Cycle of Protests Dictates Playbook for Medicaid MCOs, Says Industry Expert

  • Aug 15, 2024

    As evidenced by hotly contested Medicaid contract awards in Florida, Kansas and Texas this year, local and regional health plans are increasingly being shut out of opportunities to serve enrollees in their communities. And though a recent administrative law judge decision in Arizona suggests the winds could be changing, community plans need to become more strategic about their approach to procurements, says one industry expert. 

    Beyond the headlines, “so much more has happened in the Medicaid space than the eligibility redetermination process,” says Clay Farris, founder and practice lead of client solutions at Mostly Medicaid, which offers advisory services to community plans and other stakeholders across the Medicaid continuum. He is referring to the so-called unwinding of policies that were in place during the COVID-19 public health emergency, when a yearslong pause on routine eligibility checks led Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollment to hit an unprecedented 94 million in March 2023. As of Aug. 1, at least 24.8 million people had been disenrolled from Medicaid because of redeterminations, KFF reports.

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  • Lauren Flynn Kelly

    Lauren has been covering health business issues since the early 2000s and specializes in in-depth reporting on Medicare Advantage, managed Medicaid and Medicare Part D. She also possesses a deep understanding of the complex world of pharmacy benefit management, having written AIS Health’s Radar on Drug Benefits from 2004 to 2005 and again from 2011 to 2016. In addition to her role as managing editor of Radar on Medicare Advantage, she oversees AIS Health’s publications and manages the health editorial staff. She graduated from Vassar College with a B.A. in English.

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