This week, 93 organizations, health care providers, and concerned constituents from across the state united with Advocates for Ohio’s Future in releasing a letter calling on Ohio legislators to remove a last-minute budget amendment that would terminate the Medicaid managed care procurement process and derail crucial efforts to refocus, improve, and personalize the delivery of Medicaid services to Ohioans.
Over the past two years, the Ohio Department of Medicaid underwent a transformative and transparent process to overhaul managed care contracts with the goal of improving and streamlining the care delivery experience for managed care companies, providers, and most importantly, Medicaid patients.
Now, following the completion of this process, a Senate-inserted amendment would terminate the Ohio managed care procurement, leaving behind rural Ohioans and dismantling the years-long legislative work to stop pharmacy middle-manning, improve care and coordination for patients including nearly 60,000 multi-system youth, end custody relinquishment and save significant dollars in reduced overhead.
“The status quo is not working, as shown by Ohio’s ranking of 47th nationally for health value,” said Kelsey Bergfeld, Director, Advocates for Ohio’s Future. “The managed care procurement process represents an opportunity to improve quality of care and health outcomes for families and communities across the state. Ohioans cannot afford to wait another two years for better care. They deserve the best care now.”
The state budget conference committee began meeting this week to compare the Governor’s initial version of the budget with those bills passed by the House and Senate. They must meet a June 30th deadline for passage of a single bill by both chambers.