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Nothing Interim to WellCare CEO's Work

Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.
WellCare Health Plans
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

The interim CEO of WellCare Health Plans says he’s trying to move past the company’s troubles and focus on expanding its Medicare, Medicaid and prescription drug business, the Tampa Bay Timesreports.

Dave Gallitano, the WellCare board chairman who led the ouster of the Tampa-based firm's most recent CEO last November, has made significant changes the past six months.

He’s overseeing the standardization of WellCare’s Medicare and Medicaid plans, which previously were designed to each of the 49 states where it operates, the Times reports. He also told the Times he is struggling to find enough qualified candidates to fill the company’s 1,000 open jobs, especially in Tampa, where the publicly traded company already has 3,200 workers.

And the 66-year-old retired executive is overseeing the search for a permanent replacement. WellCare, which reported $9.5 billion in revenue in 2013, also is searching for a chief financial officer, according to the Times.

All of this comes as WellCare works to revamp its image. WellCare’s ex-CEO Todd Farha and two other executives this month were sentenced to time in federal prison for their role in a Medicaid fraud scheme.

Originally founded in December 2006 as an independent grassroots publication dedicated to coverage of health issues in Florida, Health News Florida was acquired by WUSF Public Media in September 2012.