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Caritas-Centene insurance proposal wins approval

E-mail | Print | Comments () Posted by Christine Chinlund March 12, 2009 11:45 AM

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By Kay Lazar, Globe Staff

State regulators today voted to accept a controversial bid by a Massachusetts Catholic hospital chain and a secular health organization to provide health insurance to low income residents.

The Connector Authority board, which oversees the Commonwealth Care program, voted unanimously in favor of the joint venture proposed by Caritas Christi Health Care Network and the Centene Corporation, a St. Louis-based health organization.

The vote came after Caritas-Centene assured the panel that women will have "ready access" to timely family planning services, with no primary care physician referral required. They also promised creation of a toll-free 800 customer service number that will provide women information about where they can get family planning and reproductive services -- and, in an emergency, will provide transporation to the nearest approriate facility.

Board officials promised close monitoring to make sure the promises are kept.

The proposed venture drew criticism from both sides of the political spectrum in the days leading up to today's vote.

At issue was how the Catholic-affiliated venture would handle reproductive health services, such as abortions, contraception, sterilization and other services that go against Catholic teachings.

Earlier statements by a spokeswoman for the joint venture said the entity would "contract with providers, both in and out of the Caritas network, to ensure access to all services required by the Authority, including confidential family planning services."

That infuriated abortion foes, who said such an arrangement would betray Catholic teachings. Abortion rights advocates voiced concerns for low-income women, saying the entity was not clear about how the services would be provided, especially in Caritas' six-hospital chain, which adheres to Catholic teachings.

The insurance offered by the new venture will be available, starting July 1, to the roughly 164,000 consumers in the state's Commonwealth Care program.

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About white coat notes

White Coat Notes covers the latest from the health care industry, hospitals, doctors offices, labs, insurers, and the corridors of government. Chelsea Conaboy previously covered health care for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Write her at cconaboy@boston.com. Follow her on Twitter: @cconaboy.

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