| ORGANIZATION, BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES | 9 Months Ended |
| Sep. 30, 2013 |
| Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract] | ' |
| ORGANIZATION, BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES | ' |
| ORGANIZATION, BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES |
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| WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (the "Company," "we," "us," or "our"), provides managed care services exclusively to government-sponsored health care programs. The Company was formed as a Delaware limited liability company in May 2002 to acquire our Florida, New York and Connecticut health plans. We completed the acquisition of the health plans through two concurrent transactions in July 2002. In July 2004, immediately prior to the closing of our initial public offering, we merged the limited liability company into a Delaware corporation and changed our name to WellCare Health Plans, Inc. |
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| As of September 30, 2013, we served approximately 2,824,000 members. During the nine months ended September 30, 2013, we operated Medicaid health plans in Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, New York, Ohio and South Carolina. In connection with our acquisitions of Medicaid plans in South Carolina and Missouri (see Note 2), our Medicaid operations in those states began in February 2013 and April 2013, respectively. |
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| Our previous Medicaid contract in Missouri, which expired on June 30, 2012, was not renewed. Our previous Missouri Medicaid contract accounted for approximately $20,000, or less than 1%, of our consolidated premium revenue for the nine months ended September 30, 2012. |
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| Our Medicaid contract in Ohio expired on June 30, 2012. We were not awarded a Medicaid contract in Ohio for the 2013 fiscal year; however, the state contracted with us to provide services to Ohio Medicaid beneficiaries through the transition period, which ended June 30, 2013. As of July 1, 2013, we no longer provided Medicaid services in Ohio. The Ohio Medicaid contract accounted for approximately $127,000, or 1.8%, of our consolidated premium revenue for the nine months ended September 30, 2013, and approximately $68,000 and $198,000, or 3.8% and 3.7%, respectively, of our consolidated premium revenue for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2012. |
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| As of September 30, 2013, we also operated Medicare Advantage ("MA") coordinated care plans ("CCPs") in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Texas, as well as a stand-alone Medicare prescription drug plan ("PDP") in 49 states and the District of Columbia. In connection with our acquisitions of MA plans in California and Arizona during the fourth quarter of 2012, our MA operations in those states began in November 2012 and January 2013, respectively. |
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| Pending Acquisitions |
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| In September 2013, we announced that we had entered into an agreement to acquire Windsor Health Group, Inc. ("Windsor") from Munich Health North America, Inc., a part of Munich Re. Through its subsidiaries, Windsor serves Medicare beneficiaries with Medicare Advantage plans, Medicare prescription drug plan and Medicare Supplement products. Windsor offers Medicare Advantage plans in 297 counties primarily in the states of Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, and South Carolina. Windsor has been approved to offer MA plans in 192 counties for 2014. In addition, one of Windsor's subsidiaries offers Medicare Supplement insurance policies through which it serves over 50,000 members in 40 states. The acquisition is expected to close during December 2013 or January 2014, subject to customary regulatory approvals. |
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| In September 2013, we also entered into an agreement to acquire certain assets of Healthfirst Health Plan of New Jersey, Inc. ("Healthfirst NJ"). As of September 2013, Healthfirst NJ serves approximately 47,000 Medicaid members in 12 counties in the state. The acquisition is expected to close during the first quarter of 2014, subject to customary regulatory approvals. Upon closure of the transaction, we will acquire Healthfirst NJ’s membership and substantially all of its provider network. |
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| Basis of Presentation and Use of Estimates |
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| The accompanying unaudited consolidated balance sheets and statements of comprehensive income, changes in stockholders' equity, and cash flows include the accounts of the Company and all of its majority-owned subsidiaries. We eliminated all intercompany accounts and transactions. |
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| The accompanying unaudited consolidated interim financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP") and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted. The accompanying unaudited consolidated interim financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012 included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in February 2013. Results for the interim periods presented are not necessarily indicative of results that may be expected for the entire year or any other interim period. |
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| In the opinion of management, the interim financial statements reflect all normal recurring adjustments that we consider necessary for the fair presentation of our financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the interim periods presented. In accordance with GAAP, we make certain estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the consolidated interim financial statements and accompanying notes. We base these estimates on our knowledge of current events and anticipated future events and evaluate and update our assumptions and estimates on an ongoing basis; however, actual results may differ from our estimates. We evaluated all material events subsequent to the date of these consolidated interim financial statements. |
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| Significant Accounting Policies |
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| Revenue Recognition |
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| We earn premium revenue through our participation in Medicaid, Medicaid-related and Medicare programs. |
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| State governments individually operate and implement and, together with the federal government's Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS"), fund and regulate the Medicaid program. We provide benefits to low-income and disabled persons under the Medicaid program and are paid premiums based on contracts with government agencies in the states in which we operate health plans. Our Medicaid contracts are generally multi-year contracts subject to annual renewal provisions. Rate changes are typically made at the commencement of each new contract renewal period. In some instances, our fixed Medicaid premiums are subject to risk score adjustments based on the acuity of our membership. State agencies analyze encounter submissions of processed claims data to determine the acuity of our membership relative to the entire state's Medicaid membership. |
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| We operate our MA plans under the Medicare Part C program and provide our eligible members with benefits comparable to those available under Medicare Parts A and B. Most of our MA plans and all of our PDP plans offer prescription drug benefits to eligible members under the Medicare Part D program. Premiums for each MA member are based on our annual bids, although the rates vary according to a combination of factors, including upper payment limits established by CMS, the member's geographic location, age, gender, medical history or condition, or the services rendered to the member. Our MA contracts with CMS generally have terms of one year and expire at the end of each calendar year. PDP premiums are also based upon a contract with CMS that has a term of one year and expires at the end of each calendar year. We provide annual written bids to CMS for our PDP plans, which reflect the estimated costs of providing prescription drug benefits over the plan year. Changes in MA and PDP members' health status also impact monthly premiums as described under "Risk-Adjusted Medicare Premiums" below. CMS pays all premium for Medicare Part C and substantially all of the premium for Medicare Part D coverage. We bill the remaining Medicare Part D premium to PDP and MA members with Part D benefits based on the plan year bid submitted to CMS. For qualifying low-income subsidy ("LIS") members, CMS pays for some or all of the LIS members' monthly premium. The CMS payment is dependent upon the member's income level as determined by the Social Security Administration. |
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| We receive premiums from CMS and state agencies on a per member per month ("PMPM") basis for the members that are assigned to, or have selected, us to provide health care services under our Medicare and Medicaid contracts. We recognize premium revenue in the period in which we are obligated to provide services to our members. CMS and state agencies generally pay us in the month in which we provide services. We record premiums earned but not received as premiums receivable and record premiums received in advance of the period of service as unearned premiums in the consolidated balance sheets. Unearned premiums are recognized as revenue when we provide the related services. On a monthly basis, we bill members for any premiums for which they are responsible according to their respective plan. Member premiums are recognized as revenue in the period of service. We reduce recorded premium revenue and member premiums receivable by the amount we estimate may not be collectible, based on our evaluation of historical trends. We also routinely monitor the collectability of specific premiums receivable from CMS and state agencies, including Medicaid receivables for obstetric deliveries and newborns and net receivables for member retroactivity and reduce revenue and premiums receivable by the amount we estimate may not be collectible. We reported premiums receivable, net of an allowance for uncollectible premiums receivable, of $16,725 and $14,843, at September 30, 2013 and December 31, 2012, respectively. Historically, the allowance for member premiums receivable has not been material relative to consolidated premium revenue. |
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| We record retroactive adjustments to revenues based on changes in the number and eligibility status of our members subsequent to when we recorded revenue related to those members and months of service. We receive premium payments based upon eligibility lists produced by CMS and state agencies. We verify these lists to determine whether we have been paid for the correct premium category and program. From time to time, CMS and state agencies require us to reimburse them for premiums that we received for individuals who were subsequently determined by us, or by CMS or state agencies, to be ineligible for any government-sponsored program or to belong to a plan other than ours. We receive additional premiums from CMS and state agencies for individuals who were subsequently determined to belong to our plan for periods in which we received no premium for those members. We estimate the amount of outstanding retroactivity adjustments and adjust premium revenue based on historical trends, premiums billed, the volume of member and contract renewal activity and other information. We record amounts receivable or payable in premiums receivable, net and other accrued expenses and liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets. |
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| Supplemental Medicaid Premiums |
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| We earn, or earned, supplemental premium payments for eligible obstetric deliveries and newborns of our Medicaid members in Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, New York, South Carolina and, until June 30, 2013, in Ohio. Each state Medicaid contract specifies how and when these supplemental payments are earned and paid. Upon delivery of a newborn, we notify the state agency according to the contract terms. We also earn supplemental Medicaid premium payments in some states for high cost drugs and certain services such as early childhood prevention screenings. We recognize supplemental premium revenue in the period we provide related services to our members. |
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| Risk-Adjusted Medicare Premiums  |
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| CMS employs a risk-adjustment model to determine the premium amount it pays for each MA and PDP member. This model apportions premiums paid to all plans according to the health status of each beneficiary enrolled, resulting in higher scores for members with predictably higher costs. The model uses diagnosis data from inpatient and ambulatory treatment settings to calculate each risk score. We collect claims and encounter data for our MA members and submit the necessary diagnosis data to CMS within prescribed deadlines. After reviewing the respective submissions, CMS establishes the premium payments to MA plans at the beginning of the plan year, and then adjusts premium levels on a retroactive basis. The first retroactive adjustment for a given plan year generally occurs during the third quarter of that year and represents the update of risk scores for the current plan year based on the severity of claims incurred in the prior plan year. CMS then issues a final retroactive risk-adjusted premium settlement for that plan year in the following year. |
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| We develop our estimates for risk-adjusted premiums utilizing historical experience and predictive models as sufficient member risk score data becomes available over the course of each CMS plan year. We populate our models with available risk score data on our members and base risk premium adjustments on risk score data from the previous year. We are not privy to risk score data for members new to our plans in the current plan year; therefore we include assumptions regarding these members' risk scores. We periodically revise our estimates of risk-adjusted premiums as additional diagnosis code information is reported to CMS and adjust our estimates to actual amounts when the ultimate adjustment settlements are either received from CMS or we receive notification from CMS of such settlement amounts. As a result of the variability of factors that determine our estimates for risk-adjusted premiums, the actual amount of the CMS retroactive payment could be materially more or less than our estimates and could have a material effect on our results of operations, financial position and cash flows. We record any changes in estimates in current operations as adjustments to premium revenue. Historically, we have not experienced significant differences between our estimates and amounts ultimately received. However, in the three months ended September 30, 2013, we recognized risk adjusted premium received as part of the 2012 final settlement that was higher than our original estimates, mainly related to members in our California MA plan that were new to Medicare in 2012. Additionally, the data provided to CMS to determine members' risk scores is subject to audit by CMS even after the annual settlements occur. An audit may result in the refund of premiums to CMS. While our experience to date has not resulted in a material refund, future refunds could materially reduce premium revenue in the year in which CMS determines a refund is required and could be material to our results of operations, financial position and cash flows. Premiums receivable in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets include MA risk-adjusted premiums receivable of $76,624 and $74,767, and PDP risk-adjusted premiums receivable of $2,896 and $4,813, as of September 30, 2013 and December 31, 2012, respectively. |
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| Minimum Medical Expense and Risk Corridor Provisions |
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| We may be required to refund certain premium revenue to CMS and state government agencies under various contractual and plan arrangements. We estimate the impact of the following arrangements on a monthly basis and reflect any adjustments to premium revenues in current operations. We report the estimated net amounts due to CMS and state agencies in other payables to government partners in the consolidated balance sheets. |
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| Certain of our Florida Medicaid contracts and our Illinois Medicaid contract require us to expend a minimum percentage of premiums on eligible medical benefits expense. To the extent that we expend less than the minimum percentage of the premiums on eligible medical benefits expense, we are required to refund to the state all or some portion of the difference between the minimum and our actual allowable medical benefits expense. We estimate the amounts due to the state agencies as a return of premium based on the terms of our contracts with the applicable state agency. |
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| Our MA and PDP prescription drug plan premiums are subject to risk sharing through the CMS Medicare Part D risk corridor provisions. The risk corridor calculation compares our actual experience to the target amount of prescription drug costs, limited to costs under the standard coverage as defined by CMS, less rebates included in our submitted plan year bid. We receive additional premium from CMS if our actual experience is more than 5% above the target amount. We refund premiums to CMS if our actual experience is more than 5% below the target amount. After the close of the annual plan year, CMS performs the risk corridor calculation and any differences are settled between CMS and our plans. We have not historically experienced material differences between the subsequent CMS settlement amount and our estimates. |
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| Medicare Part D Settlements |
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| We receive certain Part D prospective subsidy payments from CMS for our MA and PDP members based on the estimated costs of providing prescription drug benefits over the plan year. After the close of the annual plan year, CMS reconciles our actual experience to the prospective payments we received and any differences are settled between CMS and our plans. As such, these subsidies represent funding from CMS for which we assume no risk. We do not recognize the receipt of these subsidies as premium revenue and we do not recognize the payments of related prescription drug benefits as medical benefits expense. We report the subsidies received and benefits paid on a net basis as funds receivable (held) for the benefit of members in the consolidated balance sheets. We also report the net receipts and payments as a financing activity in our consolidated statements of cash flows. CMS pays the following subsidies prospectively as a fixed PMPM amount based upon the plan year bid submitted by us: |
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| Low-Income Cost Sharing Subsidy—CMS reimburses us for all or a portion of qualifying LIS members' deductible, coinsurance and co-payment amounts above the out-of-pocket threshold. |
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| Catastrophic Reinsurance Subsidy—CMS reimburses us for 80% of the drug costs after a member reaches his or her out-of-pocket catastrophic threshold through a catastrophic reinsurance subsidy. |
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| Coverage Gap Discount Subsidy—We advance the pharmaceutical manufacturers gap coverage discounts at the point of sale. On a periodic basis, CMS bills pharmaceutical manufacturers for discounts advanced by us. Pharmaceutical manufacturers remit payments for invoiced amounts directly to us. CMS reduces subsequent prospective payments made to us by the discount amounts billed to manufacturers. |
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| CMS generally performs the Part D payment reconciliation in the fourth quarter of the following plan year based on prescription drug event data we submit to CMS within prescribed deadlines. After the Part D payment reconciliation for coverage gap discount subsidies, we may continue to report discounts to CMS for 37 months following the end of the plan year. CMS will invoice manufacturers for these discounts and we will be paid through the quarterly manufacturer payments. Historically, we have not experienced material adjustments related to the CMS annual reconciliation of prior plan year low-income cost sharing, catastrophic reinsurance, and coverage gap discount subsidies. |
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| Medical Benefits and Medical Benefits Payable |
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| We recognize the cost of medical benefits in the period in which services are provided, including an estimate of the cost of medical benefits incurred but not reported ("IBNR"). Medical benefits expense includes direct medical expenses and certain medically-related administrative costs. |
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| Direct medical expenses include amounts paid or payable to hospitals, physicians and providers of ancillary services, such as laboratories and pharmacies. We also record direct medical expenses for estimated referral claims related to health care providers under contract with us who are financially troubled or insolvent and who may not be able to honor their obligations for the costs of medical services provided by others. In these instances, we may be required to honor these obligations for legal or business reasons. Based on our current assessment of providers under contract with us, such losses have not been and are not expected to be significant. We record direct medical expense for our estimates of provider settlement due to clarification of contract terms, out-of-network reimbursement, claims payment differences and amounts due to contracted providers under risk-sharing arrangements. We estimate pharmacy rebates earned based on historical utilization of specific pharmaceuticals, current utilization and contract terms and record amounts as a reduction of recorded direct medical expenses. |
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| Consistent with the criteria specified and defined in guidance issued by the Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS") for costs that qualify to be reported as medical benefits under the minimum medical loss ratio provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (collectively, the "Affordable Care Act"), we record certain medically-related administrative costs such as preventive health and wellness, care management, and other quality improvement costs, as medical benefits expense. All other medically-related administrative costs, such as utilization review services, network and provider credentialing and claims handling costs, are recorded in selling, general, and administrative expense. |
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| Medical benefits payable represents amounts for claims fully adjudicated but not yet paid and estimates for IBNR. Our estimate of IBNR is the most significant estimate included in our consolidated financial statements. We determine our best estimate of the base liability for IBNR utilizing consistent standard actuarial methodologies based upon key assumptions which vary by business segment. Our assumptions include current payment experience, trend factors and completion factors. Trend factors in our standard actuarial methodologies include contractual requirements, historic utilization trends, the interval between the date services are rendered and the date claims are paid, denied claims activity, disputed claims activity, benefit changes, expected health care cost inflation, seasonality patterns, maturity of lines of business, changes in membership and other factors. |
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| After determining an estimate of the base liability for IBNR, we make an additional estimate, also using standard actuarial techniques, to account for adverse conditions that may cause actual claims to be higher than the estimated base reserve. We refer to this additional liability as the provision for moderately adverse conditions. Our estimate of the provision for moderately adverse conditions captures the potential adverse development from factors such as: |
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| • | our entry into new geographical markets; |
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| • | our provision of services to new populations such as the aged, blind and disabled; |
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| • | variations in utilization of benefits and increasing medical costs; |
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| • | changes in provider reimbursement arrangements; |
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| • | variations in claims processing speed and patterns, claims payment and the severity of claims; and |
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| • | health epidemics or outbreaks of disease such as the flu. |
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| We consider the base actuarial model liability and the provision for moderately adverse conditions as part of our overall assessment of our IBNR estimate to properly reflect the complexity of our business, the number of states in which we operate, and the need to account for different health care benefit packages among those states. We evaluate our estimates of medical benefits payable as we obtain more complete claims information and medical expense trend data over time. Volatility in members' needs for medical services, provider claims submissions and our payment processes result in identifiable patterns emerging several months after the causes of deviations from our assumed trends occur. Changes in our estimates of medical benefits payable cannot typically be explained by any single factor, but are the result of a number of interrelated variables, all of which influence the resulting medical cost trend. We record differences between actual experience and estimates used to establish the liability, which we refer to as favorable and unfavorable prior period developments, as increases or decreases to medical benefits expense in the period we identify the differences. |
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| Net unfavorable development related to prior periods amounted to $47,513 for the three months ended September 30, 2013, which includes $16,266 of unfavorable development related to prior fiscal years and $31,247 of unfavorable development related to the first half of 2013. Net unfavorable development related to prior periods amounted to $15,377 for the three months ended September 30, 2012, which includes approximately $23,295 of unfavorable development related to the first half of 2012, partially offset by $7,918 of favorable development related to prior fiscal years. The net unfavorable development recognized in the three month periods ended September 30, 2013 and 2012 was due mainly to higher than projected medical costs in our Medicaid segment. For the nine months ended September 30, 2013, net unfavorable development related to prior fiscal years amounted to approximately $7,115, while for the nine months ended September 30, 2012 net favorable development related to prior fiscal years amounted to approximately $79,708. The net unfavorable development recognized in the nine month period ended September 30, 2013 was due to the 2012 medical cost trend emerging unfavorably compared to our previous estimates, mostly in our Medicare segment. The net favorable development recognized in the nine month period ended September 30, 2012 was due to the 2011 medical cost trend emerging favorably compared to our previous estimates, mostly in our Medicaid segment and to a lesser extent in our MA and PDP segments. |
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| Reinsurance |
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| We cede certain premiums and medical benefits to other insurance companies under various reinsurance agreements in order to increase our capacity to write larger risks and maintain our exposure to loss within our capital resources. We are contingently liable in the event the reinsurance companies do not meet their contractual obligations. We evaluate the financial condition of the reinsurance companies on a regular basis and only contract with well-known, well-established reinsurance companies that are supported by strong financial ratings. We account for reinsurance premiums and medical expense recoveries according to the terms of the underlying reinsurance contracts. |
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| Equity-Based Employee Compensation |
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| During the second quarter of 2013, our stockholders approved the WellCare Health Plans, Inc. 2013 Incentive Compensation Plan (the "2013 Plan"). Upon approval of the 2013 Plan, a total of 2,500,000 shares of our common stock were available for issuance pursuant to the 2013 Plan, minus any shares subject to outstanding awards granted on or after January 1, 2013 under our 2004 Equity Incentive Plan ("the Prior Plan"). In addition, shares subject to awards forfeited under the Prior Plan will become available for issuance under the 2013 Plan. No further awards are permitted to be granted under our Prior Plan. The Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors (the "Compensation Committee") awards certain equity-based compensation under our stock plans, including stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units ("RSUs"), performance stock units ("PSUs") and market stock units ("MSUs"). We estimate equity-based compensation expense based on awards ultimately expected to vest. We make assumptions of forfeiture rates at the time of grant and continuously reassess our assumptions based on actual forfeiture experience. |
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| We estimate compensation cost for stock options, restricted stock, RSUs and MSUs based on the fair value at the time of grant and recognize expense over the vesting period of the award. For stock options, the grant date fair value is measured using the Black-Scholes options-pricing model. For restricted stock and RSUs, the grant date fair value is based on the closing price of our common stock on the grant date. For MSUs, the fair value at the grant date is measured using a Monte Carlo simulation approach which estimates the fair value of awards based on randomly generated simulated stock-price paths through a lattice-type structure. MSUs expected to vest are recognized as expense on a straight-line basis over the vesting period, which is generally three years. The number of shares of common stock earned upon vesting is determined based on the ratio of the Company's common stock price during the last 30 days market trading days of the calendar year immediately preceding the vesting date to the comparable common stock price as of the grant date, applied to the base units granted. The performance ratio is capped at 150% or 200%, depending on the grant date. If our common stock price declines by more than 50% over the performance period, no shares are earned by the recipient. |
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| At its sole discretion, the Compensation Committee sets certain financial and quality-based performance goals and a target award amount for each award of PSUs. PSUs generally cliff-vest three years from the grant date based on the achievement of the performance goals and conditioned on the employee's continued service through the vesting date. The actual number of common stock shares earned upon vesting will range from zero shares up to 150% or 200% of the target award, depending on the award date. PSUs do not have a grant date or grant fair value for accounting purposes as the subjective nature of the terms of the PSUs precludes a mutual understanding of the key terms and conditions. We recognize expense for PSUs ultimately expected to vest over the requisite service period based on our estimates of progress made towards the achievement of the predetermined performance measures and changes in the market price of our common stock. |
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| Medicaid Premium Taxes |
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| Premium rates established in the Medicaid contracts with Georgia, Hawaii and New York, and, until June 30, 2013, Ohio, include, or included, an assessment or tax on Medicaid premiums. We recognize the premium tax assessment as expense in the period we earn the related premium revenue and remit the taxes back to the state agencies on a periodic basis. |
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| Property, Equipment and Capitalized Software, net |
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| Property, equipment and capitalized software are stated at historical cost, net of accumulated depreciation. We capitalize certain costs incurred in the development of internal-use software, including external direct costs of materials and services and payroll costs of employees devoted to specific software development. We expense other software development costs, such as training and data conversion costs, as incurred. We capitalize the costs of improvements that extend the useful lives of the related assets. |
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| We record depreciation expense using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the related assets, which ranges from three to ten years for leasehold improvements, five for furniture and equipment, and three to five years for computer equipment and software. We include amortization of equipment under capital leases in depreciation expense. We record maintenance and repair costs as selling, general and administrative expense when incurred. |
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| On an ongoing basis, we review events or changes in circumstances that may indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable. If the carrying value of an asset exceeds the sum of estimated undiscounted future cash flows, we recognize an impairment loss in the current period for the difference between estimated fair value and carrying value. If assets are determined to be recoverable but the useful lives are shorter than we originally estimated, we depreciate the remaining net book value of the asset over the newly determined remaining useful lives. During the three months ended September 30, 2013, we determined that we would be discontinuing certain projects going forward and, as a result, the software and development costs acquired to support these projects would not be fully recoverable. In accordance with the guidance for the impairment of long-lived assets, we evaluated these assets for recovery and recorded a pre-tax asset impairment charge of $8,997, which is included in selling, general and administrative expenses in our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013. |
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| Goodwill and Intangible Assets |
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| Goodwill represents the excess of the cost over the fair market value of net assets acquired and is attributable to our Medicare Advantage and Medicaid reporting segments. Other intangible assets include provider networks, broker networks, trademarks, state contracts, non-compete agreements, licenses and permits. We amortize other intangible assets over their estimated useful lives ranging from approximately one to 15 years. These assets are allocated to reporting segments for impairment testing purposes. |
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| We review goodwill and intangible assets for impairment at least annually, or more frequently if events or changes in our business climate occur that may potentially affect the estimated useful life or the recoverability of the remaining balance of goodwill or intangible assets. Such events or changes in circumstances would include significant changes in membership, state funding, federal and state government contracts and provider networks. To determine whether goodwill is impaired, we perform a multi-step impairment test. First, we can elect to perform a qualitative assessment of each reporting unit to determine whether facts and circumstances support a determination that their fair values are greater than their carrying values. If the qualitative analysis is not conclusive, or if we elect to proceed directly with quantitative testing, we will then measure the fair values of the reporting units using a two-step approach. In the first step, we determine the fair value of the reporting unit using both income and market approaches. We calculate fair value based on our assumptions of key factors such as projected revenues and the discount factor. While we believe these assumptions and estimates are appropriate, other assumptions and estimates could be applied and may produce significantly different results. If the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying value, we measure and record the amount of the goodwill impairment, if any, by comparing the implied fair value of the reporting unit's goodwill to the carrying value. We perform our annual goodwill impairment test based on our financial position and results of operations through the second quarter of each year, which generally coincides with the finalization of federal and state contract negotiations and our initial budgeting process. |
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| We elected to bypass the optional qualitative fair value assessment and conducted our annual quantitative test for goodwill impairment during the third quarter of 2013. Based on the results of our quantitative test, we determined that the fair values of our reporting units exceeded their carrying values and therefore no impairment charges were recorded during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013. |
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| Income Taxes |
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| We record income tax expense as incurred based on enacted tax rates, estimates of book-to-tax differences in income, and projections of income that will be earned in each taxing jurisdiction. We recognize deferred tax assets and liabilities for the estimated future tax consequences of differences between the carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax basis. We measure deferred tax assets and liabilities using tax rates applicable to taxable income in the years in which we expect to recover or settle those temporary differences. We record a valuation allowance on deferred taxes if we determine it is more likely than not that we will not fully realize the future benefit of deferred tax assets. We file tax returns after the close of our fiscal year end and adjust our estimated tax receivable or liability to the actual tax receivable or due per the filed state and federal tax returns. Historically, we have not experienced significant differences between our estimates of income tax expense and actual amounts incurred. |
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| State and federal taxing authorities may challenge the positions we take on our filed tax returns. We evaluate our tax positions and only recognize a tax benefit if it is more likely than not that a tax audit will sustain our conclusion. Based on our evaluation of tax positions, we believe that potential tax exposures have been recorded appropriately. State and federal taxing authorities may propose additional tax assessments based on periodic audits of our tax returns. We believe our tax positions comply with applicable tax law in all material aspects and we will vigorously defend our positions on audit. The ultimate resolution of these audits may materially impact our financial position, results of operations or cash flows. We have not experienced material adjustments to our consolidated financial statements as a result of these audits. |
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| We participate in the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") Compliance Assurance Process ("CAP"). The objective of CAP is to reduce taxpayer burden and uncertainty by working with the IRS to ensure tax return accuracy prior to filing, thereby reducing or eliminating the need for post-filing examinations. |
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| Recently Adopted Accounting Standards |
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| In December 2011, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued ASU 2011-11, "Balance Sheet (Topic 210): Disclosures about Offsetting Assets and Liabilities" and in January 2013 issued ASU 2013-01, "Balance Sheet (Topic 210): Clarifying the Scope of Disclosures about Offsetting Assets and Liabilities," which limits the scope of the new offsetting disclosure requirements. This amended guidance requires an entity to disclose information about offsetting and related arrangements to enable users of its financial statements to understand the effect of those arrangements on its financial position. We adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2013. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. |
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| In July 2012, the FASB issued ASU 2012-02, "Testing Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets for Impairment," which allows an entity to assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is necessary to perform a quantitative impairment test. An entity would not be required to calculate the fair value of indefinite-lived intangible assets unless the entity determines, based on qualitative assessment, that it is not more likely than not, the indefinite-lived intangible asset is impaired. We adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2013. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. |
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| In February 2013, the FASB issued ASU 2013-02, "Comprehensive Income (Topic 220): Reporting of Amounts Reclassified Out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income," which requires preparers to report information about reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income ("AOCI"). The guidance also requires companies to report changes in AOCI balances. We adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2013. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. |
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| Recently Issued Accounting Standards |
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| In July 2013, the FASB issued ASU 2013-11, "Incomes Taxes (Topic 740): Presentation of an Unrecognized Tax Benefit When a Net Operating Loss Carryforward, a Similar Tax Loss, or a Tax Credit Carryforward Exists." This update addresses the diversity in practice regarding financial statement presentation of an unrecognized tax benefit when a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward exists. The guidance requires an unrecognized tax benefit, or a portion thereof, to be presented in the financial statements as a reduction to a deferred tax asset for a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward. To the extent the deferred tax asset is not available at the reporting date to settle any additional income taxes that would result from the disallowance of a tax position; the unrecognized tax benefit should be presented in the financial statements as a liability and should not be combined with the deferred tax asset. The amendments in this standard are effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2013, with early adoption permitted. We do not believe the adoption of this standard will have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. |
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| In February 2013, the FASB issued ASU 2013-04, "Liabilities (Topic 405): Obligations Resulting from Joint and Several Liability Arrangements for Which the Total Amount of the Obligation Is Fixed at the Reporting Date." This update provides guidance for the recognition, measurement and disclosure of obligations resulting from joint and several liability arrangements for which the total amount of the obligation within the scope of the guidance is fixed at the reporting date. The guidance in this update also requires the entity to disclose the nature and amount of the obligation, as well as other information about such obligations. The guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2013, with early adoption permitted. We will adopt this guidance effective January 1, 2014. We do not believe the adoption of this standard will have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. |
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| In July 2011, the FASB issued ASU 2011-06, "Other Expenses – Fees Paid to the Federal Government by Health Insurers." This update addresses accounting for the annual fees mandated by the Affordable Care Act. The Affordable Care Act imposes an annual fee on health insurers, payable to the U.S. government, calculated on net premiums and third-party administrative agreement fees. The updated standard requires that the liability for the fee be estimated and accrued in full once the entity provides qualifying health insurance in the applicable calendar year in which the fee is payable with a corresponding deferred cost that is amortized to expense. The fees are initiated for calendar years beginning January 1, 2014, and the amendments provided by this update become effective for calendar years beginning after December 31, 2013. We are unable to estimate the magnitude of this fee on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows at this time. |
