Centene Corporation Subsidiary Receives Preliminary Notification of Ohio Medicaid Contract Awards
March 17 2006 - 3:34PM
Business Wire
Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) today announced that it has
received preliminary notification of an award of Medicaid contracts
in the Northwest and East Central Regions by the Ohio Department of
Job and Family Services (ODJFS). These regions have approximately
129,000 and 145,000 eligible recipients, respectively. Centene's
Ohio subsidiary, Buckeye Community Health Plan, will be one of
three health plans selected to manage healthcare for Medicaid
recipients in these regions. The award is subject to regulatory
approval, as well as a readiness review process by the state. The
state has not yet released the roll-out dates for the
implementation and has set a meeting date of March 24, 2006, to
provide further information. Michael F. Neidorff, Centene's
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "We are pleased to
have received notification of our preliminary acceptance as one of
the managed care plans selected by Ohio to serve Medicaid
recipients in the Northwest and East Central regions, expanding the
number of counties we serve from two to 27. Our current enrollment
will go from 59,000 to approximately 100,000, which includes our
announced acquisition of MediPlan Corporation, which is expected to
close by the beginning of the third quarter 2006, and represents
significant growth. While we are disappointed that we were not
selected to participate in additional regions, we did establish
strong relationships that will prove to be critical as we review
our options for the Aged, Blind & Disabled expansion later this
year. "We will always believe that standing firm and maintaining
our disciplined approach on contracting and rates was the
appropriate and conservative decision in this highly competitive
environment even though it may have cost us expansion opportunities
in a number of regions. Separately, we are evaluating our continued
interest in the Central region, the largest one, which the State
plans to re-bid due to only two health plans meeting their
requirements. We look forward to continuing to serve the state of
Ohio in meeting the needs of their Medicaid recipients," concluded
Neidorff. About Centene Corporation Centene Corporation provides
multi-line managed care programs and related services to
individuals receiving benefits under Medicaid, including
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and the State Children's Health
Insurance Program (SCHIP). The Company operates health plans in
Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Texas and Wisconsin.
In addition, the Company contracts with other healthcare
organizations to provide specialty services including behavioral
health, disease management, nurse triage, pharmacy benefit
management and treatment compliance. Information regarding Centene
is available via the Internet at www.centene.com.
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