Press Release

Humana Highlights Commitment to UN SDGs in New Corporate Social Responsibility Report

Humana Inc., one of the nation’s leading health and well-being companies, today released its 2016-2017 corporate social responsibility (CSR) report. In the comprehensive report, Humana, for the first time, announces the company’s alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), becoming one of the first U.S. health insurers to commit to the international targets.

Published 6 years ago | About a 5 minute read

“While we have made significant impacts in the local communities we serve, we realize our responsibility as a leading healthcare company is to ensure that we’re operating our business in a sustainable way”

The company conducted an analysis of its corporate responsibility efforts and commitments against the SDGs and identified three goals that align with the existing Humana CSR pillars: Healthy People, Healthy Planet and Healthy Performance. They include:

Goal 3: “Good Health and Well-being” aligns with Healthy People. The UN goal that calls for organizations to reduce deaths from chronic illness and cover essential health services echoes Humana’s responsibility as a health services provider and purpose to help people achieve their best health.
Goal 12: “Responsible Consumption and Production” aligns with Healthy Planet. The UN’s call for sustainable consumption and production patterns is in line with Humana’s environmental sustainability efforts.
Goal 8: “Decent Work and Economic Growth” aligns with Healthy Performance. The goal that promotes inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all fits well with Humana’s values-driven culture and focus on inclusion and diversity – creating work environments where everyone feels welcome and safe to be their true selves. Humana’s Accomplishments

Humana’s alignment with the SDGs comes to life through the company’s Healthy People, Healthy Planet and Healthy Performance CSR platform.

The Healthy People pillar details Humana’s efforts to improve the health of its employees, its members, and the communities in which it operates.

The Bold Goal is Humana’s commitment to helping the communities it serves become 20 percent healthier by 2020. In 2017, four of the original seven Bold Goal communities (Knoxville, Tenn., Baton Rouge, La., New Orleans and San Antonio) demonstrated improved health as measured by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Healthy Days tool. This was due, in part, to strong relationships fostered among physicians, patients and community groups. The Healthy Planet pillar addresses Humana’s commitment to environmental sustainability, which correlates with the company’s journey to help people achieve lifelong well-being.
Humana employees rallied around company environmental goals set in 2014 and have since reduced greenhouse gas emissions by more than six percent and diverted 40 percent of waste (that would have gone to landfills) by using less and recycling more. Humana has also continued to pursue its goal to reduce energy consumption, and just hit its target of a 5 percent reduction (compared with a 2013 baseline) as of June 30, 2018 – thanks in part to investments in building efficiency improvements, the optimization of building occupancy rates, and new energy-efficient processes. In 2018, Humana has set new environmental goals, including commitments to:
Decrease the company’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2.1 percent each year (compared with 2017 emissions) over a five-year period – from 2018 through 2022
Divert 60 percent of its waste from landfills by 2022 Healthy Performance is Humana’s commitment to excellence in business standards and practices. Humana is dedicated to implementing best practices in the healthcare industry by promoting inclusion and diversity in its workforce, supporting employees’ professional development through training programs and holding its suppliers to high standards.
Humana increased the number of employee-led network resource groups (NRGs) to eight in 2017 by starting an NRG for employees living with disabilities. NRGs provide personal, experience-based forums for exchanging ideas, building community, and driving measurable business outcomes. Now, more than 25 percent of Humana’s employee population participate in NRGs, and those who do report higher scores in the areas of purpose and belonging on the company’s well-being index. To learn more about Humana initiatives that are improving health, view these newly created videos highlighting Humana’s efforts to improve the health of its:
Employees: Humana’s 100 Day Dash, an annual friendly walking competition for employees and their families, inspires participants to integrate more activity into their lives and get at least 10,000 steps each day.
Members: At a Humana Center in Mesa, Ariz., the Humana Charity Crafters group brings members together in support of local cancer patients and each other, as members establish strong social bonds.
Communities: Humana’s Iora Primary Care partnership helps senior patients overcome barriers to health and helps improve the health of local communities one patient at a time. The 2016-2017 CSR report content was collected and reported in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the world’s most recognized standards for environmental, social and governance reporting. GRI is an independent international organization that helps businesses, governments and other organizations understand and communicate the impact of business on critical sustainability issues.

To learn more about Humana’s accomplishments and new SDG commitments in alignment with the Healthy People, Healthy Planet and Healthy Performance platform, read the 2016-2017 CSR Report (humanacsr.com).