Another Major Medicaid Scandal for Rick Scott

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/01/27/1272728/-Another-Major-Medicaid-Scandal-for-Rick-Scott?detail=facebook

Pay to play.

It does get old. Do you read anything except leftist propaganda sites? If it's true I'm sure there's a reputable source.

It's in large font with basic words for them.

What's hilarious is the accusation of quid pro quo , as if Hussein hasn't already been bought and paid for....

ZVUGKTUBM wrote:Markle is going to now pick on you for citing from dailykos, FT.

Who wrote the blog?

TALLAHASSEE — Two companies partly owned by the finance chairman of Gov. Rick Scott’s re-election campaign have won contracts worth potentially billions to serve Medicaid patients in regions across the state.
The contracts are part of Florida’s transition to so-called Medicaid “managed care,” which dices the state into 11 regions. Private insurers compete for contracts to serve Medicaid patients in those regions.
The average estimated first year-value of those 11 contracts is $1 billion.
The two companies are owned largely by Mike Fernandez, a South Florida health-care executive. Last week he was formally announced as Scott’s finance director. Fernandez and companies he controls have given nearly $1.8 million to a committee supporting Scott’s re-election.
That includes a single $1 million check from Fernandez to Scott’s committee. Before Fernandez, an individual had never given a check of $1 million or more to a candidate-aligned committee.
Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration has in place a multi-prong competitive-bid process used when awarding the contracts. That process, agency officials said, ensured that favorites were not played.
“No companies received an award as a result of favoritism,” said Michelle Dahnke, an agency spokeswoman. “The agency followed Florida’s strict procurement laws in … letter and in spirit at all times.”
The procurement process requires that any agency staff scoring a company’s bid sign a conflict-of-interest form, requires a 72-hour blackout period where those bidding can’t contact legislative or executive agency staff concerning the contracts to ensure “no bidder can use political influence to sway the procurement process,” and requires any company involved can formally protest a contract award.
“AHCA has strong safeguards in place to ensure that taxpayers are protected and Floridians are receiving the best care possible,” said John Tupps, a Scott spokesman.
The first company that Fernandez has a stake in is Better Health. It won three contracts allowing it to serve regions in the Panhandle, Central Florida and South Florida. The company is known as a Provider Service Network, which must be majority-owned by a health-care provider. Fernandez owns 49 percent, while Barbara Cowley, a Coral Gables doctor, owns the remainder.
In one district, the company will compete with one other company, in another there are six additional companies, and in the third there are three other companies. The estimated first-year value of those contracts is $2.7 billion, according to agency records.
The second company, Clear Health Alliance, has won “specialty” contracts to serve HIV and Aids Medicaid patients in every region but the one covering Northeast Florida. The agency did not respond to Times-Union requests for the value of those specialty contracts.
Fernandez, who has been in the health-care field for 35 years, says politics played no role in the process.
“The Florida process was a very competitive procurement initiative and the selection was made by a committee of AHCA employees based on objective criteria. This process will save Florida taxpayers billions,” he said in an email.
As finance chairman, Fernandez has so far led conference calls with Scott donors, including one set up to discuss the campaign’s “February Statewide Finance” fly-around. He also is organizing a donor meeting in early March at the The Little River Plantation in Havana.
“I have been a Republican supporter [but I do have friends who are Democrats] and I have made significant contributions to many campaigns in and outside of Florida,” he wrote.
Though Fernandez is in a unique position because he is finance chairman, it’s not uncommon for companies, or their owners, that won Medicaid contracts to give large campaign contributions.
Leading the way is Prestige Health Choice, part-owned by a company founded by Florida Blue. That Jacksonville-based company has given more than $5 million in campaign contributions during the past two election cycles.
Florida Blue company has interest in issues throughout state government, and is generally one of the state’s largest campaign contributors.
AmeriGroup, a Tampa-based company that won four contracts, has given $253,000 in contributions over that past two cycles. Over that time, Humana, which has five contracts, has given $582,397.
Matt Dixon: (352) 233-0777
Update: The agency says that the specialty contract to serve HIV/AIDS patients statewide is $388 million. Fernandez’s company has contracts to serve those patients in 10 of the state's 11 regions.


Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/politics/2014-01-24/story/companies-owned-gov-rick-scotts-finance-chairman-won-potentially#ixzz2rnrhM9gB