Lawmakers have agreed to another one-year, $46 million contract extension for the firm that processes bills and handles health provider enrollment for Louisiana’s Medicaid program.
The Associated Press reports that the contract renewal for Molina Information Systems has become a yearly point of contention with House and Senate health care committee members, who feel stuck in a deal with little room to renegotiate the terms.
Former Gov. Bobby Jindal’s administration fired the last company hired to take over the work. Since then, new federal guidelines governing the contracts have been put in place.
Gov. John Bel Edwards’ administration says it will take until 2020 to select new vendors under those guidelines.
But health department officials say they worked out a contract extension with Molina Information Systems that eliminates some uncertainty over how much Molina can charge in 2017.
