Judge rules WV Medicaid I/DD waiver lawsuit can be class action

More people who are affected by cuts to West Virginia’s Medicaid Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities waiver program may join a lawsuit against the state Department of Health and Human Resources, a federal judge has ruled.

In a ruling filed Sept. 30, U.S. District Judge Thomas Johnston granted class-action status to a lawsuit filed by the nonprofit law firm Mountain State Justice on behalf of five disabled residents over the cuts. The judge has scheduled a settlement conference in the case for Oct. 28 in Charleston and denied the DHHR’s request to dismiss a portion of the lawsuit.

The lawsuit argues that the way the DHHR has run its I/DD waiver program violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. Mountain State Justice attorneys asked for an injunction against the DHHR last year, on behalf of five waiver recipients, to make the agency reverse course on cuts to the program that went into effect this year.

MSJ attorneys Gary Smith, Bren Pomponio and Lydia Milnes have been appointed counsel for the class.

- See more at: http://www.wvgazettemail.com/news-health/20161005/judge-rules-wv-medicaid-idd-waiver-lawsuit-can-be-class-action