California announces Medi-Cal providers

As another example of California's current governor short-circuiting an open and transparent bidding process, Kaiser Health News reported on California's decision to award five health insurers contracts to provide Medi-Cal coverage. During the pandemic, the governor was criticized for awarding contracts to certain companies without an open process. Similarly, California was criticized last year for announcing a deal with Kaiser Permanente, bypassing a bidding process.

This particular agreement raises questions of whether California is too dependent on a few large insurers to provide Medi-Cal coverage. That California canceled the bidding process after over two years and announced agreements with previous vendors raises the question of whether smaller providers might have been unfairly denied an opportunity to compete. Regardless, the cancellation is not a good look for state procurement.