator, or is otherwise required to reimburse providers for these claims at rates that are higher than expected or for claims HNL otherwise believes are unallowable, the Company’s financial condition and results of operations may be materially adversely affected. In addition, regardless of whether any such lawsuits brought against us are successful or have merit, they will still be time-consuming and costly and could distract our management’s attention. As a result, under such circumstances we may incur significant expenses and may be unable to operate our business effectively.

We may be unable to attract, retain or effectively manage the succession of key personnel.

We are highly dependent on our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel to operate and expand our business. We would be adversely impacted if we are unable to adequately plan for the succession of our executives and senior management. While we have succession plans in place for members of our executive and senior management team, these plans do not guarantee that the services of our executive and senior management team will continue to be available to us. Our ability to replace any departed members of our executive and senior management or other key employees may be difficult and may take an extended period of time because of the limited number of individuals in the managed care and specialty services industry with the breadth of skills and experience required to operate and successfully expand a business such as ours. Competition to hire from this limited pool is intense, and we may be unable to hire, train, retain or motivate these personnel. If we are unable to attract, retain and effectively manage the succession plans for key personnel, executives and senior management, our business and financial position, results of operations or cash flows could be harmed.


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If we are unable to integrate and manage our information systems effectively, our operations could be disrupted.

Our operations depend significantly on effective information systems. The information gathered and processed by our information systems assists us in, among other things, monitoring utilization and other cost factors, processing provider claims, and providing data to our regulators. Our healthcare providers also depend upon our information systems for membership verifications, claims status and other information. Our information systems and applications require continual maintenance, upgrading and enhancement to meet our operational needs and regulatory requirements. We regularly upgrade and expand our information systems’ capabilities. If we experience difficulties with the transition to or from information systems or do not appropriately integrate, maintain, enhance or expand our information systems, we could suffer, among other things, operational disruptions, loss of existing members and difficulty in attracting new members, regulatory problems and increases in administrative expenses. In addition, our ability to integrate and manage our information systems may be impaired as the result of events outside our control, including acts of nature, such as earthquakes or fires, or acts of terrorists.

From time to time, we may become involved in costly and time-consuming litigation and other regulatory proceedings, which require significant attention from our management.

From time to time we are a defendant in lawsuits and regulatory actions and are subject to investigations relating to our business, including, without limitation, medical malpractice claims, claims by members alleging failure to pay for or provide health care, claims related to non-payment or insufficient payments for out-of-network services, claims alleging bad faith, investigations regarding our submission of risk adjuster claims, putative securities class actions, and claims related to the imposition of new taxes, including but not limited to claims that may have retroactive application. Due to the inherent uncertainties of litigation and regulatory proceedings, we cannot accurately predict the ultimate outcome of any such proceedings. An unfavorable outcome could have a material adverse impact on our business and financial position, results of operations and/or cash flows and may affect our reputation. In addition, regardless of the outcome of any litigation or regulatory proceedings, such proceedings are costly and time consuming and require significant attention from our management, and could therefore harm our business and financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

An impairment charge with respect to our recorded goodwill and intangible assets could have a material impact on our results of operations.

We periodically evaluate our goodwill and other intangible assets to determine whether all or a portion of their carrying values may be impaired, in which case a charge to earnings may be necessary. Changes in business strategy, government regulations or economic or market conditions have resulted and may result in impairments of our goodwill and other intangible assets at any time in the future. Our judgments regarding the existence of impairment indicators are based on, among other things, legal factors, market conditions, and operational performance. For example, the non-renewal of our health plan contracts with the state in which they operate may be an indicator of impairment. If an event or events occur that would cause us to revise our estimates and assumptions used in analyzing the value of our goodwill and other intangible assets, such revision could result in a non-cash impairment charge that could have a material impact on our results of operations in the period in which the impairment occurs.


33



If we fail to comply with applicable privacy, security, and data laws, regulations and standards, including with respect to third-party service providers that utilize sensitive personal information on our behalf, our business, reputation, results of operations, financial position and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected.

As part of our normal operations, we collect, process and retain confidential member information. We are subject to various federal and state laws and rules regarding the use and disclosure of confidential member information, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009 and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which require us to protect the privacy of medical records and safeguard personal health information we maintain and use. Certain of our businesses are also subject to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, which is a multifaceted security standard that is designed to protect credit card account data as mandated by payment card industry entities. Despite our best attempts to maintain adherence to information privacy and security best practices as well as compliance with applicable laws, rules and contractual requirements, our facilities and systems, and those of our third party service providers, may be vulnerable to privacy or security breaches, acts of vandalism or theft, malware or other forms of cyber attack, misplaced or lost data including paper or electronic media, programming and/or human errors or other similar events. In the past, we have had data breaches resulting in disclosure of confidential or protected health information that have not resulted in any material financial loss or penalty to date. However, future data breaches could require us to expend significant resources to remediate any damage, interrupt our operations and damage our reputation, subject us to state or federal agency review and could also result in enforcement actions, material fines and penalties, litigation or other actions which could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation and results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

In addition, HIPAA broadened the scope of fraud and abuse laws applicable to healthcare companies.  HIPAA established new enforcement mechanisms to combat fraud and abuse, including civil and, in some instances, criminal penalties for failure to comply with specific standards relating to the privacy, security and electronic transmission of protected health information. The HITECH Act expanded the scope of these provisions by mandating individual notification in instances of breaches of protected health information, providing enhanced penalties for HIPAA violations, and granting enforcement authority to states’ Attorneys General in addition to the HHS Office for Civil Rights.  It is possible that Congress may enact additional legislation in the future to increase penalties and to create a private right of action under HIPAA, which could entitle patients to seek monetary damages for violations of the privacy rules. Additionally, HHS continued its auditing program in 2016 to assess compliance efforts by covered entities and business associates. Through a second phase of audits, which commenced for covered entities in July 2016, HHS focused on a review of policies and procedures adopted and employed by covered entities and their business associates to meet selected standards and implementation specifications of the HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules. An audit resulting in findings or allegations of noncompliance could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial position and cash flows.

If we fail to comply with the extensive federal and state fraud and abuse laws, our business, reputation, results of operations, financial position and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected.

We, along with all other companies involved in public health care programs are the subject of fraud and abuse investigations from time to time. The regulations and contractual requirements applicable to participants in these public sector programs are complex and subject to change. Violations of fraud and abuse laws applicable to us could result in civil monetary penalties, criminal fines and imprisonment, and/or exclusion from participation in Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE, VA and other federal health care programs and federally funded state health programs. Fraud and abuse prohibitions encompass a wide range of activities, including kickbacks for referral of members, billing for unnecessary medical services, improper marketing and violations of patient privacy rights. These fraud and abuse laws include the federal False Claims Act, which prohibits the known filing of a false claim or the known use of false statements to obtain payment from the federal government. Many states have false claim act statutes that closely resemble the federal False Claims Act. In addition, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 encouraged states to enact state-versions of the federal False Claims Act that establish liability to the state for false and fraudulent Medicaid claims and that provide for, among other things, claims to be filed by qui tam relators. Federal and state governments have made investigating and prosecuting health care fraud and abuse a priority. In the event we fail to comply with the extensive federal and state fraud and abuse laws, our business, reputation, results of operations, financial position and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected.

34




A failure in or breach of our operational or security systems or infrastructure, or those of third parties with which we do business, including as a result of cyber attacks, could have an adverse effect on our business.

Information security risks have significantly increased in recent years in part because of the proliferation of new technologies, the use of the internet and telecommunications technologies to conduct our operations, and the increased sophistication and activities of organized crime, hackers, terrorists and other external parties, including foreign state agents. Our operations rely on the secure processing, transmission and storage of confidential, proprietary and other information in our computer systems and networks.

Security breaches may arise from external or internal threats. External breaches include hacking personal information for financial gain, attempting to cause harm or interruption to our operations, or intending to obtain competitive information. We experience attempted external hacking or malicious attacks on a regular basis. We maintain a rigorous system of preventive and detective controls through our security programs; however, our prevention and detection controls may not prevent or identify all such attacks on a timely basis, or at all. Internal breaches may result from inappropriate security access to confidential information by rogue employees, consultants or third party service providers. Any security breach involving the misappropriation, loss or other unauthorized disclosure or use of confidential member information, financial data, competitively sensitive information, or other proprietary data, whether by us or a third party, could have a material adverse effect on our business reputation, financial condition, cash flows, or results of operations.

We may be unable to successfully integrate our business with Health Net and realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisition.
We completed the acquisition of Health Net on March 24, 2016. The success of the acquisition of Health Net will depend, in part, on our ability to successfully combine the businesses of the Company and Health Net and realize the anticipated benefits, including synergies, cost savings, growth in earnings, innovation and operational efficiencies, from the combination. If we are unable to achieve these objectives within the anticipated time frame, or at all, the anticipated benefits may not be realized fully or at all, or may take longer to realize than expected and the value of our common stock may be harmed.
The integration of Health Net’s business with our existing business is a complex, costly and time-consuming process. We have not previously completed a transaction comparable in size or scope to the acquisition of Health Net. The integration of the two companies may result in material challenges, including, without limitation:
the diversion of management’s attention from ongoing business concerns and performance shortfalls as a result of the devotion of management’s attention to the integration;
managing a larger combined company;
maintaining employee morale and retaining key management and other employees;
the possibility of faulty assumptions underlying expectations regarding the integration process;
retaining existing business and operational relationships and attracting new business and operational relationships;
consolidating corporate and administrative infrastructures and eliminating duplicative operations;
coordinating geographically separate organizations;
unanticipated issues in integrating information technology, communications and other systems;
unanticipated changes in federal or state laws or regulations, including the ACA and any regulations enacted thereunder; and
unforeseen expenses or delays associated with the acquisition and/or integration.

Many of these factors will be outside of our control and any one of them could result in delays, increased costs, decreases in the amount of expected revenues and diversion of management’s time and energy, which could materially affect our financial position, results of operations and cash flows.

35



We have incurred substantial expenses related to the completion of the acquisition of Health Net and are incurring substantial expenses related to the integration of Health Net.
We are in the process of integrating a large number of processes, policies, procedures, operations, technologies and systems, including purchasing, accounting and finance, sales, payroll, pricing, revenue management, marketing and benefits, among other things. In addition, the businesses of Centene and Health Net will continue to maintain a presence in St. Louis, Missouri and Woodland Hills, California, respectively. The substantial majority of these costs will be non-recurring expenses related to the acquisition (including financing of the acquisition), facilities and systems consolidation costs. We may incur additional costs to maintain employee morale and to retain key employees. We are also incurring transaction fees and costs related to formulating integration plans for the combined business, and the execution of these plans may lead to additional unanticipated costs. These incremental transaction and acquisition-related costs may exceed the savings we expect to achieve from the elimination of duplicative costs and the realization of other efficiencies related to the integration of the businesses, particularly in the near term and in the event there are material unanticipated costs.

The market price of our common stock may decline as a result of the acquisition of Health Net.

The market price of our common stock is generally subject to volatility, and there can be no assurances regarding the level or stability of our share price at any time. The market price of our common stock may decline as a result of the acquisition if, among other things, we are unable to achieve the expected growth in earnings, or if the operational cost savings estimates in connection with the integration of Health Net’s business with ours are not realized, or if the transaction costs related to the acquisition and integration are greater than expected. The market price also may decline if we do not achieve the perceived benefits of the acquisition as rapidly or to the extent anticipated by financial or industry analysts or if the effect of the acquisition on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows is not consistent with the expectations of financial or industry analysts.

Our future results may be adversely impacted if we do not effectively manage our expanded operations following the completion of our acquisition of Health Net.

The size of our business following the acquisition of Health Net is significantly larger than the size of either Centene’s or Health Net’s respective businesses prior to the acquisition. Our ability to successfully manage the expanded business will depend, in part, upon management’s ability to design and implement strategic initiatives that address the increased scale and scope of the combined business with its associated increased costs and complexity. We will also have to manage our expanded operations in compliance with certain undertakings with regulators that were agreed to in connection with the approval of the acquisition. These undertakings require significant investments by us, may restrict or impose additional material costs on our future operations and strategic initiatives in certain geographies, and subject us to various enforcement mechanisms. There can be no assurances that we will be successful in managing our expanded operations or that we will realize the expected growth in earnings, operating efficiencies, cost savings and other benefits.

We are significantly more leveraged today than we have previously been.

As of December 31, 2016, we had consolidated indebtedness of approximately $4,655 million, which is significantly greater than the indebtedness that we have previously had. This increased indebtedness and higher debt-to-equity ratio will have the effect, among other things, of reducing our flexibility to respond to changing business and economic conditions and increasing borrowing costs.

Among other things, our revolving credit facility requires us to comply with various covenants that impose restrictions on our operations, including our ability to incur additional indebtedness, create liens, pay dividends, make investments or other restricted payments, sell or otherwise dispose of substantially all of our assets and engage in other activities. Our revolving credit facility also requires us to comply with a maximum leverage ratio and a minimum fixed charge coverage ratio. These restrictive covenants could limit our ability to pursue our business strategies. In addition, any failure by us to comply with these restrictive covenants could result in an event of default under the revolving credit facility and, in some circumstances, under the indentures governing our notes, which, in any case, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments

None.


36



Item 2. Properties

We own our corporate office headquarters buildings and land located in St. Louis, Missouri, which is used by each of our reportable segments. We generally lease space in the states where our health plans, specialty companies and claims processing facilities operate. We are required by various insurance and regulatory authorities to have offices in the service areas where we provide benefits. We believe our current facilities and expansion plans are adequate to meet our operational needs for the foreseeable future.

Item 3. Legal Proceedings

A description of the legal proceedings to which the Company and its subsidiaries are a party is contained in Note 18 to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and is incorporated herein by reference.

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

Not applicable.


37



PART II

Item 5. Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
 
Market for Common Stock; Dividends
 
Our common stock has been traded and quoted on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CNC” since October 16, 2003. On February 2, 2015, the Board of Directors declared a two-for-one split of Centene's common stock in the form of a 100% stock dividend distributed February 19, 2015 to stockholders of record on February 12, 2015. All share, per share and stock price information presented in this Form 10-K has been adjusted for the two-for-one stock split. The high and low prices, as reported by the NYSE, are set forth below for the periods indicated.
 
2017 Stock Price (through
February 17, 2017)
 
2016 Stock Price
 
2015 Stock Price
 
High
 
Low
 
High
 
Low
 
High
 
Low
First Quarter
$
71.89

 
$
56.00

 
$
68.42

 
$
47.36

 
$
71.66

 
$
51.73

Second Quarter
 
 
 
 
71.53

 
55.60

 
82.18

 
61.85

Third Quarter
 
 
 
 
75.57

 
63.37

 
83.00

 
50.93

Fourth Quarter
 
 
 
 
67.41

 
50.00

 
67.53

 
51.75

 
As of February 17, 2017, there were 1,113 holders of record of our common stock.
 
We have never declared any cash dividends on our capital stock and currently anticipate that we will retain any future earnings for the development, operation and expansion of our business.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
 
In 2009, the Company's Board of Directors extended the Company's stock repurchase program. The program authorizes the repurchase of up to 8,000,000 shares of the Company's common stock from time to time on the open market or through privately negotiated transactions. We have 3,335,448 available shares remaining under the program for repurchases as of December 31, 2016. No duration has been placed on the repurchase program. The Company reserves the right to discontinue the repurchase program at any time. During the year ended December 31, 2016, we did not repurchase any shares through this publicly announced program.
Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Fourth Quarter 2016
Period
 
 
Total Number of
Shares
Purchased(1)
 
Average Price
Paid per
Share
 
Total Number
of Shares
Purchased as
Part of Publicly
Announced Plans
or Programs
 
Maximum
Number of Shares
that May Yet Be
Purchased Under
the Plans or
Programs(2)
October 1 – October 31, 2016
 
9,589
 
$
64.10

 

 
3,335,448
November 1 – November 30, 2016
 
9,813
 
54.14

 

 
3,335,448
December 1 – December 31, 2016
 
588,760
 
56.73

 

 
3,335,448
Total
 
608,162
 
$
56.80

 

 
3,335,448
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
(1) Shares acquired represent shares relinquished to the Company by certain employees for payment of taxes or option cost upon vesting of restricted stock units or option exercise.
(2) Our Board of Directors adopted a stock repurchase program which allows for repurchases of up to a remaining amount of 3,335,448 shares. No duration has been placed on the repurchase program.


38



Stock Performance Graph

The graph below compares the cumulative total stockholder return on our common stock for the period from December 31, 2011 to December 31, 2016 with the cumulative total return of the New York Stock Exchange Composite Index and the Standard & Poor's Supercomposite Managed Healthcare Index over the same period. The graph assumes an investment of $100 on December 31, 2011 in our common stock (at the last reported sale price on such day), the New York Stock Exchange Composite Index and the Standard & Poor's Supercomposite Managed Healthcare Index and assumes the reinvestment of any dividends.                             
stockgraph2016.jpg

 
December 31,
 
 
2011
 
2012
 
2013
 
2014
 
2015
 
2016
Centene Corporation
 
$
100.00

 
$
103.54

 
$
148.89

 
$
262.27

 
$
332.37

 
$
285.40

New York Stock Exchange Composite Index
 
100.00

 
112.93

 
139.10

 
144.97

 
135.66

 
147.88

S&P Supercomposite Managed Healthcare Index
 
100.00

 
104.85

 
152.16

 
202.37

 
242.93

 
287.17

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Centene Corporation closing stock price
 
$
19.80

 
$
20.50

 
$
29.48

 
$
51.93

 
$
65.81

 
$
56.51

Centene Corporation annual shareholder return
 
56.3
%
 
3.5
%
 
43.8
%
 
76.2
%
 
26.7
%
 
(14.1
)%

In accordance with the rules of the SEC, the information contained in the Stock Performance Graph on this page shall not be deemed to be “soliciting material,” or to be “filed” with the SEC or subject to the SEC’s Regulation 14A, or to the liabilities of Section 18 of the Exchange Act, except to the extent that Centene specifically requests that the information be treated as soliciting material or specifically incorporates it by reference into a document filed under the Securities Act, or the Exchange Act.

39



Item 6. Selected Financial Data
The following selected consolidated financial data should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related notes and “Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K. The assets, liabilities and results of operations of Kentucky Spirit have been classified as discontinued operations for all periods presented.
 
Year Ended December 31,
 
2016
 
2015
 
2014
 
2013
 
2012
 
(In millions, except share data)
Revenues:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Premium
$
35,399

 
$
19,389

 
$
14,198

 
$
10,153

 
$
7,569

Service
2,180

 
1,876

 
1,469

 
373

 
113

Premium and service revenues
37,579

 
21,265

 
15,667

 
10,526

 
7,682

Premium tax and health insurer fee
3,028

 
1,495

 
893

 
337

 
428

Total revenues
40,607

 
22,760

 
16,560

 
10,863

 
8,110

Expenses:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Medical costs
30,636

 
17,242

 
12,678

 
8,995

 
6,781

Cost of services
1,864

 
1,621

 
1,280

 
327

 
88

Selling, general and administrative expenses
3,676

 
1,802

 
1,298

 
925

 
700

Amortization of acquired intangible assets
147

 
24

 
16

 
6

 
5

Premium tax expense
2,563

 
1,151

 
698

 
333

 
428

Health insurer fee expense
461

 
215

 
126

 

 

Total operating expenses
39,347

 
22,055

 
16,096

 
10,586

 
8,002

Earnings from operations
1,260

 
705

 
464

 
277

 
108

Other income (expense):
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Investment and other income
114

 
35

 
28

 
19

 
35

Interest expense
(217
)
 
(43
)
 
(35
)
 
(27
)
 
(20
)
Earnings from continuing operations, before income tax expense
1,157

 
697

 
457

 
269

 
123

Income tax expense
599

 
339

 
196

 
107

 
47

Earnings from continuing operations, net of income tax expense
558

 
358

 
261

 
162

 
76

Discontinued operations, net of income tax expense (benefit) of $2, $(1), $1, $2, and $(48), respectively
3

 
(1
)
 
3

 
4

 
(87
)
Net earnings (loss)
561

 
357

 
264

 
166

 
(11
)
(Earnings) loss attributable to noncontrolling interests
1

 
(2
)
 
7

 
(1
)
 
13

Net earnings attributable to Centene Corporation
$
562

 
$
355

 
$
271

 
$
165

 
$
2

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Amounts attributable to Centene Corporation common shareholders:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Earnings from continuing operations, net of income tax expense
$
559

 
$
356

 
$
268

 
$
161

 
$
89

Discontinued operations, net of income tax expense (benefit)
3

 
(1
)
 
3

 
4

 
(87
)
Net earnings
$
562

 
$
355

 
$
271

 
$
165

 
$
2

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Net earnings (loss) per common share attributable to Centene Corporation:
Basic:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Continuing operations
$
3.50

 
$
2.99

 
$
2.30

 
$
1.49

 
$
0.86

Discontinued operations
0.02

 
(0.01
)
 
0.03

 
0.03

 
(0.84
)
Basic earnings per common share
$
3.52

 
$
2.98

 
$
2.33

 
$
1.52

 
$
0.02

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Diluted:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Continuing operations
$
3.41

 
$
2.89

 
$
2.23

 
$
1.43

 
$
0.83

Discontinued operations
0.02

 
(0.01
)
 
0.02

 
0.04

 
(0.81
)
Diluted earnings per common share
$
3.43

 
$
2.88

 
$
2.25

 
$
1.47

 
$
0.02

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Basic
159,567,607

 
119,100,744

 
116,345,764

 
108,253,090

 
103,018,732

Diluted
163,975,407

 
123,066,370

 
120,360,212

 
112,494,346

 
107,428,750



40



 

 
 
December 31,
 
 
2016
 
2015
 
2014
 
2013
 
2012
 
 
(In millions)
Consolidated Balance Sheet Data:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Cash and cash equivalents (1)
 
$
3,930

 
$
1,760

 
$
1,610

 
$
974

 
$
746

Investments and restricted deposits (1)
 
5,188

 
2,218

 
1,557

 
941

 
727

Total assets
 
20,197

 
7,339

 
5,824

 
3,519

 
2,764

Medical claims liability (1)
 
3,929

 
2,298

 
1,723

 
1,112

 
815

Long term debt (1)
 
4,651

 
1,216

 
874

 
655

 
526

Total stockholders' equity
 
5,909

 
2,168

 
1,743

 
1,243

 
954

(1) From continuing operations.


41



ITEM 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this filing. The discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including those set forth under Part I, Item 1A.“Risk Factors” of this Form 10-K.

EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW

General

We are a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that provides services to government sponsored healthcare programs, focusing on under-insured and uninsured individuals. We provide member-focused services through locally based staff by assisting in accessing care, coordinating referrals to related health and social services and addressing member concerns and questions.

Results of operations depend on our ability to manage expenses associated with health benefits (including estimated costs incurred) and SG&A costs. We measure operating performance based upon two key ratios. The HBR represents medical costs as a percentage of premium revenues, excluding premium tax and health insurer fee revenues that are not separately billed, and reflects the direct relationship between the premium received and the medical services provided. The SG&A expense ratio represents SG&A costs as a percentage of premium and service revenues, again excluding premium tax and health insurer fee revenues that are not separately billed.

Health Net Acquisition

On March 24, 2016, the Company acquired all of the issued and outstanding shares of Health Net, a publicly traded managed care organization that delivers healthcare services through health plans and government-sponsored managed care plans. The transaction was valued at approximately $5,990 million, including the assumption of $703 million of outstanding debt. The acquisition allows the Company to offer a more comprehensive and scalable portfolio of solutions and provides opportunity for additional growth across the combined company's markets. 2016 was a transformative year with the acquisition of Health Net. Due to the size of this acquisition, the primary driver of the year over year variances discussed throughout this section are related to the acquisition of Health Net.

Regulatory Trends and Uncertainties

The new U.S. Presidential administration and certain members of Congress have affirmatively indicated that they will pursue full repeal of or significant amendment to the ACA. Even if the ACA is not amended or repealed, the new administration could propose changes impacting implementation of the ACA. The ultimate content and timing of any legislation enacted under the new administration that would impact the current implementation of the ACA remains uncertain. However, we believe we have both the capacity and capability to successfully navigate industry changes to the benefit of our members, customers and shareholders.

For additional information regarding regulatory trends and uncertainties, see Part I, Item 1 "Business - Regulation" and Item 1A, "Risk Factors."

2016 Highlights

Our financial performance for 2016 is summarized as follows:

Year-end managed care membership of 11.4 million, an increase of over 6.3 million members, or 124% over 2015.

Total revenues of $40.6 billion, representing 78% growth year over year.

HBR of 86.5%, compared to 88.9% in 2015.

SG&A expense ratio of 9.8% for 2016 compared to 8.5% for 2015. SG&A expense ratio excluding Health Net acquisition related expenses of 9.2% for 2016 compared to 8.3% for 2015.


42



Operating cash flows of $1,851 million, or 3.3 times net earnings.

Diluted EPS for 2016 of $3.41 compared to $2.89 for 2015.

Adjusted Diluted EPS for 2016 of $4.43 compared to $3.14 for 2015.

Adjusted Diluted EPS is highlighted below and additional detail is provided above under the heading "Non-GAAP Financial Presentation":
 
Year Ended December 31,
 
2016
 
2015
GAAP diluted EPS
$
3.41

 
$
2.89

Health Net acquisition related expenses
0.98

 
0.14

Amortization of acquired intangible assets
0.57

 
0.11

California minimum MLR change (1) 
(0.76
)
 

Charitable contribution (2)
0.19

 

Debt extinguishment (3) 
0.04

 

Adjusted Diluted EPS
$
4.43

 
$
3.14


(1) A favorable impact associated with the retroactive contract amendment received in the fourth quarter of 2016 that changed the minimum MLR calculation under California’s Medicaid expansion program, $195 million of which relates to periods prior to 2016 for the legacy Centene business and prior to the acquisition date for the legacy Health Net business

(2) In connection with the additional revenue associated with the California minimum MLR change, the Company committed to a charitable contribution to its foundation of $50 million in the fourth quarter of 2016

(3) Additional expense of $11 million associated with the early redemption of the Centene 5.75% Senior Notes due 2017 and the Health Net 6.375% Senior Notes due 2017. 

Included in diluted EPS and Adjusted Diluted EPS for the year ended December 31, 2016 is a $0.05 diluted EPS benefit related to the early adoption of the stock-based compensation accounting standard, as well as the incorporation of retirement provisions in our stock-based compensation agreements.

In 2013, we classified the operations for Kentucky Spirit as discontinued operations for all periods presented in our consolidated financial statements. Management's discussion and analysis, with the exception of cash flow information, is presented in the context of continuing operations unless otherwise identified.

The following items contributed to our revenue and membership growth over the last two years:

Arizona. In October 2015, our subsidiary, Cenpatico Integrated Care, in partnership with University of Arizona Health Plan, began operating under a contract with the Arizona Department of Health Services/Division of Behavioral Health Services to be the Regional Behavioral Health Authority for the new southern geographic service area.

Centurion. In February 2015, Centurion began operating under a new contract with the State of Vermont Department of Corrections to provide comprehensive correctional healthcare services. In July 2015, Centurion began operating under a new contract with the Mississippi Department of Corrections to provide comprehensive correctional healthcare services. In April 2016, Centurion began providing correctional healthcare services for the Florida Department of Corrections in Regions 1, 2 and 3. In June 2016, Centurion began operating under two new contracts with the State of New Mexico Corrections Department to provide correctional medical healthcare services and pharmacy services.

Florida. In October 2015, our Florida subsidiary, Sunshine Health began operating under a two-year, statewide contract with the Florida Healthy Kids Corporation to manage healthcare services for children ages five through 18 in all 11 regions of Florida.


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Health Net. On March 24, 2016, we acquired all of the issued and outstanding shares of Health Net for approximately $6.0 billion, including the assumption of debt. This strategic acquisition broadened our service offerings, providing expansion in both Medicaid and Medicare programs. This acquisition provided further diversification across our markets and products through the addition of commercial products and government-sponsored care under federal contracts with the Department of Defense (DoD) and the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs (VA), as well as Medicare Advantage. Health Net's operations are primarily concentrated in the states of California, Arizona, Oregon, and Washington.

Indiana. In February 2015, our Indiana subsidiary, Managed Health Services, began operating under an expanded contract with the Indiana Family & Social Services Administration to provide Medicaid services under the State's Healthy Indiana Plan 2.0 program. In April 2015, Managed Health Services began operating under an expanded contract with the Indiana Family & Social Services Administration to provide services to its ABD Medicaid enrollees who qualify for the new Hoosier Care Connect Program.

Louisiana. In February 2015, our Louisiana subsidiary, Louisiana Healthcare Connections, began operating under a new contract with the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals to serve Healthy Louisiana (Medicaid) beneficiaries. Members previously served under the shared savings program were transitioned to the at-risk program on February 1, 2015. In December 2015, Louisiana Healthcare Connections began operating under an expanded contract to include behavioral health benefits. In July 2016, Louisiana Healthcare Connections began serving Medicaid expansion members.

Michigan. In May 2015, we completed the acquisition of Fidelis SecureCare of Michigan, Inc. (Fidelis). Fidelis began operating under a new contract with the Michigan Department of Community Health and CMS to provide integrated healthcare services to members who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid in Macomb and Wayne counties in May 2015.

Mississippi. In July 2014, our Mississippi subsidiary, Magnolia Health, began operating as one of two contractors under a new statewide managed care contract serving members enrolled in the Mississippi Coordinated Access Network program. Program expansion began in December 2014 and continued through July 2015. In July 2015, Magnolia Health began operating under a two-year CHIP contract with the State of Mississippi. In December 2015, Magnolia Health began operating under an expanded contract to include the inpatient benefit for Medicaid and ABD members.

New Hampshire. In January 2016, we began serving members enrolled in the federally facilitated Health Insurance Marketplace in the State of New Hampshire. In January 2016, we started operating under a contract with the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services to participate in the Medicaid expansion model that New Hampshire has adopted (referred to as the “Premium Assistance Program”).

Oregon. In September 2015, we completed the acquisition of Agate Resources, Inc., a diversified holding company, that offers primarily Medicaid and other healthcare products and services to Oregon residents through Trillium Community Health Plan.

South Carolina. In February 2015, our South Carolina subsidiary, Absolute Total Care, began operating under a new contract with the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and CMS to serve dual-eligible members as part of the State's dual demonstration program.

Texas. In March 2015, we began operating under an expanded STAR+PLUS contract with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to include nursing facility benefits. In March 2015, we also began operating under a new contract with the Texas HHSC and CMS to serve dual-eligible members in three counties as part of the State's dual demonstration program. In November 2016, our subsidiary, Superior HealthPlan, Inc., began operating under a new contract with the Texas HHSC to serve STAR Kids Medicaid population in seven delivery areas, more than any other successful bidder.

Washington. In April 2016, our subsidiary, Coordinated Care of Washington, began operating as the sole contractor with the Washington State Health Care Authority to provide foster care services through the Apple Health Foster Care contract.

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We expect the following items to contribute to our future growth potential:

We expect to realize the full year benefit in 2017 from the Health Net acquisition completed on March 24, 2016.

We expect to realize the full year benefit in 2017 of business commenced during 2016 in Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington as discussed above.

In January 2017, we signed a joint venture agreement with the North Carolina Medical Society, working in conjunction with the North Carolina Community Health Center, to collaborate on a patient-focused approach to Medicaid under the reform plan enacted in the State of North Carolina. The newly created health plan, Carolina Complete Health, was created to establish, organize and operate a physician-led health plan to provide Medicaid managed care services in North Carolina.

In January 2017, our Pennsylvania subsidiary, Pennsylvania Health & Wellness, was selected by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services to serve Medicaid recipients enrolled in the HealthChoices program in three zones. Pending regulatory approval and successful completion of a readiness review, the three-year agreement is expected to commence June 1, 2017.

In January 2017, our Indiana subsidiary, Managed Health Services, began operating under a contract with the Indiana Family & Social Services Administration to provide risk-based managed care services for enrollees in the Healthy Indiana Plan and Hoosier Healthwise programs.

In January 2017, our Nebraska subsidiary, Nebraska Total Care, began operating under a contract with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services' Division of Medicaid and Long Term Care as one of three managed care organizations to administer its new Heritage Health Program for Medicaid, ABD, CHIP, Foster Care and LTC enrollees.

In January 2017, we continued our participation as a qualified health plan issuer in the Arizona Health Insurance Marketplace and exited the Health Net preferred provider organization offerings in Arizona.

In November 2016, our Georgia subsidiary, Peach State Health Plan, was awarded a statewide managed care contract to continue serving members enrolled in the Georgia Families managed care program, including PeachCare for Kids and Planning for Healthy Babies. Through the new contract, Peach State Health Plan will be one of four managed care organizations providing medical, behavioral, dental and vision health benefits for its members. The contract is expected to become effective July 1, 2017.

In November 2016, our Nevada subsidiary, Silver Summit Health Plan, was selected to serve Medicaid recipients enrolled in Nevada's Medicaid managed care program. The contract is expected to commence on July 1, 2017, pending regulatory approval and successful completion of a readiness review.

In October 2016, our Missouri subsidiary, Home State Health, was selected to provide managed care services to MO HealthNet Managed Care beneficiaries. Under the new contract, Home State Health expects to serve MO HealthNet Managed Care beneficiaries in each of the state's 114 counties and the City of St. Louis. The contract is expected to commence May 1, 2017.

In September 2016, the Alabama legislature approved the funding needed to create its regional care organization (RCO) structure. Our subsidiary, AHA Administrative Services, has contracted with five nonprofit RCOs in Alabama to provide management services. Operations are expected to commence October 1, 2017.

In August 2016, our Pennsylvania subsidiary, Pennsylvania Health & Wellness, was selected by the department of Human Services and Aging to serve enrollees in the Community HealthChoices program statewide. Expected contract commencement dates vary by zone, starting January 2018, and will be fully implemented by January 2019, pending regulatory approval.

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In July 2016, it was announced that the Department of Defense awarded our wholly-owned subsidiary, Health Net Federal Services, the TRICARE West Region contract. We currently administer services for the TRICARE program in the North Region. In connection with this latest generation of TRICARE contracts, the Department of Defense has consolidated the prior North, South and West TRICARE regions into two: the West and East Regions (the East combining the current North and South Regions). We expect health care delivery for this new contract to begin in the second half of 2017.

In May 2016, our specialty solutions division, Envolve, Inc. was selected by Maryland Care Inc. d/b/a Maryland Physicians Care MCO to provide health plan management services for its Medicaid operations in Maryland effective July 1, 2017.

MEMBERSHIP

From December 31, 2014 to December 31, 2016, we increased our managed care membership by 7.4 million, or 182%. The following table sets forth our membership by state:
 
December 31,
 
2016
 
2015
 
2014
Arizona
598,300

 
440,900

 
204,000

Arkansas
58,600

 
41,900

 
38,400

California
2,973,500

 
186,000

 
163,900

Florida
716,100