Oregon Developmental Disabilities Patrice Botsford makes a big announcement on the payment to guardians issue this afternoon:

“WE HAVE GOOD NEWS!!!! Today our federal partner, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) informed Oregon that guardians can be paid to provide care to their loved ones with the right processes in place. We are working quickly with CMS to clarify those processes and to develop a new notice for beneficiaries, but we wanted to share this information with you as soon as possible. When those details are worked out, we will provide you with an update and more information about next steps.

Thank you for your patience as we have been working through this difficult issue. We know that this issue is important and that the uncertainty about how we are moving forward is stressful for families and their loved ones. We appreciate the care and concern we have heard these past weeks and we remain committed to providing you with the most up-to-date, accurate information that we have.” Patrice Botsford Director, DHS Office of Developmental Disabilities Services