Governor

Troubled launch of the State’s new UHIP computer system at center of issue

Since the launch of the Rhode Island’s trouble social services system, UHIP, many nursing homes have gone without payment for Medicaid patients. Owed for months of care, many administrators are concerned they won’t be able to go without payment for much longer.

Debra Griffin is the administrator at Hattie Ide Chaffee Nursing Home and Rehabilitation in East Providence. She also chairs the state nursing home association. Griffin says the system for getting paid for these patients was inefficient before but it’s worse now.

RI DHS Executives

“We haven’t received an approval since September. And that was for someone back to last April,” says Griffin.

Griffin says firing Department of Human Services workers who understood long- term care Medicaid applications before the launch of the new system was a mistake.

“Long- term applications are not run of the mill,” said Griffin. “You have to have a level of knowledge and expertise in the approval process.”

Governor Gina Raimondo acknowledges letting workers go before the launch of the system that was a mistake. The Governor has just accepted the resignations of two top officials involved in the launch. But Griffin says that the governor’s latest actions to fix the problem may not be enough to solve nursing homes’ financial woes.

Griffin says the state owes her home more than $200,000, and most nursing homes in the state are still awaiting payment.

The original Article was written by Kristen Gourlay for RINPR and can be found HERE.