A few years ago I presented congressional testimony regarding home-based/community-based waiver programs for child welfare. More intuitively, I forewarned of Medicaid fraud.
When there is an audit, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General sets an agenda for the fiscal year of what will be prioritized for the scope of audits. It seems the home-based, community-based programs under the child welfare waivers are targeted. This audit is the first.
Residential habilitation is the latest technical term for youth who have aged out of foster care but are still under the authority of the state.
The majority, not all, of the targeted population of the waivers are for developmental disabilities, which describes the majority of youth in foster care.
Michigan has a program call Supportive Independent Living. Here is an analysis I did of the program.
Maryland was found to have its Residential Habilitation programs lacking in internal controls. Michigan has yet to get to point of developing its Residential Habilitation programs but it seems rumor has it Vista Maria is on its way to building its own campus for Residential Habilitation program.
Granted, Residential Institutions are still in existence, but they have come under fire with its conditions and treatment of residents coming to light.
Residential Habilitation, under the Medicaid waivers for child welfare, provides for more direct services and community living, but unless there are internal controls for billing and delivery of services, Medicaid fraud in child welfare will continue to thrive, just under a new name, Residential Habilitation.
If Maryland's agency was found to have claimed, at least, $20,627,705 in unallowable costs then there is a strong likelihood that 49 other states have done the same. I can guarantee Michigan has.
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Showing posts with label waivers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label waivers. Show all posts
Friday, September 13, 2013
Monday, February 4, 2013
Feds Say States Still Struggling To Protect and Serve Children
Below is my testimony to the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee on child welfare demonstration waivers presented in 2010.
In short, the reasons states struggle to meet service needs is because the only way to access services is by, what is called on the streets as "catching a case".
Catching a case is when Child Protective Services is called in. Once this is done then, through court action, funding for programs and services kick in.
Since States have not changed the way it treats poverty and developmental disabilities in children, there are artificially higher rates of abuse and neglect.
The same child welfare services could be provided as community-based/home-based services at a significantly lower rate of cost reimbursement but that would mean the States would have to rewrite its entire history of how it treats children.
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©
In short, the reasons states struggle to meet service needs is because the only way to access services is by, what is called on the streets as "catching a case".
Catching a case is when Child Protective Services is called in. Once this is done then, through court action, funding for programs and services kick in.
Since States have not changed the way it treats poverty and developmental disabilities in children, there are artificially higher rates of abuse and neglect.
The same child welfare services could be provided as community-based/home-based services at a significantly lower rate of cost reimbursement but that would mean the States would have to rewrite its entire history of how it treats children.
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©
Friday, October 5, 2012
At-risk kids could avoid foster care under new Michigan pilot program
It's about time.
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©
At-risk kids could avoid foster care under new Michigan pilot program
LANSING — Michigan’s welfare agency announced Thursday that it’s starting a pilot program to try to keep young at-risk children in their own homes, rather than place them in foster care.
The Michigan Department of Human Services said the program for children from birth through age 5 is possible because of a waiver from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Michigan is among nine states getting the pilot project waiver. Michigan’s welfare agency is starting a pilot program to try to keep young at-risk children in their own homes, rather than place them in foster care.
About 14,000 children are in foster care at any time, according to the state agency’s website.
“Research confirms what most people instinctively know: All things being equal, the best place for children is in their own home with their own family,” Maura Corrigan, director of the state agency, said in a statement. “Under this federal waiver, the department will use funding to wrap around at-risk families with vital services- keeping children both at home and safe.”
The Title IV-E waiver lets the state agency use federal foster care funds for the project over five years. Michigan is among nine states getting the pilot project waiver.
The project is scheduled to start Aug. 1, 2013, in Kalamazoo, Macomb and Muskegon counties. The state said it will provide prevention and preservation services for families with young children at high risk for abuse and neglect.
“The heart of the project is applying both prevention and preservation services for families with young children at high risk for abuse and neglect,” said state agency spokesman Dave Akerly. “DHS will partner with private agencies and directly engage with families in their own homes to prevent abuse and neglect and to also prevent removal and eventual placement in foster care.”
During the five-year project, “independent third-party evaluations will take place, tracking the overall effectiveness of reaching goals and expected outcomes, and payments to private agencies will be performance based and focused on the outcome for our clients,” Akerly said in a statement.
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Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Important info on the Title IV E waiver
Important info on the Title IV E waiver
HEADS UP FAMILY RIGHTS THIS APPLIES TO ALL STATES. Went to a state meeting on the Title IV E waiver. For those who do not know what that is, it was passed by Congress giving leniency to 28 states to use the federal funding for family preservation. Here is the latest skinny: Only two states out of the 28 have applied so far even though it was passed months ago. Part of this is the feds are dragging their feet but the other reason is most states don't know how to put together a new program required for this so they are sticking their heads in the sand. WA State got lucky because the Bill Gates foundation is paying to bring in consultants from Baltimore to help them figure it out. I also found out that each state can waiver whatever they want to. Doesn't necessarily have to go for family preservation. Family preservation is one of three areas they can waiver. SO, it is critical for you activists to push this through and make sure your state is on target for the waiver and applying it correctly. More info to be coming on this later.
From Jan Smith
From Jan Smith
LK: http://legallykidnapped.blogspot.com/2012/05/important-info-on-title-iv-e-waiver.html#ixzz1uLNmegZc
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©
Sunday, June 12, 2011
McDermott Bill: “Bipartisan Child Welfare Bill Passes House”
It seems they are finally beginning to listen to me.
For Immediate Release: June 1, 2011
WASHINGTON, DC – Last night, the House passed with bipartisan support legislation to improve the child welfare system, authored by Congressman Jim McDermott (D-WA). The legislation would allow the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to grant waivers for state demonstration projects to test innovations in child welfare programs.
“At-risk children and families often fall through the cracks and don’t get the services they need from our child welfare system,” said Congressman McDermott. “Some states are ready to develop the next generation of reforms to give this vulnerable population the attention and opportunity they deserve.”
The legislation is titled, “To Renew the Authority of the Department of Health and Human Services to Approve Demonstration Projects Designed to Test Innovative Strategies in State Child Welfare Programs” (H.R. 1194; see “Background” below for more details). The bill would allow states to build on the historic “Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act,” which McDermott also authored and was signed into law in 2008. Under the legislation, interested states could, with federal approval and oversight, develop and test innovative strategies to improve services for at-risk children and families. States could focus on priorities such as early intervention, domestic violence, and kinship guardianship.
“These waivers would build upon the Fostering Connections Act – we knew then that different approaches would work for different states and this legislation will give states the ability to test innovative programs,” said McDermott. “I am particularly excited to see Washington State’s innovations to help vulnerable children. Additional resources and improvements will be needed to serve all children and families at risk.”
The legislation that passed the House yesterday evening will now be referred to the Senate, where Senators Baucus (D-MT), Hatch (R-UT), Enzi (R-WY) and Rockefeller (D-WV) recently introduced similar bipartisan child welfare waiver legislation.
###
Background Information on the Child Welfare Legislation
●The legislation (H.R. 1194) was co-sponsored by Rep. Geoff Davis (R-KY), introduced to the House on March 17, 2011, and referred to the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means and Committee on Budget. Waiver legislation was the subject of a Ways and Means’ Human Resources Subcommittee hearing on July 29, 2010.
●The legislation would extend child welfare waiver authority for six years beginning Fiscal Year 2011.
●The authority for U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to approve new child welfare waivers expired in 2006, but there are currently waivers in seven states (CA, FL, IL, IN, OH, OR, and WI) that began demonstrations before then. Congressional action is necessary to give HHS the authority to approve new waivers.
●Since the enactment of the child welfare waiver authority in 1997, twenty-three states have implemented demonstrations involving a variety of service strategies, including subsidized guardianship, flexible funding, services for parents with addictions, adoption and post-permanency services, and intensive preventive services.
●The Congressional Budget Office confirmed in the last Congress that this legislation has no cost, as waivers can only be approved if states demonstrate to HHS that their proposed changes will be cost-neutral.
●The legislation would ensure state accountability for use of child welfare funds, and rigorous evaluation of state innovations by independent experts.
●Senators Baucus, Hatch, Enzi and Rockefeller introduced their own child welfare waiver legislation, the “State Child Welfare Innovation Act” (S. 1013), on May 17, 2011, following a U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing in March.
Statement of Beverly Tran to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Inc...
McDermott Bill: “Bipartisan Child Welfare Bill Passes House”
For Immediate Release: June 1, 2011
WASHINGTON, DC – Last night, the House passed with bipartisan support legislation to improve the child welfare system, authored by Congressman Jim McDermott (D-WA). The legislation would allow the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to grant waivers for state demonstration projects to test innovations in child welfare programs.
“At-risk children and families often fall through the cracks and don’t get the services they need from our child welfare system,” said Congressman McDermott. “Some states are ready to develop the next generation of reforms to give this vulnerable population the attention and opportunity they deserve.”
The legislation is titled, “To Renew the Authority of the Department of Health and Human Services to Approve Demonstration Projects Designed to Test Innovative Strategies in State Child Welfare Programs” (H.R. 1194; see “Background” below for more details). The bill would allow states to build on the historic “Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act,” which McDermott also authored and was signed into law in 2008. Under the legislation, interested states could, with federal approval and oversight, develop and test innovative strategies to improve services for at-risk children and families. States could focus on priorities such as early intervention, domestic violence, and kinship guardianship.
“These waivers would build upon the Fostering Connections Act – we knew then that different approaches would work for different states and this legislation will give states the ability to test innovative programs,” said McDermott. “I am particularly excited to see Washington State’s innovations to help vulnerable children. Additional resources and improvements will be needed to serve all children and families at risk.”
The legislation that passed the House yesterday evening will now be referred to the Senate, where Senators Baucus (D-MT), Hatch (R-UT), Enzi (R-WY) and Rockefeller (D-WV) recently introduced similar bipartisan child welfare waiver legislation.
###
Background Information on the Child Welfare Legislation
●The legislation (H.R. 1194) was co-sponsored by Rep. Geoff Davis (R-KY), introduced to the House on March 17, 2011, and referred to the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means and Committee on Budget. Waiver legislation was the subject of a Ways and Means’ Human Resources Subcommittee hearing on July 29, 2010.
●The legislation would extend child welfare waiver authority for six years beginning Fiscal Year 2011.
●The authority for U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to approve new child welfare waivers expired in 2006, but there are currently waivers in seven states (CA, FL, IL, IN, OH, OR, and WI) that began demonstrations before then. Congressional action is necessary to give HHS the authority to approve new waivers.
●Since the enactment of the child welfare waiver authority in 1997, twenty-three states have implemented demonstrations involving a variety of service strategies, including subsidized guardianship, flexible funding, services for parents with addictions, adoption and post-permanency services, and intensive preventive services.
●The Congressional Budget Office confirmed in the last Congress that this legislation has no cost, as waivers can only be approved if states demonstrate to HHS that their proposed changes will be cost-neutral.
●The legislation would ensure state accountability for use of child welfare funds, and rigorous evaluation of state innovations by independent experts.
●Senators Baucus, Hatch, Enzi and Rockefeller introduced their own child welfare waiver legislation, the “State Child Welfare Innovation Act” (S. 1013), on May 17, 2011, following a U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing in March.
Statement of Beverly Tran to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Inc...
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Ways and Means Committee Removes Child Welfare Testimonies
It was recently brought to my attention that my Testimony to the Ways and Means Committee was taken down for its website. So I started to see what else was taken down.
It seems all child welfare testimony was removed.
David Camp is the new Chair of Ways and Means Committee. David Camp is from Michigan. I am from Michigan. Michigan is in the process of federal receivership for violation of a federal settlement agreement. Child Welfare in Michigan is... let me search for a proper descriptive...
Coincidence or just an error? It does not matter because I saved it all!
Mockingbird Society Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
American Humane Association Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
Youth Village Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
George Sheldon Video Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
and I have preserved much, much more!
Statement of Beverly Tran to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Inc...
Stop Child Medicaid Fraud
It seems all child welfare testimony was removed.
David Camp is the new Chair of Ways and Means Committee. David Camp is from Michigan. I am from Michigan. Michigan is in the process of federal receivership for violation of a federal settlement agreement. Child Welfare in Michigan is... let me search for a proper descriptive...
Mockingbird Society Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
American Humane Association Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
Youth Village Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
George Sheldon Video Statement on Child Welfare Waivers
and I have preserved much, much more!
Statement of Beverly Tran to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Inc...
Stop Child Medicaid Fraud
Thursday, November 11, 2010
My Statement On Child Welfare Waivers
I dare someone to challenge me. Bring it on!
My statement to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support Hearing to Review the Use of Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Projects to Promote Child Well-Being.
Statement of Beverly Tran to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Inc...
My statement to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support Hearing to Review the Use of Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Projects to Promote Child Well-Being.
Statement of Beverly Tran to the U.S. House of Representative Ways and Means Committee, Subcommittee on Inc...
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