Managed Health Services (MHS) Achieves National Accreditation, Commendable Status from the National Committee for Quality Assurance

Online, December 8, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Managed Health Services (MHS), an Indiana-based health maintenance organization serving Hoosier Healthwise and the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP), has achieved national Health Plan Accreditation with a Commendable status from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). The NCQA Health Plan Accreditation is a nationally-recognized evaluation that purchasers, regulators and consumers can use to assess health plans.

NCQA Accreditation evaluates how well a health plan manages all parts of its delivery system - physicians, hospitals, other providers and administrative services - in order to continuously improve the quality of care and services provided to its members.

NCQA Accreditation surveys include rigorous onsite and offsite evaluations conducted by a team of physicians and health plan experts. A national oversight committee of physicians analyzes the team's findings and assigns an accreditation level based on the performance level of each plan being evaluated to NCQA's standards. MHS was awarded a status of Commendable.

"Achieving an accreditation status of Commendable from NCQA is a sign that a health plan is serious about quality," said Margaret E. O'Kane, president of NCQA. "It is awarded to plans whose service and clinical quality meet or exceed NCQA's rigorous requirements for consumer protection and quality improvement."

"NCQA Health Plan Accreditation evaluates the quality of healthcare that health plans provide to their members," said MHS CEO Patrick Rooney. "We are very proud to have received a Commendable status, as we continuously make it a priority to offer our members the highest quality healthcare programs and services."

NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality by providing information through the web and the media in order to help consumers, employers and others make more informed health care choices.

For more, visit MHS online at mhsindiana.com.

About Managed Health Services
Managed Health Services Indiana (MHS) is a health maintenance organization that has been serving the Hoosier Healthwise and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) population in partnership with the Hoosier Healthwise Program since 1995 and beginning in January 2011, the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP). MHS is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Centene Corporation®, a leading, multi-line healthcare enterprise offering both core Medicaid and specialty services. For more, contact MHS, 1099 N. Meridian St., Suite 400, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Contact MHS at (800) 647-4848 or visit MHS online at www.mhsindiana.com.com.

About Centene Corp.
Centene Corp., a Fortune 500 company, is a leading multi-line healthcare enterprise that provides programs and related services to the rising number of under-insured and uninsured individuals. Many receive benefits provided under Medicaid, including the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), as well as Aged, Blind or Disabled (ABD), Foster Care and long-term care, in addition to other state-sponsored programs, and Medicare (Special Needs Plans). Centene's CeltiCare subsidiary offers states unique "exchange-based" and other cost-effective coverage solutions for low-income populations. The Company operates local health plans and offers a range of health insurance solutions. It also contracts with other healthcare and commercial organizations to provide specialty services including behavioral health, life and health management, managed vision, telehealth services, and pharmacy benefits management. More information regarding Centene is available at www.centene.com.