A legal fight related to Medicaid providers and wages is dropped

Jul 11, 2023 | State Mandates & Medicaid

A legal fight related to Medicaid providers and wages is dropped

Industry groups and the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration have agreed to end a legal fight about part of last year’s state budget that could have opened Medicaid providers to litigation if they didn’t pay a $15 minimum wage to “direct care” workers.

Attorneys for the Florida Ambulance Association, Florida Assisted Living Association, two other plaintiffs and AHCA last week filed a joint motion in Leon County circuit court to dismiss the case. The motion said a new state budget that took effect July 1 did not include the disputed issue.

Last year’s budget included fine print that directed money to the agency to adjust reimbursement rates so Medicaid providers would pay at least $15 an hour to direct-care employees. Also, the budget said that as of Jan. 1, employees could file civil lawsuits against providers that did not pay $15 an hour, including possibly class-action lawsuits.

FROM

Health News Florida

PUBLISHED

July 11, 2023

SOURCE

News Service of Florida. “A Legal Fight Related to Medicaid Providers and Wages Is Dropped.Health News Florida, 11 July 2023, health.wusf.usf.edu/health-news-florida/2023-07-11/a-legal-fight-related-to-medicaid-providers-and-wages-is-dropped.

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