Article by Les Masterson for healthcaredive.com
Dive Brief:
- Iowa saw almost three times higher Medicaid costs after moving to a managed program called Iowa Health Link, according to a new report.
- The first full year of privatization in fiscal 2017 saw per-member costs increase an average of 4.4%, almost triple the 1.5% average in the previous six years, according to data from the non-partisan Iowa Legislative Services Agency cited by the Des Moines Register.
- Dozens of states have moved their Medicaid program to managed care organizations (MCOs) in an attempt to reduce costs and utilization and improve quality.