Taos board approves one-year Medicaid billing agreement with regional cooperative

The Taos Municipal School Board of Education voted unanimously to approve a memorandum of agreement with the Northwest Regional Educational Cooperative (NWREC 2) to provide Medicaid-covered medical services billing for Title 19 students in the district's special education program. The contract and recommendation were presented to the board by Dr. Cherry Malake, director of special exceptional programs, and Associate Superintendent Reneta Mondragon; the superintendent recommended approval. Board members framed the contract as a stopgap while the district assesses whether it can bring Medicaid billing in-house. Vice President Sprague said, "I would like to see us okay a 1 year contract, and then we could reevaluate after a year and see if we have people on staff that could actually take this over and do it again in house, and we could train people to do that." Sprague also asked whether a one-year term would work with the proposer; board members and staff pointed to the agreement's terms and termination language noting annual renewal procedures. The superintendent told the board a quarterly report could be provided so trustees could monitor cost savings and whether staff are being trained to assume billing functions. The superintendent briefed the board that Medicaid billing is complex and that using an experienced provider could reduce prior losses from incorrect billing; trustees said they preferred a one-year contract to allow the district to reassess and potentially transition the work to district staff. Board member King moved to approve Item 7.1, the memorandum of agreement between the Northwest Regional Educational Cooperative and Taos Municipal Schools for Medicaid-covered medical services provided to Title 19 students through the district's special education program; the motion was seconded by Board Member King. In a roll-call vote, Board Member Concha, Board Member King, Secretary Trujillo, Vice President Sprague and President Flores all voted yes and the motion carried. The board discussed next steps for oversight: a one-year contract term, annual renewal as described in the agreement's terms and termination clause (Item 5.a in the contract), and quarterly reporting on cost savings and staff training progress. The memorandum of agreement as presented did not specify dollar amounts or a start date in the public discussion; those specifics were not provided during the meeting. The board moved on to other business after the vote.