Minnesota caregivers fear a future after proposed Medicaid funding freeze

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    Home care workers say potential cuts to Medicaid in Minnesota would be devastating 

A group of caregivers for people with disabilities and the elderly gathered at the Minnesota State Capitol to make clear the potential harm of a proposed federal government freeze of $2 billion in Medicaid funds.

“These services are the lifeline that keep our elders and people with disabilities safer and in their homes and out of institutionalized care,” said Andrea Hanek of Duluth. Hanek cares for a 14-year-old son with autism and encephalopathy.

He recently returned home after a long stay in the hospital.

“I’m now imagining how hard it will be for us moving forward without this home care service,” she said alongside several other caregivers. “If my son loses the care that maintains the progress he made in the hospital, he may not survive.”

John Connolly, deputy commissioner of the Department of Human Services and State Medicaid director, said he met with Dr. Mehmet Oz in the Twin Cities on Wednesday to discuss the proposed freeze in federal funding. Oz is the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in the Trump administration.

“I would characterize the discussion as productive,” he told reporters. “I think we agree on the overall aim of fighting fraud.”

He says they didn’t discuss exact dollar figures about what might be withheld from Minnesota, but if it’s $2 billion over a year, it’s far more than the state budget can make up for. “We didn’t discuss the specific disallowance or deferral amounts or the cuts they’re proposing to our programs. The dollar figure was not discussed. Specific elements to the corrective action plan were discussed.”

Connolly also reiterated the federal move seems more like punishment than a move to fight fraud.

“Certainly, as we said in our appeal letter, it feels very punitive to us because this is way outside the usual process.”

Meanwhile, caregivers like Andrea Hanek remain in limbo and fearful for the future. “These programs save and sustain lives every day, and they’re being targeted. Why? For what? Political points? Revenge for having a governor who dares to disagree with this administration?”

No hearing date has been set for Minnesota’s appeal of the proposed funding freeze.
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