BlueCross BlueShield withdraws from Medicaid managed care program
Jerry Zremski
WASHINGTON – Some 53,000 Medicaid recipients in the region, including nearly 29,000 in Erie County, will have to look for new insurance coverage this fall because BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York is withdrawing from the Medicaid managed care program.
The insurer, which plans to publicly announce its withdrawal from the program today, informed government officials of the move Thursday in a memo that was obtained by The Buffalo News.
“We have incurred losses in excess of $40 million over the past three years in these programs,” Don Ingalls, the insurer’s vice president of state and federal relations, said in the memo. “We have a 20+ year history of supporting these programs and members; however, we cannot continue to do so as the losses ultimately have been funded by other lines of business.”
The move means that Medicaid managed care recipients in Erie, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Orleans, Wyoming and Allegany counties will have to move to another insurance provider by Oct. 31. BlueCross BlueShield said it would notify Medicaid clients of the withdrawal by the end of August, giving them two months to make the switch.
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/medical/bluecross-blueshield-withdraws-from-medicaid-managed-care-program-20140717