Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina executives said Friday that they did not ask a powerful senator to gut a law reining in escalating inmate medical costs, but e-mail records and interviews with the principals show otherwise.
On Aug. 5, the legislature passed its budget bill, which included a provision mandating that inmates treated at hospitals would be billed at the same rates as the State Health Plan for state workers and teachers. Legislators, staff, the hospital association, Blue Cross and the State Health Plan had discussed the issue on and off for weeks.
