Sentara Healthcare rebrands as Sentara Health

Sentara Healthcare is rebranding as Sentara Health, the Norfolk-based health system announced Thursday.

Additionally, in its health insurance division, Sentara will retire Sentara Health Plans‘ subsidiary brands, Optima Health and Virginia Premier, unifying them under the Sentara Health Plans brand by the end of the year.

“It is an exciting day for all of us here at Sentara. Our new name and logo help us show our commitment to making health care simple, seamless, personal and more affordable,” Sentara President and CEO Dennis Matheis said in a statement. “By leveraging both health care services and a variety of health plan options, we are creating greater access for consumers to receive high-quality health care.”

The rebrand is the result of a year of market research, according to a news release, and reflects Sentara’s “enhanced focus on promoting the overall health and well-being of our consumers.”

Following Thursday’s announcement, Sentara will begin the multiyear process of updating its logo throughout its service areas. Sentara spokesperson Mike Kafka told Virginia Business in an email that the new branding for the health care system is effective immediately and the Sentara College of Health Sciences will receive its branding refresh this summer. The rest of the roll out will occur over time.

Sentara has 30,000 employees and 12 hospitals across Virginia and North Carolina. The organization’s health plans division has more than 1.2 million members in Virginia and Florida.