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New Medicaid facility planned in Minnesota
A new recuperative care facility says patients have flooded it with calls since the state dropped thousands of Medicaid providers last week in an effort to root out fraud and avoid losing federal funding. FOX 9’s Mike Manzoni offers an inside look at the planned facility in Minneapolis.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A new Minneapolis healthcare facility is nearly ready to open its doors, but it is still in the middle of navigating a complex approval process.
Inside the new facility on Nicollet Avenue
What we know:
Accord Health Services is preparing to open an 18,000-square-foot, multi-level recuperative care facility with 61 beds in Minneapolis. The facility is designed to help people experiencing homelessness transition out of the hospital.
"Patient rooms start around here. That will be a wing all the way out here," Chimie Sajjabi, operating manager at Accord Health Services, explained on a tour of the facility on Monday.
The rooms vary in size and are spread across two floors, with a commercial kitchen and cafeteria planned for the space.
But Accord Health Services cannot take patients yet, even as calls from those in need have increased.
"They call a lot," said Sajjabi. "They’re looking for providers, and when we explain we’re not ready, they say, 'Well, who will do it? Who’s out there?'"
Impact of state review of Medicaid programs
Why you should care:
Last week, the state dropped more than 3,400 Medicaid providers, mostly due to paperwork issues during a reverification process aimed at preventing fraud and maintaining $2 billion in federal funding. That decision has left many patients searching for care and increased pressure on new providers like Accord Health Services.
What they're saying:
Sajjabi said the validation process to bill Medicaid is so involved that even if the facility were open, it could not take any patients.
"A provider was saying, ‘They came looking for sharks and dolphins got caught in the net’ or something, so there are good providers that are getting stuck in this process," he said.
Sajjabi also questioned why the state considers recuperative care "high risk."
"I don’t see how we should be high risk, but it’s totally understandable," he said. "We get our referrals from hospitals and professionals call in and say, ‘We have such and such. We deem it necessary that they get your care.’"
The backstory:
The facility began the Medicaid validation process months ago but has yet to complete it. The state’s recent move to drop thousands of providers has created a gap in care, especially for vulnerable populations who depend on these services.
The other side:
Minnesota’s Department of Human Services did not immediately respond to a request for details about the verification process.
What's next:
The facility plans to open sometime this fall.