Legislative panel delays prisons and Medicaid contracts
Source: Bob Johnson, Associated Press (AL), September 6, 2007
A legislative panel on Thursday delayed a massive $223 million, three-year prison health care contract with a Missouri firm after questions were raised about why the contract didn't go to a company that offered to do the job for $9 million less.
The Legislature's Contract Review Committee also delayed a contract for $3.7 million with a Texas company to consolidate medical information about state Medicaid patients in one computer file after lawmakers raised questions about the company's performance in other states.
Lawmakers also questioned whether the Medicaid computer contract, to be paid from a federal grant, was the best use of resources for the cash-strapped agency whose commissioner has predicted it will need almost $200 million in additional funds next year.