InnovAge, Denver elder-care provider cut off by Medicare, can now accept new PACE clients

A Denver-based elder care provider can once again accept new clients after state and federal officials determined it had fixed problems that led to poor care.

The Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing and the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services had refused to pay for new clients to get care from InnovAge since December 2021.

On Monday, the agencies announced InnovAge had resolved at least some of the alleged problems to their satisfaction, though the company will still have to undergo an audit in 2024.

InnovAge runs the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, or PACE, in the Denver area and in Larimer, Weld and Pueblo counties. PACE provides wraparound support services to allow people 55 and older who would qualify for nursing home care to remain in their homes as long as possible.

Former InnovAge employees said the company pursued a strategy of rapid growth, which led to some clients not getting basic care, such as help getting out of bed. The suspension created problems for families who were counting on the PACE program to help their loved ones avoid going into a nursing home, because each geographic area has only one provider.