State tells Coventry Cares to keep covering ARH patients; managed-care firm says it will drop Ashland hospital

The state has ordered Medicaid managed-care firm Coventry Cares to keep paying for its members to be treated at Appalachian Regional Healthcare hospitals for at least 30 days, rather than stopping tomorrow — when a federal judge will hold a hearing in ARH’s lawsuit against Coventry, after having ordered negotiations between the parties. For more from ARH, click here.

Meanwhile, the Lexington Herald-Leader reports that Coventry plans to stop paying for services at King’s Daughters Memorial Hospital in Ashland, one of the largest health-care facilities in the region. Hospital spokesman Tom Dearing told the newspaper, “Coventry’s obvious lack of commitment to the people of Eastern Kentucky, putting profits ahead of lives, will potentially leave thousands of Medicaid recipients without adequate health care options.” He said the hospital had 29,000 cases covered by Coventry from Nov. 1 to March 31. (Read more)