Managed care provider MAXIMUS has been getting plenty of plaudits over the last few years. The company has managed to implement a call center that continually gets recognition as one of the best of the business. The company has managed to hold itself above others the point that several Sun Belt states have begun leaning on them in order to manage their health care costs and administration.
One such state appears to be going all in, with Louisiana signing a three year contract with MAXIMUS. The company will take over the administration of the state's choice counseling and enrollment services.
Bayou Health is Louisiana's new managed care initiative that will being enrolling the state's citizens in December. Recent estimates say that around 900,000 of the state's 1.2 million Medicaid recipients are expected to enroll in the Bayou Health program.
The three year contract with MAXIMUS for a total cost to the state of $11.9 million will see the company take over the actual enrollment process as well as help citizens choose one of the five different Medicare plans that will be offered under the new initiative. MAXIMUS will offer “self-service” options through the company's web portal as well as an interactive voice prompt system.
Bruce Caswell, president and general manager of MAXIMUS, issued a release in which he detailed why his company is excited to enter into this deal. “MAXIMUS is a recognized leader for providing education and enrollment services to communities that are new to managed care and facilitating voluntary selection rates in excess of 70 percent,” Caswell said. “We look forward to providing optimal levels of customer service while working in partnership with the state to improve access to coordinated health care for individuals across Louisiana.”
Louisiana Department of Health and Human services (DHH), Bruce D. Greenstein said that he believes his state's version of managed care stands out from others for one simple reason. “At BAYOU HEALTH, we believe that having the choice is what stands out for our recipients.”
Greenstein added that most other state's who have moved in this direction, give their citizens almost no choice into the kind of plans they want.
Edited by
Jennifer Russell
