$16 million funds 5 percent rate increase for disability and other waiver services

Providers of some services to people with disabilities and those using a variety of waivered services could receive a 5 percent reimbursement rate increase, up from the 4 percent originally included in the governor’s budget recommendations and as proposed in the House Health and Human Services Finance omnibus bill.

On Monday, the House Ways and Means Committee expanded the health and human services finance supplemental budget to $91.04 million, an addition of a little more than $16 million, to pay for the added 1 percent rate increase. Providers would need to apply 75 percent of the funds received from the rate increase to employee benefits.

Rep. Thomas Huntley (DFL-Duluth), the health finance committee chair, introduced an amendment to the omnibus bill, HF2150, to reflect the 5 percent raise in reimbursement rates.

Other amendments that Huntley successfully offered include:

• the adoption of new federal requirements regarding the process of Medical Assistance reimbursement to hospitals;
• a 3 percent rate increase, effective for six months, for certain hospitals serving patients under fee-for-service medical assistance; and
• direction to the Department of Human Services to “draft legislation” to create uniform eligibility requirements across four general assistance programs.

The House Ways and Means Committee incorporated the health finance bill into the House omnibus finance bill, HF3172, which the committee moved to the House floor.