Health plans protest ODJFS Medicaid managed care contracts

Several companies that were not selected by the Ohio Department of Job and Familiy Services for Medicaid managed care contracts have filed protests with the state, saying that the evaluation and selection process was flawed (Source: “Bidders protest Medicaid contracts,” Columbus Dispatch, April 17, 2012).

New contracts, which start Jan. 1, 2013, were awarded earlier this month to Aetna, UnitedHealth Group, CareSource, Paramount Advantage and Meridian Health Plan.

Five of the six plans that unsuccessfully bid for a managed care contract with the state filed an appeal by the April 16 deadline. 

ODJFS re-bid all of its managed care contracts as part of a plan aimed at enrolling more Medicaid beneficiaries into managed care. The move, along with other reforms, is expected to save the state $1.5 billion over the next two year, according to officials.