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A coalition of civil rights advocates Tuesday called for a federal investigation of California’s Medicaid program, alleging that it discriminates against millions of low-income Latinos by denying them equal access to health care. (Gorman, 12/15)

A fourth major hospital and clinic system signed contracts with managed-care companies that are supposed to start running Iowa’s Medicaid program soon, the governor’s office announced Tuesday. Mercy Health Network has signed contracts with WellCare and AmeriHealth Caritas, state officials said. Mercy joins the Genesis, University of Iowa and UnityPoint systems, which Gov. Terry Branstad announced Dec. 3 had signed contracts with for-profit managed-care companies. (Leys, 12/15)

The Triad's largest health systems are among a group of 11 statewide that are joining to create a company seeking to manage the delivery of health care to North Carolina's Medicaid population. The new company, which is still in the formative stages, will fit into a new framework for managing how North Carolina administers and pays for care for its Medicaid population that was adopted by the state legislature earlier this year. (Covington, 12/15)

Oregon Health Authority has named biostatistician Lori Coyner as the state's next Medicaid director. Coyner has worked for OHA since 2013, and was most recently the director of health analytics. She led the development of key aspects of Oregon's health care transformation project, including the incentive metrics for coordinated care organizations an the Hospital Transformation Performance Program. She also developed the CCO rate-setting methodology this year. (Yoo, 12/15)