Judge Earl H. Carroll ruled Aug. 13 that clients of the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) could not find enough attendant care and personal care workers because wages were too low to attract and retain workers. AHCCCS is the state-run Medicaid program administrator. The ruling is significant in that it is one of the first nationwide to examine a state's obligation to ensure that Medicaid recipients actually get the home- and community-based services they qualify for, according to the Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute, the parent organization of Center for PAS partner Direct Care Clearinghouse. Carroll ruled that the state "failed to provide representative class members with the equal access, quality of care and freedom of choice to which they are qualified." To download a scanned image of the Court's decision, go to:
http://www.directcareclearinghouse.org/download/BallvsBiedess.pdf. A similar suit is under consideration in the State of California.