Due To Protest, Rhode Island to Reevaluate Medicaid Contract Awards

The Rhode Island Medicaid program is reevaluating its awards for the next Medicaid managed care organizations (MCO) following a protest by two bidders. The protests were filed by Tufts Health Plan, which currently holds a contract, and non-incumbent bidder Blue Cross Blue Shield Rhode Island. The five-year contracts, valued at $15.5 billion, were awarded to incumbents Neighborhood Health Plan and UnitedHealthcare. The contracts were slated to begin July 1, 2025.

The protest claimed there the scoring criteria were flawed, and that the scoring committee had conflicts of interest. After reviewing the protest, the state issued its decision . . .