Humana Announces Changes To Veteran Population Health Management

Humana has announced new efforts to improve veteran population health management.

The payer will introduce the veteran community into its Bold Goal communities, giving them the same kind of population health management that other Bold Goal communities receive.

“Through our national Veteran Bold Goal community, we’ll leverage the power of committed partners and stakeholders to create solutions that help veterans achieve their best health,” said Andrew Renda, MD, vice president of Bold Goal and Population Health Strategy for Humana. “We’re proud to add the veteran population to our Bold Goal strategy as it furthers our enterprise commitment to serving those who’ve served our country.”

The press release particularly called out the complex physical and mental healthcare needs of veterans. Humana will work with community-based organizations, businesses, and medical partners to deliver integrated care to address these needs. Ultimately, the goal of these Bold Goal communities will be to increase healthy days for veterans.

Humana noted that Bold Goal efforts will take place alongside the payer's existing partnerships with veteran service organizations and community-based organizations to support veterans’ health. Through these partnerships, Humana has been tackling the healthcare needs of veterans, seeking to eradicate food insecurity, eliminate isolation and improve mental health, and support health equity.

Health equity advancements are needed in the veteran population. The Department of Veterans Affairs has an office dedicated to health equity that aims to resolve the social and economic challenges that veterans face, particularly among minority, female, and homeless veteran populations.

Humana addressed food insecurity by partnering with Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) in order to provide veterans with meals. The payer also worked with community-based organizations to raise awareness about veteran mental health struggles and to improve access to care to help veterans battle loneliness and isolation.

“Our veterans deserve the very best healthcare and we’re proud to offer targeted care that removes barriers to them having what they need to live a healthy life,” said Ed Sandrick, veterans channel executive at Humana.

Alongside these other efforts, Humana will now have include veterans in its Bold Goal initiative.

The Bold Goal program began in 2015 with the aim of improving the number of healthy days that Bold Goal community members enjoyed by 20 percent in the next five years. The program seeks to address social determinants of health barriers in order to reduce unhealthy days and boost healthy days, which is why the format is community-based.

The Bold Goal program allows the payer to scale its social determinants of health efforts across many communities. Since its launch, the program has expanded beyond the initial number of communities that Humana targeted.

When the coronavirus pandemic hit in 2020, Humana’s Bold Goal Medicare Advantage communities saw fewer unhealthy days than Humana’s overall Medicare Advantage population. The payer doubled its target number for social determinants of health screenings, providing more data on the challenges the members faced.

In 2021, Humana is continuing to develop its approach to veteran healthcare, apart from the Bold Goal program. The payer announced that it will be expanding its Humana Honor Plan for veterans. The plan already covered medical and dental care that veterans may receive at a non-Veterans Affairs clinic. 

In 2021, the payer improved the over-the-counter prescription coverage, reduced Medicare Part B premiums, and increased dental benefits.

Earlier in the year, the Biden administration requested $20 billion in relief funding for the Veterans Health Administration. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many veterans who lost their employer-sponsored health plans transitioned to coverage through the Veterans Health Administration. Congress approved $17 billion for the Department of Veterans Affairs.

As veterans continue to struggle with mental and physical healthcare needs alongside social determinants of health barriers, payers can step into the gap and offer solutions.