On March 25th, federal judge Amy Totenberg issued an opinion denying the Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss in Isaac A. vs. Carlson, a lawsuit filed by CPR and co-counsel on behalf of Medicaid-eligible children with Serious Emotional Disturbance (SED) in Georgia. As described in the Plaintiffs’ complaint, these children and youth are being denied access to necessary intensive mental health services in the community, leading to a worsening of their conditions and causing them to be repeatedly admitted to emergency departments, institutionalized in psychiatric facilities, and separated from their families.
In a 95-page decision, the Court set out in detail the bases for Plaintiffs’ allegations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Early Periodic Screening Diagnosis and Treatment and Reasonable Promptness provisions of the Medicaid Act. The Court concluded that the Individual Plaintiffs had adequately stated a claim for relief under these statutes and had standing to pursue those claims. The Court also denied Defendants’ argument that they were immune from suit under the Eleventh Amendment.
On April 2, 2025, Defendant Commissioners from Georgia’s Medicaid, Child Welfare and Behavioral Health/Developmental Disability agencies filed their notice of intent to appeal the Court’s decision to the Eleventh Circuit. A Motion to Stay the litigation in the District Court is now pending.
CPR’s partners in this case are the Georgia Advocacy Office, the National Health Law Program (NHeLP), Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton, LLP, and Duane Morris, LLP.