Centene CEO Michael Neidorff is retiring in 2022, ending a 25-year tenure leading the company.
Under Mr. Neidorff's leadership, Centene grew from a $40 million company to having an estimated $125 billion in revenue in 2021. He earned recognitions for diversity disclosures, his COVID-19 response and was named a Forbes "Businessperson of the Year," according to a Dec. 14 news release.
"It has been one of the greatest privileges of my life to serve as CEO of Centene," Mr. Neidorff said. "Nothing has been more important to me than providing the highest quality of care to the most vulnerable populations we serve. I am deeply appreciative of our employees who have worked tirelessly and with an unwavering commitment to serving our members and partners."
Although Mr. Neidorff will maintain his executive chair position through 2022, Centene's board of directors will continue its succession planning initiative to search for his successor.
Centene also announced that its board will be restructured and expanded through an agreement with key investment group Politan Capital Management, which has a $900 million stake in the insurer.
The payer is adding four new directors — Ken Burdick, Christopher Coughlin, Wayne DeVeydt and Theodore Samuels — on Jan. 5, as well as a fifth director agreed upon by Centene and Politan Capital Management, according to a Dec. 14 news release.
Politan Capital Management previously pushed the payer to review its leadership after seeing stagnant stock growth. It also recommended Mr. Burdick, a former WellCare CEO, and Mr. DeVeydt, a former Anthem CFO, as strong candidates for board positions.
The restructuring also includes naming director James Dallas as lead independent director immediately. Mr. Dallas will eventually become independent chair by the end of 2022.
Centene's rehashed board also comes with a new mandatory retirement age at 75 years old. This means six current directors will retire once their term expires, according to the release.