SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WRSP) — Lawmakers and members from the hospital community want change from Medicaid Managed Care providers.
Officials said they want Medicaid insurance providers to speed up their hospital discharge process and make their records more transparent.
Hospital executives said they’re owed hundreds of millions of dollars for care they’ve given to Medicaid patients.
In 2015, the state privatized their Medicaid system and hired managed care organizations to handle insurance claims.
George Miller, CEO of Loretta Hospital, said managed care organizations are shortening people’s lives by not paying hospitals what they’re owed.
"In downtown Chicago, life expectancy there is 88 years-of-life, but if you take a 23-minute ride on the Eisenhower to Exit 23B, life expectancy goes down to 68.2 years-of-life,” Miller said. “You lose 20 years-of-life."
Those in favor of managed care said it’ll save the state money.
In theory, managed care focuses on preventing illnesses from happening instead of symptoms being treated.
(by Tiffani Homer, Fox Illinois,