As questions have arisen in recent weeks about the role the Lucas Group Partners, a private consulting company, played in Rhode Island’s negotiations for a waiver that would give Governor Carcieri unprecedented freedom in how the state runs its Medicaid program, the administration said the firm had volunteered its time and had no immediate stake but was “welcome to bid” should the state decide to seek paid consultants.

Carcieri reiterated those statements at a news conference last week when he announced federal approval for the Medicaid waiver proposal that is up for a hearing by the House Finance Committee today. The waiver would give the Carcieri administration unprecedented freedom in how it uses hundreds of millions of federal Medicaid dollars, and end the notion that Medicaid is an entitlement for people who meet certain income criteria.

The Journal has since learned that the Lucas Group was one of 11 companies that responded in November to a bid request for what is described on the state purchasing Web site as: “Medicaid Reform-consultant services.”

Lucas employs John Stephen, a former New Hampshire health and human services commissioner, and unsuccessful Republican candidate for Congress in the Granite State’s First District. Stephen is a longtime friend of Rhode Island’s director of human services, Gary Alexander. The two spent a day campaigning together in New Hampshire in July.

The Carcieri administration did not respond until yesterday to a days-old request for a copy of the bid documents outlining the scope of the work for which the state is seeking a paid consultant, and the competing proposals it elicited.

It has still not answered questions about the Lucas Group’s role, if any, in designing or winning federal approval for the proposed new Medicaid structure for which the state is now seeking a consultant.

But the sparse online documentation lists the bidders. In addition to the Lucas Group, they include: ACS State Health Care; Bailit Health Purchasing; Berry, Dunn, McNeil & Parker; HCBS Strategies; Ninigret; Public Consulting Group; Software Engineering Services; The Lewin Group; The Pacific Health Policy Group and William M. Mercer Inc.

In the request-for-proposals it posted on Oct. 28, the state purchasing office stated the goals — which include keeping people who “would otherwise be automatically institutionalized” at home — and said the “selected vendor will assist in coordinating the development and implementation of [these] Medicaid reforms.”

Asked why the administration did not disclose the Lucas Group’s pending bid when asked about the company’s role last week, Carcieri spokeswoman Amy Kempe said: “The Lucas Group does not have a contract with the state.” She said neither she nor the governor was aware that a request for proposal had been issued.

“There has been no decision on the award of any Medicaid Reform consultant services, and in the end, there may be more than one company chosen,” Kempe said. “The focus of the [Department of Human Services] team is to prepare for the upcoming House/Senate hearings on the waiver, communicating with all audiences impacted by the waiver, and managing other Medicaid reforms and issues.”

She said the bid proposals would not be made public until a contract has been awarded.

“As for John Stephen’s role with the Lucas Group, I defer to [the Lucas Group] for his role and responsibilities with the Lucas Group,” she said. The company has not responded to requests for comment.

The Journal first reported in October that the Lucas Group had been working with state officials on plans to redesign Rhode Island’s Medicaid system in ways aimed at saving $67 million this year and more in following years.

The proposal, approved in the final days of the Bush administration, would give the state unprecedented authority to change the nature and scope of the services it covers, in exchange for its agreement to live within a $12.1-million, five-year Medicaid spending cap.

In October and again last week, Kempe said the Lucas Group, which has offices in Boston and Toronto, was working on the state’s Global Medicaid Waiver negotiations with federal officials on a “voluntary basis. ... We are not engaged with Lucas. There’s no contract. ... It’s strictly voluntarily offering advice and guidance.”

Alexander was shifted last fall from managing day-to-day operations at DHS to focusing on Medicaid issues, which include obtaining the global waiver.

Lucas describes itself on its Web site as “a boutique corporate strategy consulting firm dedicated to helping our clients achieve extraordinary results — as measured by significant improvements in profits, accelerated revenue growth, cost savings, cash flow, efficiencies — and ultimately — enterprise value.”

kgregg@projo.com