Amerigroup Convenes National Advisory Board in Washington, D.C.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., Nov. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Amerigroup Corporation's (NYSE: AGP) National Advisory Board (NAB) met in Washington, D.C., for its fall meeting to discuss and promote new and innovative ways to address and impact the long-term service and support needs of seniors and people with disabilities.

In 2007, Amerigroup developed a first for the healthcare industry: a national advisory board focused solely on meeting the needs of seniors and people with disabilities. The NAB is comprised of distinguished and culturally diverse community advocates, healthcare experts, and academics that provide guidance and policy recommendations. The Board is convened by Lex Frieden, who played an instrumental role in the creation of the Disabilities Act of 1990.

"This board hopes to serve as a catalyst for an open dialogue on how to address the long-term services and support needs of seniors and people with disabilities," said Frieden. "It's our mission to turn these conversations into innovative and viable solutions that promote independent living opportunities for these individuals.  Given the growing number of aging Baby Boomers, the dramatic advances we have in technology and the increasing choices for independent living, healthcare services and supports, now is the best time to ensure that our public policies catch up to the 21st century."  

Over the past five years, the NAB has helped Amerigroup develop a wide range of programs and educational tools to improve the quality of both physical and behavioral healthcare including its 2009 report, "Declaration for Independence: A Call to Transform Health and Long-Term Services for Seniors and People with Disabilities." The report seeks to compel consumers, legislative officials, community-based organizations and healthcare providers to engage in efforts to modernize the healthcare infrastructure.

"I am incredibly excited about the work of our National Advisory Board. Amerigroup is constantly seeking to improve the quality and flexibility of long-term services and supports for our members with new programs and opportunities," remarked John Littel, executive vice president of external relations for Amerigroup. "The NAB has helped us better understand the possibilities of living independently and how that impacts our members and their families."

Amerigroup plays a prominent role in meeting the needs of seniors and those with disabilities, currently serving approximately 231,000 of these individuals as of September 30, 2011.

To learn more about the Amerigroup National Advisory Board, please visit their website www.mydfi.org and watch this video.

About the National Advisory Board

As a Board, we are people with disabilities; children of aging parents; parents of children and adults with disabilities; and sisters, brothers, spouses, children, and friends of people with disabilities. We represent millions of Americans with disabilities and seniors and their family members, who have struggled with the complexities of our fragmented health care system. Each of us brings a personal perspective to the subject of long-term care because each of us has personal experience with it. We, individually and collectively, have worked along with other Americans to overcome the many hurdles to obtain the services we need to live successfully in our communities—hurdles such as the lack of coordination between acute and long-term services and supports, antiquated systems and policies, and lack of infrastructure development for long-term services.

About Amerigroup Corporation

Amerigroup, a Fortune 500 Company, coordinates services for individuals in publicly funded health care programs. Serving approximately 2 million members in 11 states nationwide, Amerigroup accepts all eligible people regardless of age, sex, race or disability. Amerigroup is dedicated to offering real solutions that improve health care access and quality for its members, while proactively working to reduce the overall cost of care to taxpayers. Please visit www.amerigroupcorp.com for more information.

SOURCE Amerigroup Corporation

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