MIAMI, July 1 /PRNewswire/ -- UnitedHealthcare and Neighborhood Health Partnership (NHP) announced today the signing of an agreement under which NHP will merge with UnitedHealthcare, a business unit of UnitedHealth Group. NHP is a privately owned health plan serving approximately 135,000 residents, primarily in Miami-Dade County, and with customers in Broward and Palm Beach counties.
Completion of the merger is subject to regulatory approvals, which are expected to take approximately 90 days. The purchase price for NHP was not disclosed.
Dan Rosenthal, CEO of UnitedHealthcare’s South Florida health plan, said of the merger, “Both NHP and UnitedHealthcare are focused on providing optimum access to quality, affordable health care. NHP is widely respected for its strong sense of community and the way that it responds to the needs of the people it serves. We appreciate and applaud that commitment, and look forward to the continuing leadership NHP will provide our combined companies in this regard. The deep relationships that NHP has with physicians, hospitals and other providers of health care services in this community are also noteworthy and an attribute we intend to build on in the future. In addition, the quality of NHP’s customer service and products are highly complementary to the strengths UnitedHealthcare has demonstrated in the South Florida marketplace.” Rosenthal concluded, “All of these elements will allow UnitedHealthcare and NHP to work effectively together and respond in an even more positive fashion to the unique health and well-being needs of South Florida and its diverse communities.”
Joseph R. Papa, chairman and CEO of NHP, said, “This merger will allow NHP in the future to offer to its loyal customers the tremendous set of resources available from UnitedHealthcare. Those we serve will have access to a broad array of services outside of our immediate area -- such as a health care network of more than 460,000 physicians and health care professionals and 4,200 hospitals nationwide. In addition, our customers will have access to products that can supplement our outstanding local health care services with access to premier centers of clinical excellence for complex, critical health issues such as organ transplants and cancer treatments, should they be needed. UnitedHealthcare’s investments in technology will provide our customers with a simplified administrative experience coupled with useful services such as information on health care costs, best treatment options, and portable electronic personal health records. These features will help us to truly be a consumer-focused company.”
UnitedHealthcare’s South Florida health plan has been a part of Miami-Dade County for nearly 30 years, and serves approximately 400,000 customers in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Martin counties. It offers employers of all sizes a broad portfolio of employee benefit plans, including consumer- driven health plans (which include health savings accounts or health reimbursement accounts).
About Neighborhood Health Partnership
NHP is an HMO licensed by the State of Florida and currently operates in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Born out of a coalition between Dimension Physician Hospital Organization and John Alden Insurance, it has been in operation since 1994. In July of 2002, NHP was acquired by private interests from the former provider owners and has grown to become the largest HMO operating in Miami-Dade County since that time. NHP has its principal offices at 7600 Corporate Center Drive in Miami.
About UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group ( http://www.unitedhealthgroup.com ) is a diversified health and well-being company dedicated to making health care work better. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., UnitedHealth Group offers a broad spectrum of products and services through six operating businesses: UnitedHealthcare, Ovations, AmeriChoice, Uniprise, Specialized Care Services and Ingenix. Through its family of businesses, UnitedHealth Group serves approximately 55 million individuals nationwide. UnitedHealth Group ranks No. 40 in the Fortune 500.
UnitedHealthcare
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