State Auditor, AG investigating Centene on allegations it pocketed millions in taxpayer dollars [View all]

Both the state auditor and Mississippi attorney general are investigating whether Centene Corp., as a provider of Medicaid drug services, failed to disclose discounts on pharmacy services, inflated dispensing fees and received reimbursements for amounts already paid.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost made similar allegations in a lawsuit. “Corporate greed has led Centene and its wholly owned subsidiaries to fleece taxpayers out of millions,” he said. “Centene has broken trust with the state of Ohio, and I intend to hold this company accountable for its deceptive practices.”

Asked about these allegations in Mississippi, a Centene spokesman told MCIR, “In our viewpoint, these claims are unfounded, and Envolve (a wholly obtained subsidiary) will aggressively defend the integrity of the pharmacy services it has provided. Envolve Pharmacy Services saved millions of dollars for taxpayers when compared to market-based pharmaceutical pricing. We look forward to answering any questions from our governmental partners regarding this issue. Our company is committed to the highest levels of quality and transparency.”

Between 2016 and 2020, the Mississippi Medicaid program paid Centene more than $1.1 billion for pharmacy services.

Read more: https://mississippitoday.org/2021/04/14/state-auditor-ag-investigating-centene-on-allegations-it-pocketed-millions-of-taxpayers-money/