CareSource, Health Alliance Plan Strike Up Medicaid Joint Venture

CareSource, an Ohio-based, nonprofit Medicaid MCO, will work with Michigan nonprofit insurer Health Alliance Plan (HAP) on a new Medicaid joint venture. One managed care insider tells AIS Health, a division of MMIT, that the deal is evidence that midsized, multistate carriers like CareSource feel competitive pressure to develop — and small plans feel the need to purchase — the kind of analytics and back-end software that diversified, publicly traded firms like UnitedHealth Group and the Cigna Group have spent billions to develop. 

CareSource CEO Erhardt Preitauer said in a Feb. 21 press release that the deal came “as we looked for opportunities to strategically grow our business.” He added that “an alignment with HAP emerged as the perfect fit,” and that “HAP’s deep roots and strong brand in Michigan as a trusted health care provider along with a mission-driven approach that matches ours made this a great alignment.…We look forward to being able to bring our commitment to operational excellence, our nonprofit mission, and our best-in-class community model to Michigan as we partner with HAP.”