The governor of Kentucky, Steven Beshear, has announced the new Medicaid contracts that hope to save residents a lot of money in general funds. It’s estimated to save taxpayers about $375 million in general funds and $1.3 billion in all funds in the next three years. Kentucky health insurance needs these savings to stay competitive and offer the right benefits to Medicaid eligible residents.
The article “Three Firms to Run Most of Kentucky Medicaid Plan” by Deborah Yetter on Citizens-Times.com discusses some of the details behind the decision. Beginning October 1, the three companies will handle health care for approximately 560,000 Medicaid beneficiaries under 3 year state contracts. Other residents in the state will continue to receive coverage under a contract with Passport Health Plan, which is a non-profit group that has been the Kentucky state’s only managed care system for Medicaid until now. These other firms will be adding diversity and change to the system.
Beshear believes the managed-care plan will balance the state’s Medicaid budget and will hopefully improve the health of the poorest and sickest residents throughout Kentucky. There is a strong emphasis on wellness and prevention which will bring a new dimension to the Medicare program in Kentucky. The combination of financial savings and health improvement should be proof that this was the right decision for the state. While the governor has many supporters, there are a handful of people concerned about overreaching goals. Medicaid is an expensive plan with many different facets so it’s hard to say whether the added managed-care firms will be beneficial to the state or not.
The governor of Kentucky, Steven Beshear, has announced the new Medicaid contracts that hope to save residents a lot of money in general funds. It’s estimated to save taxpayers about $375 million in general funds and $1.3 billion in all funds in the next three years. Kentucky health insurance needs these savings to stay competitive and offer the right benefits to Medicaid eligible residents.
The article “Three Firms to Run Most of Kentucky Medicaid Plan” by Deborah Yetter on Citizens-Times.com discusses some of the details behind the decision. Beginning October 1, the three companies will handle health care for approximately 560,000 Medicaid beneficiaries under 3 year state contracts. Other residents in the state will continue to receive coverage under a contract with Passport Health Plan, which is a non-profit group that has been the Kentucky state’s only managed care system for Medicaid until now. These other firms will be adding diversity and change to the system.
Beshear believes the managed-care plan will balance the state’s Medicaid budget and will hopefully improve the health of the poorest and sickest residents throughout Kentucky. There is a strong emphasis on wellness and prevention which will bring a new dimension to the Medicare program in Kentucky. The combination of financial savings and health improvement should be proof that this was the right decision for the state. While the governor has many supporters, there are a handful of people concerned about overreaching goals. Medicaid is an expensive plan with many different facets so it’s hard to say whether the added managed-care firms will be beneficial to the state or not.
Written by Sam Tabes
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