“Acting under color of state law, the government-official defendants either have directed or authorized the State’s contractor to make devastating changes to the administration of the … program,” the lawsuit claims.
Five patients have filed a lawsuit challenging an Idaho state contractor’s plan to limit certain mental health services for Medicaid recipients.
According to The Idaho Capital Sun, the lawsuit is the second filed against the state after Magellan of Idaho announced that it would eliminate mobile teams that treat patients with severe mental illnesses. Lodged in federal court on Wednesday, the lawsuit seeks class-action certification.
Eliminating certain Medicaid services, attorneys say, “will have cascading negative consequences for plaintiffs and for their families, including increasing acuity of mental health symptoms, more frequent and intense mental health crises, and an overall functional decline in their day-to-day lives not only impacting family and social connections but also their own well-being and personal safety as well as the safety of others and the public at large.”
The Capital Sun notes that Magellan of Idaho’s selective Medicaid cuts are the result of a state-led plan to avoid a projected budget shortfall. Magellan, which manages Idaho Medicaid mental health benefits, said that it will eliminate peer support services as well as the mobile response program, called Assertive Community Treatment.
The lawsuit names defendants including three state-level officials: Department of Health and Welfare Director Juliet Charron, Idaho Medicaid Deputy Director Sasha O’Connell, and Division of Behavioral Health Administrator Ross Edmunds.
“Acting under color of state law, the government-official defendants either have directed or authorized the State’s contractor to make devastating changes to the administration of the … program,” the lawsuit claims. “But their actions were unlawful, and this Court should grant relief to the plaintiffs.”
One of the plaintiffs, identified in court documents by the name “Ramon,” said that Assertive Community Treatment-related benefits have helped him better manage the symptoms of his paranoid schizophrenia. Ramon now fears that cuts to the program could lead his condition to regress.
“Ramon is a new person. He has leveled out, is consistent with his medications, and follows through with his … treatment and management plans,” the lawsuit says. Since he began receiving support from Assertive Community Treatment, “Ramon has not been incarcerated, hospitalized, or institutionalized, which is quite a change for him given his prior pattern of incarceration and hospitalization.”
Before treatment, lawyers say, Ramon’s “family relationship had been severed.” Assertive Community Treatment, though, was “instrumental in reuniting Ramon with his family.”
The Idaho Capital Sun estimates that between 400 and 500 program recipients will likely become homeless if the cuts are approved and enacted.
Sources
Idaho faces another lawsuit over Medicaid mental health cut
Mental Health Clinics in Idaho are Suing the State for Cuts to Critical Services
Join the conversation!