DES MOINES – The U.S. Office of Inspector General has launched an investigative review of whether federal officials are providing sufficient and appropriate oversight to ensure that people with Medicaid are receiving the care to which they are entitled.
Citing the lack of oversight of privatized Medicaid by Governor Reynolds and the Republican-controlled Legislature, two key Iowa State Senators today praised the new investigation.
“Since it was launched three years ago in Iowa, privatized Medicaid has been unsustainable, unaffordable and unaccountable,” Senator Amanda Ragan of Mason City and Liz Mathis of Hiawatha wrote in a letter to U.S. Inspector General Daniel R. Levinson. “There has been little effort by the Governor or majority party in the Iowa General Assembly to provide proper oversight for the out-of-state managed care organizations (MCOs).”
The Senators added: “Medicaid advocates, policymakers and other taxpayers deserve an investigation by the Inspector General that provides an answer to the question that we have asked since the start of Medicaid privatization in Iowa: Are some MCOs putting the bottom line ahead of patient health and safety?”
The Inspector General initiated the review of the oversight role of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) at the request of U.S. Senator Robert Casey of Pennsylvania, Ranking Member of the Special Committee on Aging.
In his request, Casey cited reports from across the country “alleging that some Medicaid managed care companies (MCOs) continuously deny care to patients sorely in need of care. In some cases, patients have experienced entirely preventable life-altering harms.”
“Medicaid is emblematic of who we are as a nation, reflecting who we value and the ideals we are willing to fight for,” Casey added. “We must ensure Medicaid MCOs live up to these ideals and provide Americans with the health care that they deserve.”
In its description of the investigation, the Inspector General acknowledges that privatized Medicaid “can create an incentive to deny beneficiaries’ access to covered services.”
“Our review will determine whether Medicaid MCOs complied with Federal requirements when denying access to requested medical and dental services and drug prescriptions that required prior authorization,” the agency’s website states.
