OKLAHOMA CITY – Less than a year after federal officials told the Oklahoma Department of Human Services its five-year residency requirement for people who sought intellectual or developmental disability services was unconstitutional, members of the Republican-controlled Oklahoma Legislature believe they found a solution to the problem.
The fix: millions and millions of dollars.
In 2021 Gov. Kevin signed House Bill 2899, which established a five-year residency requirement for individuals seeking intellectual or developmental disability waiver services. Lawmakers said they hoped the bill would reduce the number of people on the state’s waiting list. That list had more than 6,000 people and a wait time of more than a decade.
However, after the bill became law a group of activists pushed back, saying that the lengthy residency requirement violated the U.S. Constitution and federal regulations.
In September 2021, the deputy administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services agreed with the activists.
In his letter to the State, Daniel Tsai, the deputy administrator, wrote that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the Fourteenth Amendment requires states to treat those who have moved there the same as individuals who have resided in the state for longer periods of time, “unless shown necessary to promote a compelling governmental interest.
“Consistent with this Constitutional prohibition, federal regulations also prohibit state Medicaid agencies from denying eligibility if the individual has not resided in the state for a specified period of time,” Tsai wrote.
State officials said they would work with the feds to address the issue but, at the same time, thousands of individuals remained on the waiting list for developmental disabilities services.
On May 16, DHS officials, Stitt and members of the Legislature announced a budget agreement to “approve funds to end the wait and increase provider rates.”
That agreement, part of the FY 2023 budget, earmarks $32.5 million to “completely eliminate the 13-year waiting list for some 5,000 individuals seeking developmental disability services,” Sen. Paul Rosino, chairman of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, said.
Rosino (R-Oklahoma City) said the agreement was one of the most important pieces of legislation from the session and probably for decades to come.
“Most people are on the waiting list 13 years, and we’re now trying to implement a plan that would get most people off of that list in 18 to 24 months,” he said. “This is about ensuring that some of our most vulnerable citizens have access to services they need and deserve.”
Rosino said third-party assessments to determine individual needs of those on the waiting list and the actual cost of eliminating the list were a critical component of the final agreement.
He said the $32.5 million investment represents “the largest single funding increase to developmental disabilities in the history of the state.”
The agreement also includes a 25% increase to providers – set to go into effect on Oct. 1 – to ensure there are enough of them to deliver the services needed.
On May 1, state records show that 5,619 were received DDS services with another 5,146 individuals on the waiting list.