How Government Works
2010-10-04 - by
A couple of months ago an 80 year old man on Medicaid received a letter from Secretary of Health and Human Services Lanier Cansler’s department telling him his in-home medical care had been cut. He appealed the ruling, proved he needed the care, and won.
But he still didn’t get it. What happened?
A year ago Secretary Cansler gave his former client (from his days as a lobbyist) CCME Corporation a $25 million no bid state contract and told them – he wrote it into the contract – their job was simple: To cut care to patients.
CCME went to work and one patient they cut was the 80 year old man – only it turned out they were wrong. He won his appeal. But the paperwork reapproving his care vanished into a black hole; CCME, which had told his health care provider to cut his care, didn’t approve the restored care. So the elderly man’s health care provider contacted CCME and asked, What do we do? Can I provide care to him or not?
No answer.
Two weeks passed.
The provider asked again.
No answer.
Next the provider called the Medicaid office in Raleigh – which is also in Secretary Cansler’s department – and asked, How do we straighten this out?
The Medicaid office told him, Ask CCME.
Finally, after weeks of nagging and badgering the health care provider got a lady at CCME on the telephone who told him, Well, it’s in the computer system – it says you can provide the care – what’s the problem?
The exasperated provider said, Well, that’s nice. But how is it no one told me that?
That’s a pretty good picture of how government works – especially when a lobbyist turns into a Cabinet Secretary and gives his former client a no bid contract.
How Government Works
2010-10-04/
A couple of months ago an 80 year old man on Medicaid received a letter from Secretary of Health and Human Services Lanier Cansler’s department telling him his in-home medical care had been cut. He appealed the ruling, proved he needed the care, and won.
But he still didn’t get it. What happened?
A year ago Secretary Cansler gave his former client (from his days as a lobbyist) CCME Corporation a $25 million no bid state contract and told them – he wrote it into the contract – their job was simple: To cut care to patients.
CCME went to work and one patient they cut was the 80 year old man – only it turned out they were wrong. He won his appeal. But the paperwork reapproving his care vanished into a black hole; CCME, which had told his health care provider to cut his care, didn’t approve the restored care. So the elderly man’s health care provider contacted CCME and asked, What do we do? Can I provide care to him or not?
No answer.
Two weeks passed.
The provider asked again.
No answer.
Next the provider called the Medicaid office in Raleigh – which is also in Secretary Cansler’s department – and asked, How do we straighten this out?
The Medicaid office told him, Ask CCME.
Finally, after weeks of nagging and badgering the health care provider got a lady at CCME on the telephone who told him, Well, it’s in the computer system – it says you can provide the care – what’s the problem?
The exasperated provider said, Well, that’s nice. But how is it no one told me that?
That’s a pretty good picture of how government works – especially when a lobbyist turns into a Cabinet Secretary and gives his former client a no bid contract.