admin @ Thu, 2006-03-09 09:00
Unable to afford the care that their autistic son, Eric, needed, the Wichita couple gave up custody to the state so Medicaid, a federal and state program that provides health care for low-income residents, would cover his treatment.
The issue has now landed before state lawmakers. The cost of picking up care for Eric and others with extensive needs is projected to be $3 million a year.
"What I'm hearing is that people are being moved and they don't believe they really have any choice," he said. "Most of these kids are in need of stability in their lives. They certainly don't need to be moved around now, or threatened to move."
The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services notified the state in December that it would strictly enforce limits on the number of days it would pay for services at Lakemary and other centers known as Level 5 facilities.
Federal funding is cut off after a child has been in the center for 140 days, although extensions frequently are granted. For Eric, that extension expires Tuesday.
Earl Kilgore, director of children's services at Lakemary, said the facility needs at least 40 children to pay for a clinical psychologist, a psychiatric nurse and psychiatric social workers necessary for intensive treatment.
This is cache, read story here