District Judge Laurie Eiserloh issued a temporary injunction preventing the state from finalizing the Medicaid contract awards. The contracts, as awarded, would cause “significant harm and confusion” for Texas Medicaid beneficiaries, Ms. Eiserloh wrote.
A hearing for a permanent injunction is set for Nov. 3, the Dallas Morning News reported. Texas Health and Human Services could appeal the decision before then.
Three health-system owned plans — Fort Worth-based Cook Children’s Health Plan, Corpus Christi-based Driscoll Children’s Health Plan and Houston-based Texas Children’s Health Plan — were not awarded contracts by the state. Executives said the plans would cease to exist if they were not awarded contracts.
“We are exploring some other options, but this is dire if we are not awarded this contract,” Karen Love, President of Cook Children’s Health Plan, told Becker’s in July.
Cook Children’s sued the Texas HHS in June, alleging the contract award process was flawed.
In a statement shared with Becker’s, a Texas Children’s spokesperson said the ruling is a “major win” for the health plan’s 125,000 members.
“We believe this ruling will help ensure that our members continue to have access to the care they need, when they need it,” the spokesperson said. “We would like to express our gratitude to the court for their careful consideration of this matter and for their decision in our favor.”
The contract awards would have forced 1.8 million Medicaid enrollees to switch to a new managed care plan, according to The Texas Tribune.
In a statement shared with Becker’s, Michael Murphy, president of Texas Children’s Health Plan, said “patients and members can now proceed with the peace of mind that their care will remain consistent and stable.”
“We will continue to leave no stone unturned in protecting and advocating for our members and the families we serve,” Mr. Murphy said.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, Molina Healthcare, Aetna and UnitedHealthcare were awarded the majority of the state’s tentative contracts. Just one service area would have kept the four MCOs it currently has.
The state could opt to cancel the procurement process and start again, according to The Dallas Morning News. Texas has not awarded new Medicaid contracts since 2012, and has canceled two previous procurement processes.
Texas has the third-largest Medicaid population in the U.S., with 4.4 million beneficiaries in 2023, according to KFF.
Becker’s has reached out to Driscoll Children’s Health Plan and will update this article if more information becomes available.
