Anonymous UCare customer sues state over contract bidding

Published 10:15 am Friday, October 16, 2015

ST. PAUL — An anonymous Minnesota resident is suing the state over its decision to drop nonprofit health insurance provider UCare from public health care programs after a competitive bid process, alleging the Department of Human Services hasn’t offered the company’s 370,000 enrollees adequate avenues to keep their current providers.

UCare dropped its own lawsuit with the state this week, citing a desire to avoid more upheaval for low-income residents on MinnesotaCare or Medical Assistance who may need to pick new plans for next year when UCare is no longer an option. The Minneapolis company had originally argued that the Department of Human Services arbitrarily cut it out in a competitive bid process that state officials say will save $450 million in taxpayer dollars.

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