Humana, Epione Tie Up To Aid Medicare Advantage Members

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) recently reached a value-based agreement with Epione Health of Oklahoma, LLC to provide coordinated, enriched healthcare for Humana Medicare Advantage members in the state. With this unique partnership, the local Humana Medicare Advantage members will be able to achieve better health outcomes.

The deal will allow Humana’s Medicare Advantage HMO and PPO plan members in a number of counties of Oklahoma to gain access to Epione’s physicians and facilities across the region.

This strategic move is an extension of Humana’s long-term commitment to provide value-based care including personal time with health professionals and customized care that will meet an individual’s personal health situation. It also features access to proactive health screenings and programs, better care for patients with chronic health situations, usage of advanced technologies, etc.

This relationship will help Humana Medicare Advantage HMO and PPO plan patients benefit from the support offered by the company. This is likely to assist Epione’s doctors to concentrate on improved patient care. Epione, which provides a model for care in Oklahoma City and southern Oklahoma, is a perfect partner for such endeavor. Epione’s model places primary care physicians right at the center of healthcare and its strong network of like-minded hospitals and specialty providers facilitates quality patient care.

The company has been taking up various initiatives to strengthen its Medicare Advantage business by increasing members. It recently entered into a partnership with Hawaii Senior Medical Group to provide coordinated and enriched experience for Medicare Advantage members in Hawaii. It also announced the upgrade of health plan choices for its Medicare beneficiaries in New Jersey by adding numerous counties to its network. Humana has also been chosen as one of the health plans to provide Florida’s Medicare retirees with Medicare coverage effective Jan 1, 2020.

As of Sep 30, 2019, the company had more than 2.3 million individual Medicare Advantage members and approximately 115,000 commercial members. We expect the company’s Medicare business to continue performing well and keep contributing to its top line.

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have gained 11.3% in a year’s time, outperforming its industry’s growth of 2.6%.

Stocks to Consider

Investors interested in the medical sector might consider some better-ranked stocks like Select Medical Holdings Corporation (NYSE:SEM) , WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE:WCG) and Genesis Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:GEN) . You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Select Medical Holdings operates critical illness recovery hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, outpatient rehabilitation clinics and occupational health centers. In the trailing four quarters, the company’s average beat was 11.1%. The stock sports a Zacks Rank #1.

WellCare Health offers managed care services to government-sponsored health care programs. The company pulled off average positive surprise of 17.3% in the preceding four quarters. It carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Genesis Healthcare operates skilled nursing facilities and assisted/senior living facilities. In the last four quarters, the company delivered average beat of 80.9%. It has a Zacks Rank of 1.

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