Dozens of People Died in Arizona Sober Living Homes as State Officials Fumbled Medicaid Fraud Response
Arizona officials acknowledged that a fraud scheme targeting Indigenous people with addictions cost taxpayers $2.5 billion. But they haven’t accounted publicly for the number of deaths tied to the scheme.
Reporting From the Southwest
ProPublica’s seven-person reporting unit based in Phoenix covers the Southwest, including Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah. Many of these states are among the fastest-growing in the country, and the region is experiencing rapid changes to the climate, economy, demographics and other trends that will shape the nation’s future.
Arizona Regulators Closed a Failing Charter School. It Reopened as a Private Religious School Funded by Taxpayers.
Arizona’s acclaimed voucher program provides zero transparency into private schools’ history, academic performance or financial sustainability to help parents make informed school choices.
The American Oil Industry’s Playbook, Illustrated: How Drillers Offload Costly Cleanup Onto the Public
Oil executive Tom Ragsdale walked away from his old wells, making the pollution left behind the state of New Mexico’s problem. His tactics, however, are ubiquitous in the industry.
“I Have Lost Everything”: The Toll of Cities’ Homeless Sweeps
Cities often take belongings — including important documents and irreplaceable mementos — when they conduct sweeps of homeless encampments. ProPublica gave notecards to people across the country so they could explain what they lost in their own words.
Southwest News Staff
- Southwest Editor
- Michael Squires
- Reporters
- Anjeanette Damon, Mary Hudetz, Mark Olalde and Nicole Santa Cruz
Local Reporting Network Partners
ProPublica is supporting local and regional newsrooms as they work on important investigative projects affecting their communities. Some of our past and present partners in the region:
- Arizona Daily Star
- Tucson, Arizona
- Arizona Republic
- Phoenix, Arizona
- New Mexico In Depth
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Searchlight New Mexico
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Santa Fe New Mexican
- Sante Fe, New Mexico
- Rocky Mountain PBS
- Denver, Colorado
A New Mexico District Says It’s Reduced Harsh Discipline of Native Students. But the Data Provided Is Incomplete.
Following an investigation by New Mexico In Depth and ProPublica, Gallup-McKinley County says it cut down on long-term suspensions for Indigenous children and implemented policy reforms. But the state has not made it easy to verify these claims.
Utah Man Pleads Guilty to Sexually Abusing Patients “Using His Position as a Therapist”
The plea comes after an investigation by The Salt Lake Tribune and ProPublica about the former therapist, who built a reputation as a specialist for struggling gay Latter-day Saints men.
“Lucharemos”: Trabajadores humanitarios temen que el cierre de un campamento en la frontera de Arizona ponga en peligro a los migrantes
Durante los últimos dos años, organizaciones religiosas y humanitarias han proporcionado alimento y ayuda a los migrantes en un campamento cerca de Sasabe. Justo antes de que Donald Trump asumiera el cargo, los voluntarios fueron instruidos a desalojar tierras federales.
“We Will Fight Back”: Aid Workers Fear Closing a Camp on the Arizona Border Will Endanger Migrants
For the past two years, religious and humanitarian organizations have provided food and aid to migrants at a camp near Sasabe, Arizona. Just before Donald Trump took office, volunteers were told to clear off federal land.
Elon Musk’s Boring Company Is Tunneling Beneath Las Vegas With Little Oversight
Given Musk’s role advising President-elect Donald Trump on ways to slash regulations and government oversight, Boring and the Vegas Loop project might be a harbinger for the country.
Despite Trump’s Win, School Vouchers Were Again Rejected by Majorities of Voters
In several Republican-led states, popular sentiment on the voucher issue has been overridden by the efforts of special interest groups and powerful governors who have enacted sweeping voucher programs that often benefit affluent families.
Denver Rallied Behind Arriving Immigrants. Now Its Homeless Population Feels Shortchanged.
When Mike Johnston became the mayor of Denver, he was determined to do right by the migrants arriving in his city. But it wasn’t long before he felt the full weight of that commitment.
Nevada Says It Worked Out the Kinks in Its New Voter System in Time for The Election, but Concerns Remain
After recent practice runs showed significant problems in transferring data accurately, the battleground state’s new centralized voter registration system will get its first real-world test in a major presidential election.
Who’s Mailing the Catholic Tribune? It’s Not the Church, It’s Partisan Media.
ProPublica has traced these mass-mailed newspapers to a “pink slime” network known for misinformation and its financial ties to right-wing super PACs and billionaires.
FEMA Told Victims of New Mexico’s Largest Wildfire It Can’t Pay for Emotional Harm. A Judge Will Likely Rule It Must.
Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire victims sued the agency because it will compensate them only for losses that come with a price tag. Victims say the law allows them to be paid for the stress of fleeing the blaze and the toll of losing their possessions.
In a State With School Vouchers for All, Low-Income Families Aren’t Choosing to Use Them
Working-class parents often express interest in vouchers. But in Arizona, the nation’s school choice capital, these families aren’t using them due to the inaccessibility of private schools and the costs of transportation, meals and uniforms.
Arizona Cracked Down on Medicaid Fraud That Targeted Native Americans. It Left Patients Without Care.
Arizona suspended scores of behavioral health providers as authorities investigated them for defrauding the American Indian Health Program. The state’s actions left patients homeless and without treatment.
“I Don’t Want to Die”: Needing Mental Health Care, He Got Trapped in His Insurer’s Ghost Network
Ravi Coutinho bought a health insurance plan thinking it would deliver on its promise of access to mental health providers. But even after 21 phone calls and multiple hospitalizations, no one could find him a therapist.
Utah Supreme Court Rules That Alleged Sexual Assault by a Doctor Is Not “Health Care”
The decision revives a lawsuit filed by 94 women who said their OB-GYN sexually abused them. Previously, a lower court determined that the actions they alleged had to be treated as medical malpractice.
How a Green Tech Startup With No Climate Experience Secured Millions of Dollars in Government Contracts
Founded by lobbyists, NZero convinced Nevada government officials, including administrations from two political parties, to pay more and more money despite its struggles to deliver promised real-time carbon emission data.
