By Steve Crane | Editor-in-chief
“There are hundreds of people that this has happened to that are still in limbo. There are millions of dollars in unpaid claims for services provided by providers that had no other choice but to provide these services to protect the health and safety of people with developmental disabilities, unless they become homeless or end up in hospitals or perish.” - Ande Kolp, executive director the The Arc Maryland, on Medicaid waiver problems that have led to some people losing coverage and the developmental disability service providers who care for them going unpaid.
Providers are upset and consumers are wary. Welcome to Tuesday.
In addition to highly publicized budget cuts, the Developmental Disabilities Administration has been grappling with recertification of Medicaid waiver recipients — recertifications that advocates say the state can get wrong, causing people to lose coverage and providers to go unpaid. After two years, the providers say they are near a financial breaking point, as Danielle J. Brown reports.
Food recalls, and the headline-grabbing cyclosporiasis outbreak this summer, have raised consumer fears about foodborne illnesses and focused attention on Trump administration cuts to health agencies. The White House said it did not cut any frontline inspectors, but experts say cuts have slowed response time that could have blunted some outbreaks. Anna Claire Vollers has that story.
Those stories, plus the latest on the White House ballroom construction, and more headlines from the week are below for your Tuesday. Enjoy!
The developmental disabilities community, along with care service providers and support staff, rally outside the State House in February against proposed cuts in the state budget. (Photo by Danielle J. Brown/Maryland Matters)
By Danielle J. Brown
After more than two years of erroneous Medicaid disenrollments, communication challenges and slow responses from state agencies, the nonprofits and companies providing developmental disability services say they are nearing a financial breaking point.
Developmental disability service providers say they won't be able to absorb the costs of months of unpaid care much longer while their clients wait for Medicaid coverage to be restored by the state. Some organizations believe they’re owed hundreds of thousands to more than a million dollars for unpaid services due to lengthy lapses in Medicaid coverage.
With ongoing budget challenges at the state's Developmental Disabilities Administration, providers feel they’re “stuck holding the bag” as they continue what is often complex behavioral and health care for a vulnerable population. And they fear the instability will start to impact the people with developmental disabilities who rely on those services.
State officials say they are aware of the challenges and are trying to fix administrative operations to ensure that there is a longer grace period for waiver recipients to prove financial eligibility before being completely cut off from Medicaid coverage.
Vegetables and lettuces at a grocery store in Michigan. A summer of food recalls, including the record-shattering cyclosporiasis outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce that sickened thousands, has raised many Americans’ fears of contracting a foodborne illness. (Photo by Jon King/Michigan Advance)
By Anna Claire Vollers
Jalapenos. Frozen berries. Beef. Alfalfa sprouts.
A summer of food recalls, including the record-shattering cyclosporiasis outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce that has sickened thousands, has raised many Americans’ fears of contracting a foodborne illness.
In fact, this year’s tally of food recalls is roughly in line with the numbers in recent years. About 48 million people each year get sick from a foodborne illness. But experts worry that the scope, severity and scale of outbreaks and their associated food recalls are growing. While the United States sees some cyclosporiasis cases every year, this year’s outbreak has crushed records: Since May, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed more than 17,000 cases, with another nearly 12,000 reported cases still under investigation. The outbreak has led to at least 922 hospitalizations and two deaths.
The recalls have focused attention on the Trump administration’s decision to cut funding and staff at several public health agencies, and raised questions about whether those changes have made consumers more vulnerable. But the White House dismissed concerns about the federal government’s ability to handle outbreaks, saying it has “never cut FDA food inspectors or other frontline personnel for domestic disease response.”
IN OTHER NEWS
FTC, states sue Amazon: Maryland joined 21 other states and the Federal Trade Commission to sue online retailer Amazon for allegedly using artificial bids to inflate costs for advertisers, bringing in tens of billions of dollars. Amazon denies the charges.
Supreme Court says White House ballroom can proceed: A divided U.S. Supreme Court lifted orders that had halted construction on the White House ballroom, all but guaranteeing work on the new complex will continue to accelerate.
Former DOGE worker moves into DHS slot: A former Department of Government Efficiency team member was slated to take over Monday as acting chief information officer for Homeland Security. Kyle Schutt has held various DHS roles since early 2025.
Guard shooting suspect can be force-fed: A federal judge said the Bureau of Prisons can force-feed Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the man charged with shooting two National Guard members, killing one and injuring another, in Washington, D.C., in November.
MATTERS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
Worcester schools’ secret sauce: Worcester County Superintendent Annette has a mantra: Name. Strength. Need. Know every student’s name, their strength and their need. It's just one of the factors that made the Eastern Shore system tops on state assessments.
Regulators slash Pepco rate request: Pepco customers’ electric bills will go up, but by far less than the utility had requested after state regulators last week authorized a $50.9 million increase, less than half of the utility's $119.8 million request.
Raising flags over Six Flags: Plans to redevelop the old Six Flags amusement park have raised hopes in Prince George's County officials, and fears among conservationists worried about the impact of development on the pristine Belt Woods preserve next door.
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