Update: Wednesday 5:26 P.M. A federal judge has ruled that in-home services for senior citizens are covered by Medicaid and should be funded, despite the budget impasse.
Attorneys for the State of Illinois are expected back in federal court today. The state is being challenged for not funding in-home care for seniors during the budget impasse.
A federal judge has already ordered the state to make certain Medicaid payments during the budget impasse. One Medicaid service in dispute, though, is for organizations that check in on seniors staying in their homes, rather than nursing facilities.
Attorney Tom Yates represents those organizations, which haven’t been paid since July.
“It’s a double whammy for them,” Yates said. “They’re not getting paid and the state isn’t even acknowledging that they owe them money in a way that would allow them to go out and borrow to stay in business and keep serving this population.”
Yates submitted to the court a letter from the Department of Aging saying the agency does not have the authority to pay for the service without a budget.
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