Privatized Medicaid provides mixed results for service providers

By: 
Travis Fischer

     It's been over seven months since the rollout of Iowa's privatized Medicaid program. Governor Terry Branstad set the program in motion last year, signing over the state's administration of Medicaid services to three Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) with the expectation that privatized service would cost less than the state managed system.
     Originally scheduled to transition in January, the rollout was delayed for four months to give the MCOs time to adequately build their network of providers. Since April, Iowa's Medicaid recipients have had their benefits managed by one of the three MCOs; Amerigroup Iowa, Inc., AmeriHealth Caritas Iowa, Inc., or UnitedHealthCare Plan of the River Valley, Inc.
     The switch from state run to privatized Medicaid has been a controversial decision, with many Iowa providers protesting the added administrative cost of dealing with three different for-profit companies to receive Medicaid reimbursements. Denied claims or incomplete payments are commonly heard complaints from healthcare providers that deal with the for-profit companies.
    Read the full article in the November 16 edition of the Hampton Chronicle.

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