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Humana to exit more Medicare Advantage plans in 2027
Healthcare Dive • • business
Key Points:
- Humana plans to shut down more Medicare Advantage (MA) plans in 2026, exiting coverage in three fewer states and 194 fewer counties to improve profitability, impacting about 600,000 seniors.
- The insurer aims to focus on plans with higher returns to maintain stable benefits and retain members, expecting to recapture roughly 40% of affected members in other plans.
- Despite beating earnings and revenue expectations for Q2, Humana lowered its unadjusted earnings per share guidance for 2023 from $8.36 to at least $6.52, citing declines in MA star ratings and reduced quality bonus payments.
- CEO Jim Rechtin highlighted ongoing efforts to improve star ratings, targeting top quartile performance by 2028, but acknowledged uncertainty due to industry-wide rating complexities and regulatory challenges.
- Humana reported $40.9 billion in revenue (up 26%) and $694 million in profit (up 27%) for Q2, driven by membership growth and higher MA rates, though its stock fell nearly 8% following the results.
