Parents have given up custody to get care for children with severe needs. Ohio Medicaid is closer to ending that
Titus Wu
The Ohio Department of Medicaid took an important step Thursday toward its July rollout of a revamped and reformed Medicaid system, announcing the 20 organizations that would launch the OhioRISE program, short for Resilience through Integrated Systems and Excellence.
The program would fix the current situation where parents are at risk of giving up custody of their children to the state in order to get the required, unaffordable mental health and residential care needed by a child with severe behavioral and mental problems.
"It was heartbreaking," said Deann Sanders, who had to give up custody of her autistic son twice to the state so the government could cover the costs. "Like I'm an unfit parent or a negligent parent, and that is not the case."
Under OhioRISE, families covered by Medicaid – government-funded health insurance for low-income and/or disabled Ohioans – can take advantage of intensive treatments and coordinated care paid for by Medicaid, without needing the state to pay for everything.
Aetna will be the health insurance company overseeing the program, which the department expects to cover up to 60,000 children by the end of the first year.
The organizations, called care management entities, will be responsible for coordinating care for a child: bringing together schools, behavioral health providers, juvenile services and other systems to provide help for complex needs. In short, they'll be the go-to place for families.
Some of the 20 organizations, spread around the state and already experienced with providing care services, include:
- Unison Health
- Lighthouse Youth and Family Services
- Jefferson County Educational Service Center
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Healthvine
- Integrated Services for Behavioral Health
- The Buckeye Ranch
- OhioGuidestone
The $1 billion program is partly paid for by savings from other planned Medicaid reforms, such as centralized credentialing and billing systems. Around $19.5 million will be given to the entities to help them start up.
OhioRISE has been touted as one of the key reforms set to begin in July as part of that new system. Right now, the Medicaid department is still gathering feedback as it nears the launch, Medicaid Director Maureen Corcoran told lawmakers Thursday.
The program is a solution that is not only cheaper than the government having to take custody of a child but also one that will keep families together and children away from facilities, advocates said.
"Had I had a team of people on my side making a plan that included my voice and access to community services, I have no doubts that I would not have spent my adolescence in a jail-like facility," said Chloe Cooper, founder of the Fostering Achievement Network and a former foster youth.
Titus Wu is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.