Slow reimbursements, incidents of fraud, and the ongoing negotiations between the North Mississippi Medical Center and UnitedHealthcare have had hospital officials across the state concerned over their futures.
The bidding for MississippiCAN, Mississippi’s managed care plan under Medicaid, is now open, and a new insurance provider is stepping up to hopefully secure the job of providing care for Mississippians.
“Over 60 hospitals have come together to form an insurance company called Mississippi True,” said Timothy Moore, President of the Mississippi Hospital Association.
The MHA helped launch Mississippi True, and after getting all of the certifications and the go ahead from State Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney, the new group joined the bidding process for the MississippiCAN program. MississippiCAN is currently managed by Magnolia Healthcare and UnitedHealthcare.
Mississippi True, according to Moore, is different from the two providers, as it is a stand-alone, “Mississippi-grown” product.
“It is owned and operated, as by statute, owned and operated by providers in the state of Mississippi,” said Moore.
Moore said the approach of Mississippi True is what makes it unique.
“If you’ve got providers that come to the table to manage a patient’s healthcare to keep them healthy, it’s a little different approach than an insurance company saying ‘if you don’t do this, we’re not going to pay you,’ that’s managed payment,” said Moore.
“What we want to do is bring to the table a completely different model. It’s not new, hundreds of providers do this around the country,” said Moore. “But in Mississippi, it would be the first statewide, multi-provider plan. It would be the first in the country, and we’ve already had other states call and ask how we got so many providers to agree to work together.”
Moore said the procurement process for the program is still underway, and should wrap up in the next few weeks.
News Mississippi reached out to the officials with Mississippi True, and is awaiting a response.
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