Humana Teams with Green Ribbon Health to Launch Medicare Advantage Complex Care Management Program in Southeast

Humana, Inc. (NYSE: HUM) this month is initiating a new complex care management program for chronically ill Medicare Advantage beneficiaries in the Southeast. The integrated care program, which combines both acute care and chronic care management to Humana Medicare Advantage PPO and Private Fee for Service beneficiaries in Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, will expand across an additional 10 states by the end of September 2008. Humana’s customized complex care management model includes a specially trained telephonic and field-based care management team, consisting of social workers, registered nurses, skilled health coaches and Humana senior care managers. The new complex care management program is now available in those southeastern states at no additional cost to Humana Medicare Advantage PPO and PFFS beneficiaries. Later this month, Humana plans to roll out the new program in Kentucky. "By linking health care and social care, not only are we allowing our Medicare Advantage beneficiaries to remain as healthy and independent as possible, but we also are creating the next generation of public health,” said Dr. Bob Pope, Humana’s chief medical officer for Senior Products. "We believe the program will provide measurable savings year after year, improve health and quality of life, and increase satisfaction of members and providers.” Specifically, complex care management is designed to: Improve quality of life though holistic management Improve access to care across providers and the community Improve members’ self-care management skills Prevent unnecessary hospital stays and emergency room visits; and Optimize Humana members’ health care benefits. "Many Medicare members have multiple conditions contributing to increased costs due to complications not handled well by disease specific management,” said Jean Bisio, chief executive officer of Green Ribbon Health (www.greenribbonhealth.com), the Tampa-based Medicare Health Support pilot program on Florida’s west coast started more than three years ago in a joint venture by Humana and Pfizer Health Solutions. Green Ribbon Health currently provides care management for about 20,000 chronically ill Medicare Fee for Service beneficiaries in nine West Central Florida counties, stretching from Tampa Bay to Naples. Green Ribbon Health is one of five Medicare Health Support pilots in the United States contracted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. "Our experience tells us that this population needs a specific approach that marries acute and chronic care services,” said Bisio, "and we believe this long-term commitment to personal care will improve clinical outcomes and save money -- for the insurer, the provider and the patient.” Bisio said that chronic illness currently has an economic impact of $1.3 trillion annually in the United States, and that health care experts project chronic diseases in this country will increase by more than 40 percent by 2023. To combat that increase, Humana is taking a proven health care management concept, piloted by Green Ribbon Health in Florida since November 2005, and expanding this innovative chronic care management approach to 14 states across the country. As part of complex care management, Humana employs Green Ribbon Health registered nurses, social workers and skilled health coaches who work as a team with Humana senior care managers to personally see to it that the senior’s medical, as well as personal, needs are being met. "We go wherever the senior lives, whether it’s a home, nursing home, assisted living facility or retirement home to assess all the member’s issues, not just their health,” said Bisio. The integrated care management team handles everything from making sure members have the right medications and transportation to medical appointments and shopping, to having safety measures, such as grab bars and ramps, installed in their homes. About Humana Humana Inc., headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, is one of the nation’s largest publicly traded health and supplemental benefits companies, with approximately 11.5 million medical members. Humana is a full-service benefits solutions company, offering a wide array of health and supplementary benefit plans for employer groups, government programs and individuals. Over its 47-year history, Humana has consistently seized opportunities to meet changing customer needs. Today, the company is a leader in consumer engagement, providing guidance that leads to lower costs and a better health plan experience throughout its diversified customer portfolio. More information regarding Humana is available to investors via the Investor Relations page of the company’s Web site at http://www.humana.com, including copies of: Annual reports to stockholders; Securities and Exchange Commission filings; Most recent investor conference presentations; Quarterly earnings news releases; Replays of most recent earnings release conference calls; Calendar of events (includes upcoming earnings conference call dates and times, as well as planned interaction with research analysts and institutional investors); Corporate Governance Information.