Medicaid Waiver Program Gains Steam

Minnesota lawmakers have made it easier for counties to give out Medicaid waivers to people who need them.

These social service dollars help people who deal with a number of disabilities or injuries that make living a normal life difficult. The goal is to keep them in their community, while providing resources they need for a better life.

New state laws implemented in 2015 require each county to spend 97 percent of their total waiver budget each year. As opposed to a previous policy, counties now don’t have to reimburse the state if they spend over their funding. This allows each county to stop holding back funds and give people service, removing them from a wait list that numbers in the thousands statewide.

Beltrami County hasn’t kept its waiver recipients waiting in several years.

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