SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) Some New Mexico lawmakers say the state's largest behavioral health providers are being smeared by the suspension of their funding and the secrecy surrounding alleged wrongdoings. The Albuquerque Journal reports that Senate President Pro Tem Mary Kay Papen says a recent audit by the state Human Services Department is merely an attempt to divert attention away from its own mismanagement problems. And Sen. Gerald Ortiz y Pino of Albuquerque says the audit doesn't specify the problems that needed to be fixed.
The state audit last month said 15 New Mexico providers of mental health and substance abuse services failed to meet standards, overbilled the federal and state government by tens of millions of dollars, and may have taken part in fraudulent activities.
