Indiana Accredited Clubhouses Now Eligible for Medicaid Funding
Congratulations to Indiana Clubhouses, which, after a 6-year, hard-fought battle, have achieved support from the state of Indiana to include Accredited Clubhouses as eligible for Medicaid funding.
It was a little six years ago when we received word that the Medicaid billing code that Clubhouses in Indiana used was going away.
Overnight, programs closed. Sunshine Clubhouse, one of the two Accredited Clubhouses in Indiana hung a sign on their door the next day saying “closed.”
But that was not the end of the story in Indiana. Not by a long shot.
Advocacy efforts blossomed: letters to the editor, letters to the legislature, meetings with the department of mental health, meetings with Medicaid, visits to the statehouse, hiring professional advocates and letters to the governor. At one point, the entire Commission on Mental Health came to Carriage House Clubhouse in Fort Wayne. We received great support. But no fix for the funding issue.
We survived multiple Administrations, and never stopped fighting.
During this time when there was no money from local, state, or Federal sources, no reimbursement stream at all, several independent Clubhouses opened their doors. First, Elkhart County in Goshen, IN, then Circle City in Indianapolis and the Clubhouse for St. Joseph County, and finally New Hope Kendallville became Accredited. It was remarkable.
Ultimately, a new crop of Indiana administrators came into office and came to visit The Carriage House. They came to recognize the importance of Accredited Clubhouses and they began the long and challenging journey to modify the Indiana State Medicaid Plan.
Last week, Carriage House was notified that it was finally completed and approved.
We will look back on these six years as some of our hardest, and some our best. Our story in Indiana has not been easy, but we are proud report that it is just beginning!
Story by: Andy Wilson, Director, The Carriage House, Fort Wayne Indiana