Humana Reports Q3 2018 Earnings of $901 Million, Advances Simplified, Connected, and Personalized Healthcare Experience

Recently, VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) learned from foreign media reports that Humana, a U.S. giant in commercial health insurance, recently released its financial results for the third quarter of 2018. The report showed that Humana posted a net income of $901 million in the third quarter of 2018, bringing its year-to-date net income to $1.63 billion. Its stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HUM) reported earnings per share (EPS) of $4.65 for the third quarter, with year-to-date average earnings per share amounting to $9.58.

Humana, founded in 1964 and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, is a health insurance giant in the United States and one of the largest health benefits companies in the country. As a health insurer primarily focused on Medicare Advantage plans, Humana offers customers a wide range of healthcare programs, including medical insurance, group life insurance, and dental insurance, serving 13 million members nationwide. The company ranked 289th on the 2012 Fortune Global 500 list.

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In addition to offering a range of health insurance plans, Humana also provides preventive care programs to assist individuals seeking to improve their health status. The company’s network resources and online services enable members to stay informed about the latest health benefit plans, leverage intelligent analytics, and coordinate with clinicians to focus on prevention and addressing the social determinants of health.

Bruce Broussard, CEO of the company, stated that Humana’s analytics division pioneered medication optimization initiatives by leveraging technology to identify medication discrepancies, thereby reducing adverse drug reactions in patients and lowering hospital readmission rates. He revealed that this single initiative alone saved Humana a substantial amount of money.

This August, Humana announced its plan to open Studio H., a digital health analytics center, in Boston. Bruce Broussard stated that at Studio H., “we are developing a critical capability that can help Humana make a leap forward, creating a simplified, connected, and personalized healthcare experience for our members.”

This July, Humana and two private equity firms acquired Kindred Healthcare, a home health services provider. Bruce Broussard noted that Humana has already rolled out Kindred’s in-home care strategy to its customers through Kindred.

However, Humana had previously established its own home care division, “Humana at Home.” This business incurred a $400 million loss in 2017 due to poor operational performance, leading Humana to lay off 500 home care providers this February. Regarding the relaunch of home care services through Kindred, Brian Kane stated that Kindred’s “performance has met our expectations.” Bruce Broussard added that addressing patients’ issues outside hospitals or clinics is crucial to improving their health, and this initiative will help significantly reduce healthcare costs.

Furthermore, Humana stated that membership in its Medicare Advantage (MA) plans has been growing steadily since the second quarter of 2018. Brian Kane, the company’s Chief Financial Officer, noted that public response to the services Humana plans to launch in 2019 has been positive so far, “paving the way for significant growth in 2019 performance.”