NEGOTIATIONS on the government of Guam’s health insurance contract have been put on hold.
The announcement was made yesterday by Gov. Eddie Calvo’s Chief of Staff Frank Arriola, who cited “the protest filed by an insurance provider” as the reason for the suspension.
The provider Arriola didn’t mention is TakeCare, which submitted a protest last week claiming the Department of Administration did not follow procurement procedures.
The healthcare provider requested that DOA hold off on awarding the contract pending further discussions or until its protest is resolved.
The protest was also sent to the Attorney General’s Office for further inquiry.
AGO spokesperson Carlina Charfauros said there is no specific timeline on when the protest will be addressed, but added it is still under review.
Meanwhile, Arriola wants to assure everyone affected that there would be no disruptions.
“We will work to ensure there is no interruption in health insurance for the thousands of GovGuam employees and retirees covered by this plan,” he said.
TakeCare, on July 26, alleged they were informed by DOA Director Benita Manglona that they were ranked in the top three and that negotiations would start the following day.
The company later found out they were not among the top three after receiving clarification that a request for negotiations was retracted.
As a result, the company filed the protest, complaining they were unlawfully re-ranked.
