AUGUSTA — Lawmakers on the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee on Tuesday were updated on the status of the state’s embattled Riverview Psychiatric Center. The state’s only “forensic” hospital that houses people with violent mental illnesses has for months been under the scrutiny of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The hospital is […]
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Maine budget committee reviews status of Riverview
AUGUSTA — An ongoing federal government shutdown is complicating Maine Department of Health and Human Services’ efforts to figure out what it needs to do to prevent the loss of nearly $20 million for the state’s Riverview Psychiatric Center. The 92-bed hospital, which houses some of the state’s most violent mental health patients, has been […]
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DHHS lays off 56 employees, closes disability benefits office because of federal government shutdown
AUGUSTA — All employees at a disability services office in Winthrop and four more in the Maine Department of Health and Human Services were laid off Monday as a result of the federal government shutdown, Gov. Paul LePage announced Monday evening. The 52 employees at the DHHS Disability Determination Office in Winthrop make Social Security […]
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Group protests DHHS ‘overreach of authority’ involving Brooklin teen
BANGOR — A young Brooklin mother who feeds her baby a goat milk-based formula, missed doctor appointments and refuses to have her child vaccinated is accusing the Maine Department of Health and Human Services of overreaching its authority by investigating her son’s well-being. Family and supporters of Alorah Gellerson, 17, and her 4-month-old son, Carson, […]
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Lawmakers pass bill that addresses overcrowding at Riverview
AUGUSTA — The Maine Legislature Thursday took the first tentative steps towards solving overcrowding and understaffing problems at the state’s Riverview Psychiatric Center. Meanwhile, the federal government’s Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services approved a corrective action plan for the facility after it found patient and staff safety issues and treatment shortfalls during an inspection in […]
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DHHS often sells property owned by people in its care for well below assessed values
The Maine Department of Health and Human Services routinely sells real estate owned by people in its care for well below their assessed values. But the department defends its handling of such estates, saying that sales of properties are a last resort, that municipal valuations are not a fair gauge of a property’s worth, and […]
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Maine groups get grants to sign up uninsured
AUGUSTA (AP) — Two Maine organizations will receive almost $550,000 in federal grants to help residents sign up for insurance under the new federal health care law. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Thursday that Western Maine Community Action, INC. and Fishing Partnership Health Plan will receive $541,846 to run “navigator” programs. […]
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CMMC joins lawsuit against federal government over Medicare payments
Eight Maine hospitals have sued U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius over the government’s handling of millions of dollars in payments for some low-income and elderly patients. In the suit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Portland, the hospitals argue that Sebelius arbitrarily and improperly ruled against them in a […]
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Online system helps Maine businesses report new hires
AUGUSTA (AP) — A new online reporting system is designed to make it easier for Maine businesses to report newly hired employees. Maine’s health and human services and labor departments say that under new requirements, businesses should report any newly hired or rehired employees to the state within seven days of hire. Businesses can do […]
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State grants nearly 1,200 waivers to two-year methadone cap
AUGUSTA — A law that took effect Jan. 1, designed to save the state money by cutting MaineCare patients’ methadone treatments after two years, has so far resulted in 20 people losing coverage, according to early figures from the Maine Department of Health and Human Services. So far, another 1,197 have received waivers to stay […]