Lawyers for Centene in Hope Florida Medicaid settlement blame Desantis administration and Florida Attorney General for telling them to divert millions

As DeSantis administration officials scrambled last year to craft a Medicaid overbilling settlement that diverted millions to the Hope Florida Foundation, lawyers for healthcare contractor Centene and the Florida Attorney General’s Office tried to distance their clients from the agreement, a trove of newly released records shows.

Over 22 days in September, then-Chief Deputy Attorney General John Guard repeatedly removed references to his office in drafts of the settlement passed among negotiators.

Centene’s lawyers inserted language emphasizing that the company was “directed by the state” to donate $10 million of its $67 million settlement to the foundation. The attorneys insisted that Florida’s Office of Inspector General or attorney general be mentioned in the agreement.