UnitedHealthcare, Cigna, and Centene launch shared credentialing program

Three major health insurers, UnitedHealthcare, Cigna, and Centene, have partnered to streamline provider credentialing through a unified external platform. CertifyOS, the developer, says its system could erase three-quarters of a $2 billion annual administrative cost. On September 23, CertifyOS unveiled its National Shared Credentialing Program, identifying these three insurers as its inaugural participants, according to a company press release. The platform is scheduled to launch this fall.

Streamlining verification processes

In this model, participating insurers submit their recredentialing lists to CertifyOS, which conducts primary source verification adhering to National Committee for Quality Assurance and Medicaid standards across all states where a clinician holds a license. Clinicians, including physicians, input their CAQH ID and necessary details once via the CertifyOS portal, eliminating the need to engage with each insurer separately. CertifyOS CEO Anshul Rathi stated in an interview with Fierce Healthcare that between 1.4 million and 2 million providers are expected to complete credentialing through the platform in the coming year.

Mike Kane, senior vice president of provider data operations at UnitedHealthcare, commented in the announcement that this approach would “allow providers to spend more time focused on patient care.” The argument is based on CertifyOS’s calculations, which estimate that the U.S. spends more than $2 billion a year verifying provider credentials and that as much as 75 percent of that is avoidable. The company puts plans’ cost at $200 to $500 per provider per recredentialing cycle and says providers file an average of 17 applications a year, worth roughly $700 in time and effort. The press release does not specify the source of these figures.

Impact on medical practices

For medical practices, credentialing is a revenue problem before it is a paperwork problem. A provider who is not credentialed with a plan cannot bill it, and new-patient schedules for a new hire often wait on those approvals. A Nov. 4, 2025, MGMA Stat poll found 65 percent of medical groups had credentialing and reappointment files on time, while 32 percent reported a backlog, a credentials verification organization delay or a slip into the next quarter. Respondents traced most backlogs to payer enrollment delays and slow reference and board verifications.

There is no practice-side sign-up. Plans roster providers with CertifyOS, and CertifyOS reaches out. Practices should keep every clinician’s CAQH profile current. CAQH asks providers to reattest every 120 days, or 180 days in Illinois. Before sharing credentials, practices should verify CertifyOS requests with their UnitedHealthcare, Cigna, or Centene provider representative. Practices should also log how long recredentialing takes with these three plans today to assess whether the new system improves efficiency.