Health News
- Kentucky Spirit Still Plans To Leave State July 5; Judge Rules That State Can't Require Company To Stay For Two-month Transition
In the latest development in the saga of the state Cabinet for Health and Family Services and Medicaid managed-care firm Kentucky Spirit, the company appears to be the victor, at least for now, because a Franklin circuit judge this week that the state...
- Kentucky Spirit Appeals Court Ruling That It Can't Quit Kentucky Early
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News Centene Corp. announced Monday that it has appealed the Franklin Circuit Court ruling in May that said its managed care subsidiary, Kentucky Spirit, cannot terminate its contract...
- Kentucky Spirit Can't Terminate Its Medicaid Contract With The State A Year Early Without Facing Fines, Judge Rules
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News A Frankfort circuit judge ruled Friday that Kentucky Spirit, one of three companies hired by the state in November 2011 to manage health care for more than 540,000 Medicaid recipients, cannot pull out of its contract...
- Medicaid Managed-care Firm Files Suit, Alleging The State's Rush Job Resulted In Unreliable Financial Information For Bidders
Medicaid managed-care company Kentucky Spirit alleges in a lawsuit filed Monday that Gov. Steve Beshear so hurriedly privatized the service last year that he gave incorrect cost information to the bidders. The company said it relied on the bad information...
- Kentucky Spirit To Terminate Medicaid Contract With State Early; Cabinet Assures Recipients No Interruption In Service
Kentucky Spirit, a Medicaid managed-care provider, will terminate its contract with the state's Cabinet for Health and Family Services a year earlier than scheduled, effective July 5, 2013. The company serves approximately 140,000 Medicaid recipients...
Health News
Kentucky Spirit leaves the state; cabinet assigns company's clients to other Medicaid managed-care firms
By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News
About 125,000 Medicaid patients in Kentucky have a new insurance company, with Saturday's departure of Kentucky Spirit from the state.
The state Cabinet for Health and Family Services reassigned Kentucky Spirit's clients to Coventry Cares or WellCare, and sent letters to the clients last week notifying them of the reassignment. They will have 90 days to change companies if they are not satisfied with their new one.
The letters were conditional, because the state was still in a legal battle trying to keep the company in the state for two more months. Cabinet officials told Beth Musgrave of the Lexington Herald-Leader that Kentucky Spirit stopped serving Kentucky clients shortly after midnight Saturday, and that the cabinet will file a lawsuit seeking damages because Kentucky Spirit breached its three-year contract that began in 2011. "If successful, the state could win millions of dollars from Kentucky Spirit, a subsidiary of St. Louis-based Centene Corp.," Musgrave notes. The company alleges that it lost money because the state gave it incomplete information.
"We are staffed up and as prepared as we can be," said Michael Murphy, CEO of CoventryCares, in an interview with Kentucky Health News Wednesday. He said the company is planning to take on about 67,000 new members from Kentucky Spirit, and will cover them according to our existing contract with the state.
One of the biggest challenges will be coordinating transition efforts with pharmacies, because the state was unable to give Coventry the Centene data until the company actually left Kentucky, said Murphy. "We expect there to be a fair amount of confusion and chaos, he said, but CoventryCares is automatically authorizing a 3-day supply of medications while the systems get updated with new member information."
Cabinet spokeswoman Jill Midkiff said, "While we are disappointed that Kentucky Spirit has defaulted on its contract with the state and abandoned its members, both Coventry Cares and WellCare have agreed to work closely with the cabinet, providers and members to make this transition as smooth as possible."
Kentucky Health News
About 125,000 Medicaid patients in Kentucky have a new insurance company, with Saturday's departure of Kentucky Spirit from the state.
The state Cabinet for Health and Family Services reassigned Kentucky Spirit's clients to Coventry Cares or WellCare, and sent letters to the clients last week notifying them of the reassignment. They will have 90 days to change companies if they are not satisfied with their new one.
The letters were conditional, because the state was still in a legal battle trying to keep the company in the state for two more months. Cabinet officials told Beth Musgrave of the Lexington Herald-Leader that Kentucky Spirit stopped serving Kentucky clients shortly after midnight Saturday, and that the cabinet will file a lawsuit seeking damages because Kentucky Spirit breached its three-year contract that began in 2011. "If successful, the state could win millions of dollars from Kentucky Spirit, a subsidiary of St. Louis-based Centene Corp.," Musgrave notes. The company alleges that it lost money because the state gave it incomplete information.
"We are staffed up and as prepared as we can be," said Michael Murphy, CEO of CoventryCares, in an interview with Kentucky Health News Wednesday. He said the company is planning to take on about 67,000 new members from Kentucky Spirit, and will cover them according to our existing contract with the state.
One of the biggest challenges will be coordinating transition efforts with pharmacies, because the state was unable to give Coventry the Centene data until the company actually left Kentucky, said Murphy. "We expect there to be a fair amount of confusion and chaos, he said, but CoventryCares is automatically authorizing a 3-day supply of medications while the systems get updated with new member information."
Cabinet spokeswoman Jill Midkiff said, "While we are disappointed that Kentucky Spirit has defaulted on its contract with the state and abandoned its members, both Coventry Cares and WellCare have agreed to work closely with the cabinet, providers and members to make this transition as smooth as possible."
- Kentucky Spirit Still Plans To Leave State July 5; Judge Rules That State Can't Require Company To Stay For Two-month Transition
In the latest development in the saga of the state Cabinet for Health and Family Services and Medicaid managed-care firm Kentucky Spirit, the company appears to be the victor, at least for now, because a Franklin circuit judge this week that the state...
- Kentucky Spirit Appeals Court Ruling That It Can't Quit Kentucky Early
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News Centene Corp. announced Monday that it has appealed the Franklin Circuit Court ruling in May that said its managed care subsidiary, Kentucky Spirit, cannot terminate its contract...
- Kentucky Spirit Can't Terminate Its Medicaid Contract With The State A Year Early Without Facing Fines, Judge Rules
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News A Frankfort circuit judge ruled Friday that Kentucky Spirit, one of three companies hired by the state in November 2011 to manage health care for more than 540,000 Medicaid recipients, cannot pull out of its contract...
- Medicaid Managed-care Firm Files Suit, Alleging The State's Rush Job Resulted In Unreliable Financial Information For Bidders
Medicaid managed-care company Kentucky Spirit alleges in a lawsuit filed Monday that Gov. Steve Beshear so hurriedly privatized the service last year that he gave incorrect cost information to the bidders. The company said it relied on the bad information...
- Kentucky Spirit To Terminate Medicaid Contract With State Early; Cabinet Assures Recipients No Interruption In Service
Kentucky Spirit, a Medicaid managed-care provider, will terminate its contract with the state's Cabinet for Health and Family Services a year earlier than scheduled, effective July 5, 2013. The company serves approximately 140,000 Medicaid recipients...