(Bloomberg) — New York state is seeking to extend a contract with Computer Sciences Corp. to run its Medicaid computer system because a deal for Xerox Corp. to take over the program is stalled.
The length of the extension is still being negotiated, though it will reflect the time needed for Xerox’s five-year, $500 million contract to be finished, Jeffrey Hammond, a state Health Department spokesman, said by e-mail. More than nine months after it was awarded, the Xerox accord is awaiting approval from Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.
Xerox will have as long as 18 months to build the new operating system, which will help New York’s $52 billion Medicaid program shift to a managed-care approach, according to the request for proposals. New York is making the change in the health-care program for the poor to align with the goals of President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act.
“The new system is expected to be more quickly and easily configurable to state and federal policy changes,” Hammond said. Meanwhile, the state is working with CSC to implement the managed-care expansion, he said.
Carol Meyers, a spokeswoman for Falls Church, Virginia-based CSC, said the state requested a 13-month extension, which the company is willing to do. Hammond declined to comment further.
Jeff Baum, a spokesman for Norwalk, Connecticut-based Xerox, declined to comment. Kate Gurnett, a spokeswoman for DiNapoli, said the office doesn’t discuss contracts under review.
via N.Y. Seeks Medicaid Contract Extension With Computer Sciences – Bloomberg Business.