government
Patient advocates sue Nebraska over alleged Medicaid violations
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted May 28, 2012
The National Health Law Program and others have sued the Nebraska Dept. of Health & Human Services, alleging that the program is violating federal law by excluding children with behavioral health problems, including autism.
The suit, filed May 18 in the District Court of Lancaster County, was issued on behalf of two children whose doctors determined that outpatient behavioral therapies were medically necessary to address their needs. The doctors’ requests for such services under Medicaid were denied by the state, which the plaintiffs claim is a violation of the federal Medicaid Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The National Health Law Program, a nonprofit organization that advocates for the health rights of low-income populations, says the two patients represent a class of children who have been denied effective, research-based behavioral therapy. At this article’s deadline, a spokeswoman for the Nebraska health department said it had not yet received a copy of the lawsuit and could not comment until reviewing the documents.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/05/28/gvbf0528.htm.
