Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
WellCare Health To Acquire Arizona Medicaid Managed Care Plan For $158 Million
Modern Healthcare: WellCare Enters Arizona Medicaid Market With Care1st Acquisition
WellCare Health Plans, a publicly traded insurer that voiced its hunger for transactions earlier this year, has agreed to acquire Care1st Health Plan of Arizona for $157.5 million. The deal, expected to close in the first quarter of next year, marks WellCare's entrance into the Arizona Medicaid managed-care market. WellCare had 2.43 million Medicaid members as of June 30, and more than half of that total resided in Florida and Georgia, two states that did not expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Arizona is one of 31 states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility to more low-income people. (Herman, 10/6)
Forbes: Wellcare's $158M Deal Signals Medicaid Shift
While health plans struggle to make profits off individuals buying commercial coverage on public exchanges under the Affordable Care Act, the insurance industry still sees promise in the law’s Medicaid expansion. Take Wellcare Health Plans’ announcement that it has signed a deal to buy the Arizona operations of Care1st Health for $157.5 million in a deal that will add 114,000 Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries in the state’s largest market, Maricopa and Pima counties. “Our acquisition of Care1st Arizona provides us with an opportunity to expand our footprint into Arizona’s growing Medicaid and Medicare markets,” said Ken Burdick, WellCare’s chief executive officer. (Japsen, 10/6)
In other Medicaid news —
The Associated Press: NY Auditors Cite Progress Limiting Medicaid Drug Payments
New York's comptroller says state health officials have installed measures to block Medicaid payments to pharmacies providing narcotics and other controlled substances that exceed legal limits. Following up on a February 2015 audit report, the comptroller's office says the health department has since instituted controls that resulted in denying about $3.3 million in claims through July. (10/7)
