Christine Castellvi, General Manager, North Florida, Cigna Healthcare

Christine Castellvi, general manager of Cigna Healthcare’s North Florida market, sat down with Invest: to discuss Cigna’s position in Central Florida’s healthcare community, the long list of ways Cigna has worked to expand access to quality healthcare by examining social determinants of health, and more. 

What notable recent achievements have defined the past two years for Cigna in the Greater Orlando region?

One of the biggest achievements is our breadth and scope in terms of market share, especially in the public sector space around the Central Florida and Orlando area. The budget cuts our county and city governments and education systems have seen in recent years have made for a really challenging environment. A lot more businesses are looking at their current health benefits administrator and going to market to review them. We are constantly working with our clients on their employee benefit programs to improve cost savings and affordability. I’m very proud of our ability to retain the vast majority of our clients and even grow in that space. The public nature of those decisions involves taxpayers, public servants, public officials, and more. They are making decisions for their communities, organizations, and families. 

The second biggest accomplishment we have seen in the Orlando area is related to network strategy. This is sometimes behind the scenes when it comes to decision-making around healthcare. In the past, networks were broad and had a lot of access. In the current environment, employers, government associations, providers, and payers are looking for affordability solutions. In many cases, that has to do with localized networks. In the Orlando market, we have mapped a localized network option called SureFit® around a large hospital system. It is one of our accountable care organizations, a clinically integrated network that individuals can stay within to get high-quality care at the most affordable price. You are buying a localized product through a localized network. The employer can still opt for a broad national network for their plan, but we are hearing positive things about the SureFit option. 

How does Cigna tailor its approaches to meet individual client needs?

Healthcare is the most complex I have seen in my two-decade career. It is compounded by competing hospital systems. Are they a product? Are they a physician? Are they a service model? There is a lot to navigate in determining where to go, who to get care from, and how to look for the most affordable solutions. Cigna is focused on digital-first in the marketplace for this very reason. That is important for the individuals because physical and mental needs are unique to each customer. Everyone has their own recipe. We have to figure out how to get to very individualized care at the right time. A digital-first approach means that most of the investment, strategic initiatives, and staff training ensure that as soon as we have any background business intelligence, we are using it to coordinate the customer’s care among all of their doctors and meet the customer exactly where and when they need care affordably. 

How is Cigna leveraging technological advancements to improve client interactions, streamline processes, and enhance healthcare delivery?

AI is the keyword here, and I have transitioned my terminology to Business Intelligence. A few years ago, we acquired Express Scripts®, which brought another 70 million individual relationships from that pharmacy acquisition. Since then, we have also acquired and invested in point solutions, which could include customer or client services, clinical support, navigation, or employee benefit additions. All of that has business intelligence that allows us to meet our customers where they are. One example is the ability to identify social determinants of health, whether they are pockets of geographies, ethnicity, or financial strain that impact a person’s health. We are churning through that data to ensure we understand the needs of our customers who live in areas that do not have access to healthy food, a good physician, a certain specialty, transportation, or funds to pay for prescriptions. We are utilizing our data to address healthcare disparities. For example, we are significantly pushing support for rural pharmacies. Another example is Cigna’s new partnership with Hello Fresh, which enables our employer partners to send discounted healthy meals to employees who need them. 

How has Cigna been affected by workforce shortages in healthcare?

Healthcare staffing shortages are affecting everyone. There certainly is a lot of economic encouragement and relief toward higher education institutions offering medical school. In addition, hospital systems in Orlando and the Tampa Bay area are putting more emphasis on residency and training programs oriented toward growing talent in this important sector. In the short term, though, these challenges put a financial strain on the entire system. That accelerates health systems wanting to get higher rates, find alternate routes of revenue, and renegotiate their contracts. From Cigna’s perspective, 2023 saw the highest rate of provider-contractor negotiations. Unfortunately, the healthcare industry will feel some of the highest effects of workforce shortages compared to any other place in the economy. Cigna will continue to drive quality, outcome-based healthcare services and solutions at the most affordable cost for the clients and customers we serve every day.