Centene
Centene Corporation is a Fortune 500 government-sponsored managed care organization serving over 26 million members across Medicaid, Medicare, and ACA Marketplace plans in all 50 states, operating as the largest Medicaid MCO in the U.S.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1984
- HeadquartersSt Louis, United States
- Headcount5,001–10,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Centene does
Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) is a Fortune 500 managed care organization exclusively focused on government-sponsored healthcare programs. Founded in 1984 and headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, the company is the largest Medicaid managed care organization and the longest-running carrier on the ACA Health Insurance Marketplace in the United States. Centene serves over 26 million members across all 50 states through locally branded subsidiaries including Health Net (California), WellCare (Medicare), Ambetter (Marketplace), Sunshine Health (Florida), Superior HealthPlan (Texas), Meridian (Michigan), Coordinated Care (Washington), and others. Core product lines include Medicaid managed care, Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug plans, and ACA Marketplace plans, with supplementary offerings in long-term services and supports, foster care (Foster Care Centers of Excellence), behavioral healthcare coordination (METS program), and whole-health solutions addressing social determinants of health.
The company's revenue model is built on fixed per-member per-month payments from state Medicaid agencies, the federal government (Medicare/ACA), generating approximately $189.5 billion in projected 2026 revenue. Centene contracts directly with state governments and CMS, distributing healthcare services through contracted provider networks. Technology infrastructure includes advanced analytics and AI/ML tools deployed for forecasting, medical economics analysis, payment integrity, and risk adjustment. The company co-chairs the Coalition for Health AI (CHAI) for responsible AI deployment in Medicaid eligibility workflows. Distribution is primarily through government contracts and state-based exchanges, with emerging channels including ICHRA products, Oscar Health's Lucie Marketplace integration, and Parsley Health in-network coverage.
Centene is currently executing a turnaround following a $6.7 billion net loss in 2025 and 6% membership decline to 26.3 million members. Management has implemented voluntary buyouts to 61,000 employees, restructured executive leadership with new Group President positions (Daniel Finke and Michael Carson, April 2026), and consolidated North Carolina subsidiaries. The company faces regulatory headwinds including an $11.2 million cybersecurity settlement (February 2025), an Arizona price-fixing lawsuit, and OIG findings on maternal health provider directory accuracy. Q1 2026 showed early turnaround signals with $1.5 billion in net earnings, 50bps Medicaid HBR improvement, and SG&A reduction to 7.6% of revenue.
Centene firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Centene
- Legal name
- Centene Corporation
- Website
- https://centene.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1984
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 5,001–10,000 employees
- Short description
- Centene Corporation is a Fortune 500 government-sponsored managed care organization serving over 26 million members across Medicaid, Medicare, and ACA Marketplace plans in all 50 states, operating as the largest Medicaid MCO in the U.S.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Centene industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Managed Healthcare Services
- NAICS
- Direct Life, Health, and Medical Insurance Carriers (52411), Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers (524114)
- SIC
- Hospital & Medical Service Plans (6324), Accident & Health Insurance (6321)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Medicaid Managed Care HMOs (HLAEAMAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Medicare Provider Networks & Delegated Medical Groups (MA-focused) (FSAIAGAK), Network-Model HMOs (HLAEAMAC)
Keywords
Where Centene is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- St Louis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices5 records
Markets served
Centene business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Government-Sponsored Healthcare Premium Revenue: Centene receives fixed per-member per-month payments from state Medicaid agencies and the federal government to manage healthcare services while controlling costs. Revenue is derived from Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and ACA Marketplace premiums.
- Service Revenue: Revenue from providing healthcare services and care coordination through its network of providers
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Medicare Part D (PDP) Plans |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Centene product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Centene is a government-sponsored managed care company that provides health insurance and care coordination services through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage/Part D, and ACA Marketplace plans. It serves more than 26 million members across all 50 states via locally branded health plan subsidiaries, delivering access to affordable healthcare, behavioral health, long-term services and supports, and integrated programs addressing social determinants of health.
Product overview
Centene operates as a government-sponsored healthcare enterprise offering a platform of managed care products spanning Medicaid, Medicare Advantage/Part D, and ACA Marketplace plans. The portfolio includes flagship brands (Ambetter marketplace plans, WellCare Medicare plans) alongside locally-branded Medicaid plans (Health Net in California, Superior HealthPlan in Texas, Sunshine Health in Florida, Meridian in Michigan, Coordinated Care in Washington, and others), collectively serving over 26 million members. Whole Health Solutions provides an integrated care layer addressing social determinants of health. Specialty programs include Foster Care Centers of Excellence, the METS behavioral healthcare coordination program, and Long-Term Services & Supports. The company operates as a single platform of government healthcare programs unified by local market branding rather than distinct product lines.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Ambetter Health: Health Insurance Marketplace plans offered by Centene
- METS (Members Empowered to Succeed)
Products and services
- Medicaid Managed Care
- Medicare Advantage and Part D
- ACA Health Insurance Marketplace (Ambetter)
- Whole Health Solutions
- Long-Term Services and Supports
- Foster Care Centers of Excellence
- METS (Members Empowered to Succeed) Program Behavioral healthcare coordination program proactively reaching members with complex behavioral health needs to address care gaps and connect them with benefits and community resources. Active in select Ambetter and Medicaid markets.
- ICHRA (Individual Coverage HRA) Health reimbursement arrangement product allowing employers to provide tax-exempt subsidies for employees to purchase Obamacare coverage, offered in partnership with Ambetter marketplace plans.
Quantifiable outcome
- METS program addressed more than 16,000 preventive and follow-up care gaps in 2025 and over 5,600 additional care gaps in early 2026 while connecting over 2,500 new members to ongoing support
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Centene
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Centene technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability4 records
Feature3 records
Centene partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- McCormack Baron SalazarcoreMulti-year partnership with McCormack Baron Salazar (MBS), one of the nation's leading developers of affordable housing, to provide predevelopment loans to advance low-income housing projects. The initiative is anticipated to enable approximately $900 million of direct construction-related activity, supporting the creation of thousands of affordable housing units in low-income communities. MBS has completed 239 housing developments across 27 states and territories over 50 years.
- Self-Help EnterprisescoreHealth Net, a Centene subsidiary, partnered with Self-Help Enterprises for the Morris Village affordable housing project in Stanislaus County, California, providing $4 million investment to support 45-unit affordable housing development with construction beginning Q4 2026.
- SACOG (Sacramento Area Council of Governments)coreHealth Net provided $2 million to SACOG's Green Means Go program to support infrastructure for at least 50 affordable housing units in the Sacramento region.
- Mutual Housing CaliforniacoreHealth Net invested $1 million to Mutual Housing California for phase two of San Juan Apartments, providing permanent affordable housing for over 100 seniors.
- Neighborhood Service Organization (NSO)coreMeridian in Michigan and the Centene Foundation provided $1.1 million grant to NSO's Medical Respite program at Detroit Healthy Housing Center, serving individuals experiencing homelessness who are too frail to recuperate in an unhoused environment. Expected to serve 165 individuals annually.
- Florida Colleges and Healthcare ProviderscoreSunshine Health Works workforce development program partners with 12 organizations across Florida including Tallahassee State College, Hillsborough College, Broward College, Florida A&M, Florida State College at Jacksonville, Valencia College, USF Colleges of Nursing and Social Work, G.R.O.W. Doula/Healthy Start, NAMI Florida, Hispanic Unity Florida, and United HomeCare.
- Encompass Housing and National Health Care and Housing AdvisorscoreHealth Net and Centene Foundation invested $10 million in the Community Care Campus Long Beach partnership to improve health outcomes and accelerate pathways to stable housing for individuals experiencing homelessness.
- Oscar HealthminorOscar Health's Lucie Health Marketplace integrates plans from Centene and other carriers for AI-powered consumer marketplace enabling individuals to shop for major individual health insurance plans.
Scale indicators15 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Centene competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- UnitedHealth Group: The largest U.S. health insurer and managed care company with significant Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, and commercial presence through UnitedHealthcare, plus Optum health services. Directly competes with Centene across all major government-sponsored product lines and is the dominant incumbent in the broader managed care category.
- CVS Health (Aetna): Integrated healthcare company combining Aetna's health insurance business (including Medicaid and Medicare Advantage) with CVS retail pharmacy and Caremark PBM. Competes with Centene across government-sponsored managed care while offering broader integrated care delivery.
- Cigna Group: Major health insurer with Medicare Advantage and ACA Marketplace presence through its Evernorth services business. Less concentrated in Medicaid than Centene but increasingly competing in government-sponsored products.
Direct peers
- Elevance Health: One of the Blue Cross Blue Shield licensees and a major direct competitor to Centene across Medicaid managed care, Medicare Advantage, and ACA Marketplace plans through its Anthem Blue Cross plans. Operates with similar scale and product mix.
- Humana: A leading Medicare Advantage-focused health insurer that also offers Medicaid and commercial group plans. Directly comparable to Centene's Medicare Advantage and Part D businesses and competes in many of the same state Medicaid markets.
- Molina Healthcare: A pure-play government-sponsored managed care company focused on Medicaid and Medicare Advantage, making it the closest direct competitor to Centene's core Medicaid book with similar member demographics and contract structures.
- Oscar Health: Technology-focused ACA Marketplace insurer with growing Medicare Advantage presence. Direct competitor to Centene's Ambetter brand on the individual market exchanges and has been expanding government-sponsored product offerings.
Emerging players
- Alignment Healthcare: Medicare Advantage-focused insurtech company serving seniors in select western states with technology-driven care coordination. Smaller and more focused than Centene's Medicare business but increasingly relevant as a tech-enabled MA competitor.
- Bright Health Group: Technology-enabled health plan offering Medicare Advantage and ACA Marketplace plans in select markets. Represents a smaller, focused competitor to Centene's government-sponsored insurance products in specific geographies.
Others
- Kaiser Permanente: Integrated managed care consortium providing both insurance and care delivery, with significant Medicaid and Medicare Advantage presence in select states. While structured very differently (integrated provider-insurer model), it competes with Centene for government-sponsored members in overlapping geographies.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Centene social profiles
Digital presenceCentene compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Centene financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Centene leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Centene subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries12 records
Centene funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Centene M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A16 records
Investments14 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Centene
What does Centene do?
Centene is a government-sponsored managed care company that provides health insurance and care coordination services through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage/Part D, and ACA Marketplace plans. It serves more than 26 million members across all 50 states via locally branded health plan subsidiaries, delivering access to affordable healthcare, behavioral health, long-term services and supports, and integrated programs addressing social determinants of health.
Is Centene a public or private company?
Centene is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was Centene founded?
Centene was founded in 1984. It employs 5,001 to 10,000 people.
Where is Centene based?
Centene is headquartered in St Louis, United States, in the North America region.
How does Centene make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Government-Sponsored Healthcare Premium Revenue is the primary driver. The others are service Revenue.
Who are Centene's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are UnitedHealth Group, CVS Health (Aetna) and Cigna Group. Direct peers are Elevance Health, Humana, Molina Healthcare and Oscar Health. Emerging players are Alignment Healthcare and Bright Health Group. Kaiser Permanente is listed as an others.
Does Centene have an API?
No public API is recorded for Centene.
What industry is Centene in?
Centene's product category is Managed Healthcare Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAEAMAI, Medicaid Managed Care HMOs, with a secondary code of FSAIAGAK, Medicare Provider Networks & Delegated Medical Groups (MA-focused). Its NAICS code is 52411 and its SIC code is 6324.