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Committee advances bill to expand IDD managed‑care pilot to reduce waitlist; supporters and families urge voluntary participation and protections
Summary
CS/SB 1050 would expand the IDD managed‑care pilot to people on the Agency for Persons with Disabilities waitlist and enroll additional waiver participants. The sponsor said participation is voluntary; family witnesses urged protections and cautioned about provider shortages and past managed‑care problems.
The Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services voted to report CS/SB 1050 favorably after substantial public testimony from families and providers concerned about converting waiver services to managed care.
Sponsor Senator Bradley described the bill as an option that would accelerate access to services by expanding the IDD managed‑care pilot to individuals on the APD pre‑enrollment list and to other waiver enrollees in specified timeframes. He emphasized that participation in the pilot is voluntary and that participants may elect to return to the existing iBudget waiver.
Public comments and concerns - Several parents and self‑advocates told the committee they supported faster access to services but worried about provider shortages, continuity of care and prior managed‑care failures. Jeff Swinson and his daughter Sydney described difficulty finding providers and urged caution in mandating managed care. JJ and Shelby, who testified about personal experiences, asked for guaranteed protections and continuity. - Advocates and provider groups asked that critical services (transportation, care coordination ratios) be guaranteed, and that pilot standards be preserved after procurement and scaling.
Sponsor and committee response Bradley and other supporters noted the bill preserves patient choice (voluntary enrollment) and expands family councils and data transparency. Senators stressed the bill’s intent is to reduce the backlog of people waiting for services — some of whom have been on the list for more than a decade — while preserving the option to remain in the waiver.
Outcome and next steps The committee reported CS/SB 1050 favorably. Senators and witnesses said they will continue working on guardrails for program transition, provider on‑boarding and reporting to ensure participant protections and provider capacity.
Ending: Supporters framed the measure as an expansion of options to move people off a long waitlist; several speakers asked that the managed‑care option remain voluntary and that the state ensure provider capacity before broad rollout.
