The state Medicaid division announced a 60-day temporary delay on the denials but families want permanent, immediate action
Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing
Posted inHealth
Colorado mental health workers demand equal pay. But a new state report says their rates are “adequate.”
A report ordered by the legislature to examine Medicaid reimbursement rates for mental health providers has further annoyed therapists in private practice.
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
Colorado moves another step closer to importing lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada
Colorado has taken another step toward importing lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada, after signing contracts with companies on both sides of the border that will handle the transaction. The state hopes that bringing in regular, everyday prescription drugs from Canada, where they are sold at a lower price than in the United States, will help […]
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
Colorado mental health providers say they were “blindsided” again by Medicaid policies
Colorado mental health counselors in private practice say they’ve been surprised once again with new rules that will make it harder to treat the state’s most vulnerable patients: those with Medicaid insurance. The latest friction between behavioral health professionals and the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing centers on the supervision of post-graduate […]
Posted inCOVID, Health, News, Politics and Government
Everything you need to know about the major health care bills still alive at the Colorado Capitol
There are officially only two weeks left in the legislative session this year in Colorado, and state lawmakers are continuing to debate several major bills — including ones that could have a significant impact on the state’s health care system. In recent legislative sessions, Colorado lawmakers passed eye-popping, heavily contested proposals to create a historic […]
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
Why Colorado’s ongoing fight against high hospital prices is now a lot more complicated
Colorado’s top health officials think the prices charged by large hospital systems in the state are too high. This is not exactly news; Kim Bimestefer, the executive director of the state’s Medicaid department, has been making this argument for years. But a new report and new comments made by Bimestefer during a virtual policy summit […]
Posted inHealth, News
Three state agencies are auditing the troubled mental health center for 10 Western Slope counties
Three state agencies have launched a joint audit of Mind Springs Health, sending state investigators to review documents and financial records at the nonprofit mental health agency for 10 Western Slope counties. The organization, one of 17 regional community mental health centers that receive millions of dollars each year in public funding, has been at […]
Posted inHealth, News
Colorado Medicaid contractor reverses course, will no longer try to recoup payments from mental health providers
Colorado mental health therapists will no longer have to pay back money they received for seeing Medicaid patients after a state contractor that had threatened to “recoup” the payments reversed course Wednesday. Mental health counselors at practices in eight Front Range counties received emails from Colorado Community Health Alliance — the contractor that processes their […]
Posted inHealth, News
Colorado mental health therapists are quitting Medicaid over latest payment debacle
As a single parent going back to college, Carla D’Agostino-Vigil signed up for Medicaid and used the government-run health insurance to attend “life-saving” therapy. So when she graduated and started her own mental health counseling practice in Westminster, D’Agostino-Vigil was adamant that she would open her doors to Medicaid patients. “When it was my turn, […]
Posted inHealth, News
Colorado county leaders blast state officials over mental health, claim 69 foster kids are missing
The state system that treats children with severe mental health issues is so stretched that it’s become dangerous, Colorado’s county human services directors charged in a fiery letter to state officials. Previous efforts have failed to “shift the course of the emergency,” wrote the leaders of the Colorado Human Services Directors Association and Colorado Counties […]