Jindal cancels contract under review by grand jury

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration is scrapping a lucrative state Medicaid contract that is the subject of a federal grand jury investigation.

Commissioner of Administration Kristy Nichols issued a statement Thursday announcing the termination of the more than $185 million contract with Maryland-based CNSI.

Nichols says she made the decision based on talks with the attorney general's office. She says the cancellation is effective immediately.

A federal grand jury is investigating the Jindal administration's award of the contract, a development first reported by The Advocate.

CNSI got the contract in 2011 amid complaints the company underestimated the true cost of the contract and made incorrect assumptions to win the bid.

Jindal health secretary Bruce Greenstein once worked for CNSI, but denied any involvement in CNSI's selection.