State health officials say that Montanans on Medicaid will now have increased access to substance-use-disorder treatment. That’s because the federal government has waived a restriction on what types of facilities can provide care for Medicaid patients.
According to the state health department, federal law prevents Medicaid from paying for in-patient substance use treatment at facilities known as institutions for mental disease that have more than 16 beds.
In a press release, the state health department and Gov. Greg Gianforte’s office said the state has received a federal waiver that will allow Montanans on Medicaid to receive short-term in-patient drug treatment services at these larger facilities.
It's unclear how many more treatment beds will be made available, but health officials expect wait-times for people on Medicaid to decrease significantly. This will allow patients to be quickly stabilized before they are referred to out-patient care.
State health officials say they are actively working to get other waivers approved that will allow Medicaid to pay for more community-based treatment and recovery services.
