Centene to acquire South Carolina Medicaid managed care provider Carolina Crescent

Centene to acquire S.Carolina Medicaid provider

ST. LOUIS — Health insurer Centene Corp. plans to acquire Carolina Crescent Health Plan and expand its South Carolina Medicaid enrollment.

The St. Louis insurer said Thursday its South Carolina subsidiary, Absolute Total Care, signed an agreement to acquire the nonprofit Carolina Crescent from University Health Services Inc. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter, pending state regulator approval.

Terms were not disclosed.

Carolina Crescent serves more than 40,000 Medicaid members across the state. Centene said the deal will add revenue ranging from $55 million to $65 million this year and between $115 million and $130 million on an annual basis. The insurer expects it to add about 2 to 3 cents to earnings per share this year and 9 to 11 cents annually.

With the acquisition, Absolute Total Care will provide Medicaid managed care services for about 90,000 people in the state.