A newly unsealed lawsuit shows that Attorney General Dave Yost accuses health-care giant Centene and two subsidiaries of taking part in a conspiracy to wrongfully and unlawfully obtain . tens of millions of dollars in Medicaid payments meant to help the most vulnerable Ohioans.
Aside from seeking damages triple what Yost said was improperly taken, Yost proposes a potentially bigger blow: barring the three companies from participating in Ohio s federal-state Medicaid program, which could cost them hundreds of millions of dollars.
It s the most serious accusation yet in Ohio s drive to go after pharmacy benefit managers and related entities that have caused financial and legal headaches in Ohio for years especially related to the $3.9 billion allocated for prescription drugs under Medicaid, which provides health-care coverage for the poor and disabled.
Kris Tripplaar/Sipa USA
Centene Corp. criticized the Ohio attorney general for lacking a basic understanding of the state s $26 billion Medicaid program, claiming he wasted taxpayer time and money accusing Centene of overcharging the state by millions in drug costs. There are no secrets here; there is nothing that needs to be hidden or, in fact, that even justifies the filing of this lawsuit, Centene wrote in a federal court filing in Ohio on Friday.
In March, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost sued Centene, alleging its Buckeye Health Plan subsidiary used a web of subcontractors to obscure drug costs and fleece the state s Medicaid program out of millions of dollars in pharmacy benefits. The suit was filed in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas and is sealed.
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COLUMBUS Ohio has sued health-care giant Centene Corp. for an elaborate scheme to maximize company profits at the expense of the Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM) and the state of Ohio, Attorney General Dave Yost announced late last week.
Dave Yost
The lawsuit alleges that Centene subsidiary Buckeye Health Plan utilized a web of subcontractors for the provision of pharmacy benefits in order to misrepresent pharmacy costs, resulting in millions of dollars of overpayments by ODM.
“Corporate greed has led Centene and its wholly owned subsidiaries to fleece taxpayers out of millions. This conspiracy to obtain Medicaid payments through deceptive means stops now,” Attorney General Yost said. “My office has worked tirelessly to untangle this complex scheme, and we are confident that Centene and its affiliates have materially breached their obligations both to the Department of Medicaid and the state of Ohio.”
Centene s corporate greed led it to allegedly overcharge Ohio s Medicaid department medcitynews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from medcitynews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has filed suit against Centene Corporation. (fotoguy22/Getty)
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has filed suit against Centene and several of its subsidiaries, alleging that they schemed to misrepresent pharmacy costs and gain overpayments from the state s Medicaid program.
According to the lawsuit, Centene subsidiary Buckeye Health Plan used sister companies Envolve Health Solutions and Health Net Pharmacy Solutions to administer its pharmacy benefit. Yost s office said it began to investigate their business practices as the arrangement raised questions.
In a statement, Yost s office said the investigation, which was conducted by outside counsel, found that the companies filed reimbursement requests for amounts that had already been paid by third parties, and failed to accurately represent costs to the Ohio Department of Medicaid.