Starting July 1, the Maryland Department of Health will temporarily stop enrolling certain kinds of behavioral health providers into the Maryland Medicaid Program in an effort to address potential fraud, waste and abuse, the department said in a news release Friday.
The pause will last six months, the department said, and affect four behavioral health program types:
- Psychiatric rehabilitation programs
- Psychiatric Rehabilitation Programs, Health Home
- Level 2.5 Partial Hospital Programs, and
- Level 2.1 Intensive Outpatient Treatment Programs
The health department’s decision — which has been approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the department said — is in response to the rapid growth of these provider types since moving to an accreditation-only model for provider licensing.
“Access to quality behavioral health services for Marylanders is my top priority,” Deputy Secretary for Behavioral Health Alyssa Lord said in the news release. “This pause in new provider applications will allow the Department to assess and evaluate the provider landscape, the quality of care rendered, compliance with state and federal regulations, and identify, and mitigate potential fraud, waste, and abuse.”
The licensure pause will not affect access to mental health services provided by individual practitioners, clinics operated in regulated hospital spaces and providers at federally qualified health centers, the department said. The department also will maintain the licensure and enrollment process for existing providers who need license renewals, relocations, mergers and acquisitions, extensions required because of accreditation delays, and licenses required for programs identified and funded by state or county grant funding.
License applications filed before July 1 will not be affected, the department said.
