Centene ranks No. 7 on FORTUNE's 2019 'Change the World' List

Awards & Recognitions, Business

08/19/2019

provider talking with member

Centene is honored to be ranked number seven on FORTUNE's 2019 "Change the World" List in recognition of our Provider Accessibility Initiative (PAI). This is the second time Centene has made the prestigious list, as the organization ranked #19 on FORTUNE's 2017 "Change the World" list for our work in offering Affordable Care Act exchange insurance in "bare" counties in Nevada.

FORTUNE's "Change the World" list recognizes companies that have had a positive social impact through activities that are part of their core business strategy. The initial solicitation and assessment of nominees is conducted in partnership with the Shared Value Initiative, a global platform for organizations seeking business solutions to social challenges, and FSG, a nonprofit social-impact consulting firm. A team of journalists from FORTUNE then investigates each of the candidates independently. The final list is selected and ranked by the editors of FORTUNE based on the magazine's own reporting and analysis. Companies are ranked on each of four criteria:

  • Measurable social impact: The reach, nature, and durability of the company's impact on one or more specific societal problems.
  • Business results: The benefit the socially impactful work brings to the company.
  • Degree of innovation: How innovative is the company's effort relative to that of others in its industry, and whether other companies have followed its example.
  • Corporate integration: How integral is the initiative to a company's overall strategy, and how well is that strategy communicated through the ranks and elsewhere.

This year's recognized initiative is in line with Centene's history of and steadfast commitment to removing disability access barriers in healthcare. On the recommendation of Centene's National Disability Advisory Council, Centene launched the PAI to assist those living with disabilities and their companions in accessing quality healthcare. Designed in collaboration with the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), the program is the first of its kind and aims to transition healthcare delivery into a fully accessible system by removing disability access barriers in healthcare offices.

In 2018, three states in which Centene operated health plans - Ohio, Texas and Illinois - became pilot markets for the initiative. In 2019, Centene launched the PAI in three more markets - Kansas, Florida, and New Mexico. 

What makes this initiative successful is the increased access to care, not only for Centene's membership, but for the community as a whole. Through the PAI's efforts in providing building modifications, diagnostic equipment, and programmatic access, more than 123,000 Centene members with disabilities have greater access at their provider's office, directly increasing the quality of care and closing care gaps.

This initiative reflects our responsibility as a provider of healthcare services to the populations most in need. Each component of the PAI, whether removing physical barriers, assessing physical structures, providing programmatic access improvements, or updating disability access information in provider directories, demonstrates that commitment. The PAI benefits Centene's standing as a healthcare leader, demonstrating our responsibility to the community and all its members.

Centene was also awarded the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) 2019 Health Equity Award in recognition of the PAI. Read more about the PAI's efforts here. This valuable initiative is a natural extension of our purpose of transforming the health of the community, one person at a time.