Wisconsin-based Doral is at the heart of a scandal involving State Sen. John Ford (D-Memphis) involving allegations that Ford used his influence to steer TennCare business to the company. To win TennCare contracts with the state, Doral hired Managed Care Services Group Inc., a consulting firm, which, it was recently discovered, had paid Ford for consulting work.
TennCare director J.D. Hickey stated in a press release Wednesday afternoon that while the department may eventually determine that there was no contract violation, “our concerns remain.” He added that TennCare has “reached a point where we must make a decision regarding the future of this contract. We have elected to not renew the contract when it expires on June 30 of this year. We have elected to re-bid this contract out of an abundance of caution, and in recognition of the seriousness with which we treat the program’s integrity.”
Because the contract expires in 60 days, the bureau will extend the existing contract with Doral for 90 days beyond June 30 to allow for the re-bid.
TennCare officials say they are continuing to work with the Attorney General’s office to determine whether state funds that were paid to Doral were part of the fees Sen. Ford received from Managed Care Services Group.
Doral’s current contract began in September 2002. The maximum value of the existing contract is $18 million.
TennCare is Tennessee ’s managed care insurance program for 1.3 million people who are poor, disabled or uninsured.
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