- Texas AG Ken Paxton sent CVS Health a letter warning that the company’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives may violate state and federal anti-discrimination laws, potentially exposing the company to Medicaid fraud liability as a Texas Medicaid provider.
- The letter focuses on CVS’s Supplier Diversity Program, which, according to the AG’s office, directs hundreds of millions of dollars in purchasing and contracting opportunities by favoring minority- and women-owned enterprises and LGBTQ+ business enterprises.
- The AG’s office argues that those practices may conflict with laws prohibiting discrimination in employment, contracting, and federally funded health programs, including Title VII and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 1981, Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, and Texas civil rights requirements for Medicaid providers.
- The letter requests that CVS notify the AG’s Healthcare Program Enforcement Division within 14 days of the steps it has taken to comply with state and federal anti-discrimination obligations, warning that failure to respond will trigger a Medicaid fraud investigation under the Texas Health Care Program Fraud Prevention Act.