Today, Integrity House hosted Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. During today’s visit, Administrator Verma and Governor Christie announced a new waiver to the Medicaid exclusion on Institutions for Mental Diseases, commonly known as the “IMD exclusion”, after touring Integrity’s Admissions, Medical and Education Departments and having an intimate conversation with our President and CEO, members of our Board and some of our clients.
The IMD exclusion has prohibited individuals covered by Medicaid from receiving residential addiction treatment from service providers, like Integrity House, with more than 16 residential beds. Among other unintended consequences, the exclusion has prevented some of the most vulnerable from accessing long-term residential treatment to sustain life-long recovery.
With this new waiver, Integrity House will now be able to rebuild the lives of individuals and families that rely on Medicaid through our 420 licensed residential beds.