Optum exec leads UnityPoint's insurance arm

UnityPoint Health has named Troy Caraway senior VP of its insurance division and CEO of Physicians Plus Insurance Corp.

Caraway, 44, started his roles at the end of July. He previously spent 14 years at Optum, part of health insurer UnitedHealth Group, most recently serving as senior VP for member acquisition and retention.

“Troy's successful experience in targeting, acquiring and retaining customer relationships and his desire to lead a provider-based health insurance organization make him an excellent fit for PPIC and UnityPoint Health,” Kevin Vermeer, UnityPoint's chief strategy officer, said in a release.

UnityPoint, based in West Des Moines, Iowa, acquired PPIC last year. The insurance plan was part of Meriter Health Services in Madison, Wis., which officially joined UnityPoint in January. UnityPoint CFO Mark Johnson previously told Modern Healthcare that system officials knew the financially struggling PPIC faced challenges, but a “financial improvement plan” is putting the insurer ahead of projections.

UnityPoint owns or manages about two dozen hospitals throughout Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. The system recorded more than $2.8 billion of revenue in fiscal 2013.

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