A new $6 million grant program established by Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes’ office will aid tribal communities affected by Medicaid fraud schemes.
Starting around 2019, criminals operating fraudulent sober living homes targeted Native American Arizonans in a scheme that defrauded the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, the state’s Medicaid program.
Bad actors signed up patients and billed Medicaid for addiction treatment which they never provided, and in some cases, held people against their will.
“There is need for even more resources,” Mayes’ spokesperson Richie Taylor said.
He added that Mayes has been seeking a way to set this up for some time, and needed to find a source of the cash — which is the state’s anti-racketeering revolving fund.
“The need is still ongoing, and tribal communities have already spent resources and expended funds to address the crisis in their communities,” Taylor said.
The Attorney General’s Office will accept grant applications through the end of January. Only tribes and nonprofits can apply, and each grant will be capped at $500,000.
