The fallout of the sober living crisis in Phoenix
A sober living Medicaid scheme victimizes as many as 8,000 tribal members, leaving many displaced as fake rehab centers shut down.
FOX 10 Investigator Justin Lum went on a ride-along with Navajo Nation Police for "Operation Rainbow Bridge" to confront the crisis head on.
Last month, the president of Navajo Nation signed a declaration of a public health state of emergency to get more funding for "Operation Rainbow Bridge."
The purpose is to rescue tribal members who are now on the streets as nearly 200 Medicaid providers lost funding due to suspensions.
"This crisis is huge. It’s larger than what we first expected because right now, we just barely scratched the surface of it. We still need to make a lot more contacts and there’s a lot of people out there," says Sgt. Roland Dash with Navajo Nation Police.
Sgt. Dash and Navajo Nation PD special operations coordinator Harland Cleveland have spent a lot of time in Phoenix searching for people victimized by the sober living scheme.
Many targets are Native Americans once recruited to live in homes as long as they’re enrolled in the American Indian Health Program via Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS), Arizona’s Medicaid agency.
In many cases, victims are kept intoxicated and allowed to abuse drugs while organizers bill the state for providing services.
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