St. Louis-based Centene Corp., one of the most prominent Medicaid HMOs in the country, said it plans to terminate its managed care contract with Kentucky's Medicaid program by next July due to its concerns with the state's high-cost Medicaid issues.
Centene's subsidiary, Kentucky Spirit Health Plan, has been involved in the Kentucky market since last year and is one of three private insurers offering Medicaid managed care. In addition to leaving next summer, Kentucky Spirit filed a formal dispute with the Kentucky Medicaid program for "damages incurred under the contract," although further information on the damages and dispute were not provided.
"Since the inception of the contract, we have been in discussions with the [Kentucky Medicaid] about our concerns with the Medicaid managed care program but have been unable to resolve our differences," said Jesse Hunter, executive vice president of operations for Centene, in the news release. "Consequently, we do not believe there is a viable path to a sustainable managed care program in Kentucky."
Centene's subsidiary, Kentucky Spirit Health Plan, has been involved in the Kentucky market since last year and is one of three private insurers offering Medicaid managed care. In addition to leaving next summer, Kentucky Spirit filed a formal dispute with the Kentucky Medicaid program for "damages incurred under the contract," although further information on the damages and dispute were not provided.
"Since the inception of the contract, we have been in discussions with the [Kentucky Medicaid] about our concerns with the Medicaid managed care program but have been unable to resolve our differences," said Jesse Hunter, executive vice president of operations for Centene, in the news release. "Consequently, we do not believe there is a viable path to a sustainable managed care program in Kentucky."
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