Department of Managed Health Care Fines Health Plans $1.9 Million for Failing to Provide Care to California Enrollees

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By Rayne Brown

On December 18, 2019, the Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) announced an enforcement action against 12 health plans, imposing fines totaling $1.9 million for their failure to properly oversee a contracted medical group that was improperly denying and delaying enrollees’ health care.  Fines ranged from $2,500 on Cigna HealthCare of California, Inc. to $450,000 on Blue Cross of California Partnership Plan.  The Department determined the various fine amounts based on factors such as the plans’ enrollment assigned to the contractor in question, cooperation with DHMC, corrective steps taken, and the nature, scope, and gravity of the violations.

DMHC originally opened an investigation into the Employee Health Care Systems Group (EHS), a medical group contracting several health plans, following a whistleblower report in October 2017. EHS subcontracted with SynerMed to oversee the care of over 550,000 health plan enrollees and fulfill all of EHS’s contracted duties, such as handling health care services requests and managing payments to provider medical claims. SynerMed and EHS shared many of the same personnel and were effectively the same organization. In December 2017 the Department issued a cease and desist order to the 12 health plans, directing them to terminate their contract with EHS to prevent further harm to enrollees.

DMHC’s investigation revealed that EHS and SynerMed had been illegally denying enrollees access to care in order to make a profit by implementing a host of unlawful tactics, including restricting access to specialists who were deemed too expensive to be covered; discriminating against enrollees requesting high-cost treatments for special conditions by sending them to a team designed to pressure them to leave EHS, and in fact, diverting over 5,000 enrollees when then experienced delays in care; and systematically forging thousands of audit documents to make it appear as though it sent enrollees denial or modification notices, when in fact it had not.

DMHC reached individual settlement agreements with each of the 12 health plans, imposing the fines, and requiring the health plans to implement corrective action plans that include better oversight tactics, system integrity tests, and outreach to affected enrollees.  Under the terms of the agreements, the plans must also prevent any illegal use of economic profiling and ensure that employees of contracted entities have appropriate outlets to report internal fraud and abuse.  According to DMHC’s Director, Shelley Rouillard, “The health plans must improve their oversight to make sure their enrollees have proper access to care and their contractors follow the law.”

Patients who experience any difficulty accessing care, and are unable to receive help from their health plan, can contact the DMHC Help Center at www.HealthHelp.ca.gov or 1-888-466-2219.

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One thought on “Department of Managed Health Care Fines Health Plans $1.9 Million for Failing to Provide Care to California Enrollees

  1. I’m the mother of a special needs woman who died after very poor care involving these criminals and the capitated “hospital” they forced on us which they were affiliated with. In 2014 I went out of my way to tell the DMHC specifically what Synermed was doing and even got a response from their attorney , I complained to Public Health , CA and directly to LA Care and they didn’t pay attention to all the red flags I pointed out. If took a whistleblower coming forward in 2017 for them to pay attention , then they eagarly interviewed me in 2018! Now, it’s 2020 and they are carrying on like no one actually was harmed when I’ve found about 20 people so far, many special needs, five are dead, including a special needs person who died horribly too. Now they are not notifying victims that they are victims. DMHC and California, had an opportunity long ago to our a stop to these criminal “healthcare administrators” , but instead keep slapping their wrists and giving them “remedies” for their lies, over and over. Now, the agents at DMHC eagerly will talk to enrollees who call in , in 2014 , they were very rude and would treat us like we were lying, LA Care did the same and closed our case after claiming they did a “peer review ” which I don’t believe they actually did.

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