ACS to manage California Medicaid info system

Affiliated Computer Services Inc. will assume the management of California’s Medicaid Management Information System under a 10-year, $1.6 billion contract.

ACS, a Xerox company, will assume operations of the current MMIS and implement enhancements to improve operational efficiency and allow for greater control across Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program, according to an ACS statement issued today.

The program will then transition to the ACS Health Enterprise, a system giving the state’s Department of Health Care Services additional flexibility to better serve and support providers and beneficiaries, ACS said.

The system also will precisely and quickly pay claims, and help prevent fraud and abuse within the program. The ACS Health Enterprise is Web-based, real-time and aligned with the new Medicaid Information Technology Architecture standards.

In addition, ACS will provide complete fiscal intermediary services, including provider claims payment, provider and stakeholder relations and training, beneficiary relationship services, telephone service centers, and security and privacy protections.

Aligning with technology partners IBM Corp. and CGI Group Inc., an IT provider and systems management company, ACS will provide health care services for more than 7 million beneficiaries from more than 80,000 health care providers throughout the state.

Technological advancements and cost savings over the life of the contract will allow more state resources to be focused on health coverage for Californians, according to the ACS statement.

ACS has been providing critical services to government agencies in California for more than 25 years, said Lynn Blodgett, president and CEO of ACS.

ACS, of Dallas, Texas, ranks No. 75 on Washington Technology’s 2009 Top 100 list of the largest federal government prime contractors.