Lawmakers agreed today to continue Louisiana’s multimillion-dollar Medicaid claims processing contract for another year, an extension needed after Gov. Bobby Jindal fired another company that had been hired to take over the work.
As The Associated Press reports, Jindal canceled the state’s $200 million contract with Maryland-based Client Network Services Inc., known as CNSI, in 2013 because of concerns the company was given favorable treatment by Jindal’s former health secretary, Bruce Greenstein. A criminal investigation is ongoing into the contract awarded to CNSI, and Greenstein has been indicted on multiple perjury charges. Greenstein denies all the charges. The company is suing the state for wrongful termination.
In the meantime, the Jindal administration has kept Molina Medicaid Solutions on the job; it’s handling the claims for services rendered to Louisiana’s Medicaid patients.
The House and Senate health care committees approved a request by the Department of Health and Hospitals to extend Molina’s contract through Dec. 31, 2015. One member, Sen. Dan Claitor, R-Baton Rouge, objected to the extension; he said he had too little information from the health department.
Molina’s current contract with Louisiana began in January 2005. The latest extension will cost $40 million next year, on top of the $423 million Molina has been paid over the last decade for its work. The contract is paid with a mix of state and federal money. Read the full story.Â
