• Pilot Program Now Fully Launched and Available to Members in all 100 N.C. Counties

RALEIGH, N.C., July 31, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- WellCare of North Carolina (WellCare), a Medicaid health plan and a Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) company, and Expressable, the market leader in research-based, family-centered speech therapy care, announced today they are expanding their partnership to offer advanced speech therapy interventions to underserved populations in North Carolina.

Over the last year, Expressable and WellCare engaged in a family-based care management pilot across several counties in eastern North Carolina. This program provided children with home-based screenings and speech therapy, along with education and support for their families. With the pilot program's success, Expressable's services are now expanded to WellCare members throughout all 100 counties in North Carolina.

"Our partnership with Expressable enables us to proactively identify children and young adults, from birth to age 19, who can benefit from essential speech pathology services. By leveraging advanced screening tools, our care managers can accurately pinpoint those requiring comprehensive specialty assessments, ensuring that no critical developmental milestones are overlooked," said Heather Wilman, senior director of care management for WellCare. "This partnership addresses a wide range of needs including speech, language, and safe feeding skills. Importantly, our members have the option to receive personalized care in the comfort of their homes, significantly reducing travel burdens for families across North Carolina." 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in twelve children in the United States has a communication disorder, but nearly half of them aren't receiving the treatment and support they need, such as speech therapy.

Children with speech and language impairment suffer an increased risk of learning disabilities, behavioral disorders, poor academic achievement, and impacts on socio-emotional health. Early interventions, like the Expressable screening tool and telehealth program, can ease burdens on the foster care and public school systems.

"Speech therapy has transformational impacts on a child's life, yet nearly 6 million children in the United States are underserved and at risk for delayed outcomes and cost-intensive care," said Leanne Sherred, M.S., CCC-SLP, Expressable's president and chief clinical officer. "As the only Medicaid managed care provider in the state offering early screening and at-home intervention, WellCare is putting North Carolina children on a strong path to healthy childhood development."  

About WellCare of North Carolina

Headquartered in Raleigh, WellCare of North Carolina provides government-sponsored managed care services to families, children, seniors, and individuals with complex needs primarily through Medicaid as one of the state's Medicaid Prepaid Health Plans (WellCare of North Carolina), Marketplace (WellCare of North Carolina by Celtic Insurance Company), Medicare Advantage (Wellcare), and Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (Wellcare). WellCare of North Carolina is a wholly owned subsidiary of Centene Corporation, a leading healthcare enterprise committed to helping people live healthier lives. For more information, visit www.WellCareNC.com.

About Centene Corporation

Centene Corporation, a Fortune 500 company, is a leading healthcare enterprise that is committed to helping people live healthier lives. The Company takes a local approach – with local brands and local teams – to provide fully integrated, high-quality and cost-effective services to government-sponsored and commercial healthcare programs, focusing on under- insured and uninsured individuals. Centene offers affordable and high-quality products to nearly 1 in 15 individuals across the nation, including Medicaid and Medicare members (including Medicare Prescription Drug Plans) as well as individuals and families served by the Health Insurance Marketplace and the TRICARE program. The Company also contracts with other healthcare and commercial organizations to provide a variety of specialty services focused on treating the whole person. Centene focuses on long-term growth and value creation as well as the development of its people, systems and capabilities so that it can better serve its members, providers, local communities and government partners. Centene uses its investor relations website to publish important information about the Company, including information that may be deemed material to investors. Financial and other information about Centene is routinely posted and is accessible on Centene's investor relations website, http://investors.centene.com.

About Expressable

Expressable is a virtual speech therapy provider committed to expanding access to quality services for everyone in need. Expressable pioneered a family-centered and research-based care model that uses technology and education to integrate speech therapy techniques into children's daily lives, improving outcomes and experiences. For more information, please visit www.expressable.com.

Any reference in this press release to any person, organization, activity, or services related to North Carolina Medicaid does not constitute or imply the endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.