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FOR MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT AND DRUG TREATMENT ON TRACK. THIS BUSINESS BILLS FOR MEDICAID REIMBURSEMENT ON BEHALF OF THERAPISTS WHO PROVIDE THE SERVICES. THE CLAIM SHE SUBMITTED HAVE NOT BEEN PAID. >> THEY EITHER WERE NOT THERE OR WERE DENIED. THE PROBLEM IS THAT YOU CANNOT TELL WHY THEY ARE DENIED. JAYNE: THERAPIST SUZANNE FRIEDMAN IS USED TO GETTING PAID WEEKLY. THAT STOPPED GENERATE FIRST. SUZANNE: I PERSONALLY HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO PAY MY BGE BILL, MY RENT MY MEDICAL INSURANCE. DEBORAH: --JAYNE: EFFECTIVE JANUARY FIRST, THE STATE SWITCHED TO A DIFFERENT COMPANY TO HANDLE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH MEDICAID CLAIMS. OPTUM OUT BID THE PREVIOUS COMPANY BEACON HEALTH OPTIONS. IN THE NEW CONTRACT, OPTUM GOT $8.8 MILLION TO IMPLEMENT THE NEW SYSTEM OVER A FOUR MONTH PERIOD. DENNIS: -- WENT LIVE? THEY DID, DENNIS SCHRADER IS THE -- DENNIS: THEY DID. JAYNE: DENNIS SCHRADER IS THE CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER OF THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. DENNIS YOU NEVER REALLY KNOW : UNTIL THEY TURN ON THE SWITCH AND WHEN THEY TURNED ON THE SWITCH THERE WERE THINGS DIDN’T WORK IN THE CLAIMS PROCESS. JAYNE: THE STATE HAS STARTED MAKING ESTIMATED PAYMENTS TO PROVIDERS. SOCIAL WORKERS SAY THE STATE CAN ILL AFFORD TO LOSE PROVIDERS WHO ACCEPT MEDICAI ANTHONY YOU CAN’T CHANGE THE : CHANNEL WITHOUT TALKING ABOUT THE OPIOD EPIDEMIC AND THIS IS PART IF THAT POPULATION. SO WHEN WE THINK ABOUT PROVIDE THAT AREN’T ABLE TO GET PAID AND CONTINUE SERVICES, IT REALLY CREATES OF HUGE SHORTAGE OF PROVIDERS OF I AM NO LONGER TO OPERATE BECAUSE I AM NOT GETTING PAID. JAYNE: THERE ARE 2500 BEHAVIOR HEALTH PROVIDERS IN MARYLAND. THE HEALTH DEPARTMENTS COO TOLD ME HE EXPECTS TO KNOW MORE OF WHEN THE NEW SYSTEM WILL BE FIXED LATER THIS

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A top Maryland state official is responding to complaints from health care professionals who claim they aren't getting paid.A new system to handle Medicaid payments has gotten off to a very rocky start.There was a rocky rollout of Obamacare in Maryland under the O'Malley administration. Now, the Hogan administration has its hands full getting a new system to handle Medicaid claims for mental health and drug treatment on track.Donna Vetter submits business bills for Medicaid reimbursement on behalf of therapists who provide the services, but the claims she has submitted since Jan. 1 haven't been paid."They either were not there or were denied, and the problem is you can't tell on the website why they are denied," Vetter said.Therapist Suzanne Freedman, who treats high-risk youth in Baltimore City, is used to getting paid weekly.That stopped Jan. 1."I personally haven't been able to pay my BGE bill, my rent, my medical insurance," Freedman said.Effective Jan. 1, the state switched companies that handle behavioral health Medicaid claims. Optum outbid the previous company, Beacon Health Options. In the new contract, Optum got $8.8 million to implement the new system over a four-month period.When asked whether Optum tested the system before it went live, Dennis Schrader, the chief operating officer of the Maryland state Department of Health said, "They did and we knew there's always risks.""You never really know until they turn on the switch, and when they turned on the switch, there were things that didn't work in the claims process," Schrader said.The state has started making estimated payments to providers. Social workers said the state can ill afford to lose providers who accept Medicaid."You can't change the channel without talking about the opioid epidemic, and this is part if that population. So when we think about providers that aren't able to get paid and continue services, it really creates a huge shortage of providers because I'm not able to operate because I'm not getting paid," said Dr. Anthony Estreet, president of the Maryland chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.There are 2,500 behavioral health providers who accept Medicaid in Maryland. Schrader said he expects to know more of when the new system will be fixed later this week.