(The Center Square) – Nevada’s six-month moratorium affecting healthcare providers will not cause patients to lose their healthcare or Medicaid, Gov. Joe Lombardo’s office says. The office reports the moratorium will only affect healthcare providers.
“The moratorium does not affect Medicaid patients, and new applicants can still apply. The moratorium only applies to providers,” Drew Galang, communications director for Lombardo, told The Center Square Friday.
“It’s being implemented to protect patients,” Galang further said. “Not only are we trying to protect taxpayer dollars, but we’re trying to protect patients that might wind up in one of these illegitimate hospice or home health care providers.”
The moratorium, which came into effect on June 11, was implemented due to what officials call “elevated fraud risk” in the state, The Center Square previously reported.
Over the next six months, all 209 hospice and home health providers enrolled in the Nevada Medicaid program will be subject to onsite reviews.
The moratorium has received criticism from Attorney General Aaron Ford, the Democrat who is running against Lombardo, a Republican, in the Nov. 3 election for governor.
“As the person who actually won back $40.9 million and dozens of convictions cracking down on Medicaid fraud for Nevada, let me set the record straight: Joe Lombardo is using Medicaid fraud to justify his despicable political ploy of taking away dying Nevadans’ health care to appease Donald Trump,” Ford said in a statement posted on X.
Lombardo called Ford’s claim a “lie” in a campaign statement posted on X.
“The reality is that no Nevadan will lose their healthcare,” Lombardo’s campaign team said. “Governor Lombardo is focused on protecting taxpayer dollars, stopping fraud, and delivering results, not playing political games.”
The Center Square again reached out to the Attorney General’s Office but did not hear back by the time of publication.
