“She Didn’t Relapse. She Just Said No.”

She didn’t get high.
She didn’t break curfew.
She didn’t fight, steal, or cause drama.

She just said no — to clinical treatment.

And that was enough to get her kicked out of her recovery housing.

Let’s be real.
Recovery housing is supposed to offer safe, supportive living — not mandated clinical enrollment that fills someone’s Medicaid billing pipeline.

But here’s what we’re seeing:
If a woman doesn’t want to go to IOP…
If she wants to attend meetings instead of group therapy…
If she says she’s focused on work, parenting, or building stability…

She’s punished.
She’s labeled “noncompliant.”
She’s packed up and put out.

And here’s the part nobody wants to say out loud:

🔥 Medicaid does not — and never has — paid for room and board. Not in Ohio. Not in any state. Not ever.

So when providers tell residents, “You don’t owe rent because we’re billing Medicaid,”
What they’re really saying is:
“We’re using your name to bill treatment. You’re the product.”

💡 What Actually Happened?

A woman was referred into a well-known recovery housing program — not a treatment center.

She was doing well.
She was clean.
She followed the rules.
She had structure.

But when she declined to enroll in the in-house Medicaid-funded outpatient program (run by the same people who owned the housing), she was told to leave.

No relapse.
No violations.
No warning.
Just refusal to be exploited — and she was gone.

They didn’t discharge her. They discarded her. And just like that, she was back on the street.

⚠️ This Isn’t Rare. It’s Routine.

Across Ohio — and nationwide — residents are being forced into treatment they don’t need just to keep the rent-free promise alive.

But here’s the truth that everyone needs to know:

• Medicaid never covers room and board.

• Medicaid cannot legally be billed for housing.

• Any provider claiming Medicaid pays your rent is committing fraud.

• And kicking out someone who refuses treatment is retaliation, not “recovery.”

🚫 Let’s Say It Again:

• Recovery housing should support choice — not force treatment.

• Billing Medicaid doesn’t cover anyone’s bed, mattress, or rent.

• Housing is housing. Treatment is treatment.

• No person should lose their home because they don’t want to become a Medicaid billing code.

We stand with the women who are being used, silenced, and displaced just because they know their rights.

If this happened to you, we believe you.
If you’re doing this, we’re watching.
And if you're in this fight to end it — we got you.

This is Recovery Justice.
And this is why we exist.