NONPROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE
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TWIN CITIES, MN PERMIT NO. 4766
Volume 35, Number 8
States eyeing providers of autism services
SERVICES To page 6
NEWS DIGEST
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We remember Margot Page 3-4 IDEA needs scrutiny Page 2 Closing is abrupt Page 11 Johnson is remembered Page 12 Caravan paid visit Page 6
Minnesota State Fair offers accessibility options How can it be that summer is nearing an end? The 2024 Minnesota State Fair is August 22 through Labor Day, September 2. For fairgoers with disabilities, taking time to prepare for a day of fair fun can pay off with a much more enjoyable and comfortable experience. Access Press works with the Minnesota State Fair staff to prepare a disability guide and an accessible dining guide each year. This year’s access guide is on page 8. Learn about what new features are available for fair-goers. Our accessible dining guide appears on page 9. Lots of new foods and longtime favorites await. One more reminder is to visit our friends at the Minnesota Council on Disability booth in the fair’s Education Building. They will have lots of free information and resources for people with disabilities, their family members, their caregivers and their allies.
MINNESOTA STATE FAIR
by Deena Winter The state of Minnesota is investigating 15 autism providers and has already completed other investigations, withheld payments due to credible fraud allegations and forwarded cases to law enforcement “when appropriate,” according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS). DHS said in a statement that these investigations “follow a national trend of identifying fraud in Medicaid-funded autism services.” DHS administers Minnesota’s version of Medicaid, known here as Medical Assistance, which is a federal-state health plan for poor and disabled people. The Reformer reported in mid-June that the FBI is investigating possible fraud in Minnesota’s autism program, which has exploded in growth since launching in mid-2015. The number of providers — who diagnose and treat people with autism spectrum disorder — has increased 700 percent in the past five years, climbing from 41 in 2018 to 328 last year. The amount paid to providers during that time has increased 3,000 percent, from about $6 million to nearly $192 million — according to DHS data. “DHS has systems in place to identify fraud, waste and abuse, and the agency takes swift action when we suspect or find it,” the agency said in a statement to the Reformer. “Early identification and access to services are life-changing for people with autism – especially children. That’s why it’s so important to make sure every dollar spent on services is accounted for.” Minnesota doesn’t license autism centers, but DHS is studying the prospect. When autism providers enroll for reimbursement through Medical Assistance, DHS verifies that they have the appropriate credentials. But beyond that, DHS is not out in the field checking in on what’s happening in autism centers. Idil Abdull is a Somali-American immigrant whose son has autism, which led her to become an advocate, open an autism therapy agency and cofound the Somali American Autism Foundation of Minnesota. She and other Somali parents of children with autism fought for years to get the state Medicaid program to pay for intensive, one-on-one treatment called Applied Behavior Analysis for low-income children. Prior to that, the state subsidized treatment for wealthier families but denied it to low-income children in managed care plans. ABA is a science-based approach that takes more hours of therapy, and thus higher reimbursement.
August 2024
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Have fun at the fair!