Highmark Health to bring more remote workers back to the office

Highmark Health plans to bring more of its remote workforce back into the office in September.

While about 20,000 of the Pittsburgh-based health care giant’s clinical workers at Allegheny Health Network have been on-site during the pandemic, other employees worked remotely where possible.

Highmark estimates about half of its 12,000 non-Allegheny Health Network employees in Western Pennsylvania will be impacted by the shift starting Sept. 5. About 2,000 AHN employees who aren’t patient-facing will be categorized as either off-site or hybrid.

“We’re very proud of the organization and the work it’s done in response to the pandemic,” Highmark President and CEO David Holmberg said on an earnings call Tuesday.

“We pivoted in four days at the beginning of the pandemic to ‘work from anywhere’ and the team did a really good job,” he added. “But now that we’re three years into this — we believe very strongly that we’re a people business, that our customers, our members, our patients need us to be engaged fully. And for certain positions it’s important for individuals to be face to face.”

Highmark employees will be returning to the office three days a week in most cases, Holmberg said.

“We think it’s important periodically for people to get into a room and work together,” he said.

Holmberg said the company will be flexible.

“For some people, they may be responsible for getting their children to daycare or off to school. We’re trying to be very flexible in those terms. We’re trying to give people some latitude in being able to reengage and get back in person again.“

Highmark Health employs about 42,000 people across all of its organizations.

Most employees will return to their original workplaces, but Holmberg said the company is consolidating people into the facilities it owns and looking to step back from places it rents to reduce costs.

In terms of financial results, Highmark Health reported that during the first six months of this year, it had $389 million in net income, up from a net loss of $174 million during the same period last year.

Revenues totaled $13.6 billion during the first half of the year, up from $12.9 billion a year ago.

The company attributed the gains to membership growth in its Highmark Health Plans, United Concordia Dental and HM Insurance Group. It also got a boost from positive equity market performance, adding about $200 million to Highmark Health’s total net income.

Allegheny Health Network also saw increased patient volumes year-over-year, which boosted revenue. The provider network reported operating revenue of about $2.3 billion during the first half of the year, during which time patient volumes rose overall compared to the same period in 2022. The gains included an 8% increase in inpatient discharges and observations; a 6% increase in outpatient registrations; a 6% increase in physician visits; and an 8% percent increase in emergency room visits.