Missouri Care Awarded New Contract

COLUMBIA, Mo., March 22, 2012 — Missouri Care, an Aetna (NYSE: AET) health plan that administers benefits for MO HealthNet Managed Care members, has been selected to administer services in the Central, Eastern and Western regions of the state.  Approximately 426,000 beneficiaries are eligible to receive services under the MO HealthNet Managed Care program in 54 counties.

Missouri Care has administered services in the Central region for 14 years and expanded into the Eastern and Western regions in 2009.  Missouri Care was chosen in a competitive bidding process that identified three health plans to administer this program in all three regions statewide.

“We have considered Missouri our home for 14 years, administering services in Central Missouri, and most recently in the Eastern and Western regions of the state,” said Pamela Johnson, chief executive officer of Missouri Care.  “We are honored that the state has awarded this new contract, enabling us to continue our quality health care programs and services across the state while adding members to our health plan.”

Missouri Care recently received a “commendable” accreditation from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), the nation’s leading provider of independent quality assessments.  NCQA accreditation is a prestigious designation in the health care world that signifies a health plan’s dedication to improving health care quality.
 
A private nonprofit organization, the NCQA accredits a health plan only after it voluntarily submits to a rigorous on-site and off-site evaluation conducted by a team of physicians and managed care experts.  A national oversight committee of physicians and behavioral health providers analyzes the team’s finding and assigns an accreditation level based on performance compared to NCQA standards.

For more information about Missouri Care, visit www.MissouriCare.com.

About Aetna
Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 36.4 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, medical management capabilities, health care management services for Medicaid plans and health information exchange technology services. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, health care providers, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com.

About NCQA
NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality.  NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations.  It also recognizes clinicians and practices in key areas of performance.  NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information for consumers, purchasers, health care providers and researchers.