LINCOLN (AP) — A judge has dismissed a lawsuit that a Nebraska mother hoped would restore her position as a private-duty nurse for her son who is disabled and autistic.
Dee Shaffer filed appeals with the State Department of Health and Human Services and sued in district court after the state reneged on a contract allowing her to be paid to take care of her son.
The state's managed care provider, Coventry, had determined that the services weren't medically necessary.
Shaffer was successful in her lawsuit challenging the state agency on medical necessity ruling, but Coventry appealed.
The Supreme Court reversed and vacated the district court order since Coventry wasn't included as a necessary party.
A Lancaster County District Court judge determined that because of the former court ruling, he couldn't find that the care was medically necessary.
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Shaffer's attorney said that Shaffer can appeal, and that there could be other remedies.
Her son, Brian, 36, has been diagnosed with autism, developmental disabilities, multiple chemical sensitivities, congestive heart failure, food intolerances and scoliosis.
In 2006 Shaffer asked HHS to be her son's paid caretaker. She's a licensed practical nurse, registered dietitian and licensed medical nutrition therapist.
Then-State Sen. Cap Dierks agreed to introduce a bill in 2007 that would provide financial compensation for care giving family members, but the state agency offered, in lieu of legislation, to hire Shaffer as her son's primary caregiver and pay her 18 hours a day as a private-duty nurse.
The agreement continued for a few years, but after Dierks left office, the department switched to a managed care company and Shaffer had to reapply to be her son's primary caregiver.
The department said she no longer could, by state law, be paid for her son's care. It censured Shaffer for practicing outside the scope of her professional license — using acupuncture to relieve her son's pain.
The Legislature passed a bill in 2012 clarifying that licensed nurses could be hired to provide care for family members.
But Shaffer has not received any payment for her son's care for nearly four years, and he has received no other skilled nursing care from the state.
