INTERVIEW 3 Change To Metha done Reimbursement
State proposal aims to reduce repayment
A Maryland state agency has proposed reducing reimbursement to health facilities that use methadone to treat addiction. The proposal comes from the Behavioral Health Administration, which runs Maryland’s public mental health and substance abuse system. Currently, methadone payments are reimbursed by Medicaid for counseling and drug disbursement together. The proposal calls for the current $80 per week reimbursement to drop to $42, and would require treatment facilities to seek other funding sources for treatment. It would also separate counseling services reimbursement based on the kind of counseling. While some state officials say counseling can help patient health outcomes, some methadone treatment clinic operators say the proposal could hurt patients who might not be ready to receive counseling services. Methadone, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, is used to “prevent withdrawal symptoms in patients who were addicted to opiate drugs and are enrolled in treatment programs in order to stop taking or continue not taking the drugs.”
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