By John George – Senior Reporter,
Philadelphia Business Journal
Apr 5, 2019, 11:04am EDT
The
longtime president and CEO of Health Partners Plans (HPP) is retiring, and his
successor is being promoted from within at the Philadelphia-based Medicaid and
Medicare managed care company.
Bill George will step down as chief
executive of HPP on June 1.
Denise Croce, currently HPP’s executive vice
president of clinical and provider management, will take over as CEO on that
date.
George
joined HPP in 1991 as CFO and senior vice president of finance. He was named
president and CEO in 2006.
When
asked by the Philadelphia Business Journal what accomplishments gave him the
most pride during his tenure, George quickly mentioned two.
“When I
started as CEO, I said my goal was not (for HPP) to necessarily be the largest
plan, but for it to be the plan with the best outcomes,” he said.
Two
years ago HPP was recognized as the only Medicaid plan in Pennsylvania, and one
of only eight in the country, to earn a status of “excellent” from the National
Committee for Quality Assurance. HPP again earned an “excellent” rating again
last year.
George
also is proud of the “food is medicine” program HPP developed with MANNA (the
Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutrition Alliance). The program provides
medically appropriate meals — more than 665,000 to date — to members with
diabetes and other chronic conditions at no cost.
“I
didn’t realize it would take off like it did,” said George, noting the program
has lowered medical costs and improved health outcomes for members. “It’s
gotten national attention. I hope other plans try it.”
George
said one his biggest challenges occurred in 2014 when the company decided to
re-enter the Medicare market. “The membership grew faster that I would have
liked, and that created certain financial challenges,” he said.
As for
why he is retiring now, George said he and his wife made that decision four
years ago when his employment contract — which rolls over for four-year time
periods — came up for renewal.“I told the board we I would not be renewing my
contract,” he said. “I am going to be 68. We bought a house in Maine and I want
to have some fun up there.”
Croce
first worked at HPP from 2004 through 2006 as senior vice president of health
care management operations. She returned to the company in 2016 as executive
vice president of clinical and provider management. During her time away
from HPP she held executive positions with the Medicaid plans at Coventry
Health Care and Aetna
When
she returned to HPP, Croce knew George was going to be retiring — but she was
not promised the CEO job. “I came back because of the culture here and the
mission aligned with my interests,” she said.
Croce
said she doesn’t plan any major changes at HPP because she supports the direction
the company has taken under George, where the priority is the needs of the
members. Croce said she will look at opportunities to explore the plan’s
footprint in both the Medicaid and Medicare markets. That expansion, she said,
could be elsewhere in Pennsylvania or in other states.
HPP
currently has 245,000 Medicaid members in the five-county region; 16,000
Medicare members in the same five counties along with Lancaster, Northampton
and Lehigh counties, and about 11,500 Children Health Insurance in Pennsylvania
(CHIP) members.
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