Gov. Paul LePage plans to appeal a judge’s order that his administration move forward with a voter-approved expansion of MaineCare, the state’s Medicaid system. In an order issued Wednesday, Kennebec County Superior Court Justice Michaela Murphy detailed seven steps the Maine Department of Health and Human Services must take to comply with the expansion law, […]
MaineCare
Posted inThe Franklin Journal
Seniors seeking assisted living are stymied
“This is a tough situation. I’m scared to death for Maine seniors. A new company took over for the state and they don’t have an effective plan,” Richard Dorian REGION — Woodlands Senior Living of Farmington recently opened its 58-bed assisted living facility. Many families expecting loved ones to move in are instead trying to get […]
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Posted inLetters, sj-web
Have to pay out-of-pocket
People should be warned — many doctors do not take people on MaineCare, since the bills owned them are not being paid as they should. Gov. Paul LePage keeps saying there is no money available to expand the program. Bills are paid as money comes in. Doctors need to pay salaries, etc. I am on […]
Posted inOxford Hills, sj-web
West Paris nursing home to close Oct. 9
WEST PARIS — An independently operated nursing home has given its residents and staff 60 days to relocate after announcing Thursday that it would be shutting its doors after 46 years. Roger Wilday, business manager for Ledgeview Living Center, said it has become impossible to “continue to pay our employees underneath the current reimbursement system […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Maine high court hears abortion funding arguments
Maine Chief Justice Leigh I. Saufley asks a question during arguments Wednesday on whether the Department of Health and Human Services is violating women’s constitutional rights by refusing to pay for abortions through the state’s Medicaid program. The case is before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. (Joe Phelan/Portland Press Herald) AUGUSTA — Maine’s highest court […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, sj-web
One man released, the other held in Twin Cities welfare fraud case
PORTLAND — Two men from the Twin Cities charged with welfare fraud appeared in federal court Monday seeking release from jail. At an afternoon hearing, U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge John Rich III ordered Abdirashid Ahmed, 38, of Lewiston released on $5,000 bond after seizing his passport. Rich said Ahmed would be equipped with an […]
Posted inFranklin, sj-web
Skowhegan man accused of taking money from state program
FARMINGTON — A Skowhegan man is accused of taking between $1,000 and $10,000 from the MaineCare Program in Wilton, according to Franklin County court documents. Ricky P. Condon, 53, of 142 Madison Ave., No. 2, was indicted Wednesday on a felony charge of theft by deception. MaineCare is the state Medicaid program. It is a […]
Posted inLetters, sj-web
Paying for Medicaid expansion
Who will pay for the proposed expansion of Medicaid in Maine? One-quarter of Maine’s population are children; another quarter are handicapped or disabled; one quarter are jobless and/or homeless. That leaves the final quarter who are the workers (who pay for it). Government officials do not take money out of their pockets to provide for […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Maine’s high court to decide if state must pay for abortions through MaineCare
Maine’s highest court will decide whether the state can be forced to provide abortions to MaineCare recipients. The American Civil Liberties Union of Maine announced Monday that it has appealed to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court after a lower court dismissed its original lawsuit last fall. The ACLU sued in November 2015 on behalf of […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Medicaid expansion needs to happen
The people of Maine spoke loudly and clearly this past November. The Citizens’ Initiative to expand MaineCare passed by a wide margin and is now the law of the land. However, the deadlines to enact this law are rapidly approaching, and it is time to inquire if the governor and the Department of Health and […]