Benchmarks Will Be Holding
 Our Friday Membership Webinar 
This Week!


Topic: Benchmarks' Membership Webinar
Date: Jul 10, 2020
Time: 8:30 AM Eastern Time 

Join Zoom Meeting:
Meeting ID: 626 815 379
Password: 081879
One tap mobile
+13126266799,,626815379# US (Chicago)
+19292056099,,626815379# US (New York)

(We will NOT be holding our Thursday Child Welfare Webinar)
Updates and Announcements

Announcement - Additional Flexibilities During COVID-19
NC Medicaid has received federal approval of additional flexibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic for the:
  • NC Innovations Waiver, for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD); and
  • NC Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Waiver, for individuals who have a TBI diagnosis after age of 21. 
During federally declared emergencies, states can submit requests to ease certain waiver requirements through an Appendix K. NC Medicaid received approval of Appendix Ks for all four waivers from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), effective March 13, 2020, to March 12, 2021.  
 
 
Previous Behavioral Health Special Bulletins related to COVID-19 are shown below.
Thank you for your dedication and commitment to ensure our North Carolina Medicaid beneficiaries receive the services and treatment they need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Announcement - Free Testing Initiative
The NC Department of Health and Human Services announced a new effort to deploy up to 300 free testing sites in underserved communities. This targeted testing initiative seeks to confront historical health disparities by increasing access to no-cost COVID-19 testing for African American, Latinx/Hispanic and American Indian communities across the state.

A disproportionately high percentage of North Carolina's confirmed cases of COVID-19 have occurred among historically marginalized populations. Mounting evidence shows the members of these populations experience higher rates of COVID-19 mortality and serious complications.

As many as 300 temporary testing sites will be deployed throughout the month of July, including drive-thru and walk-up sites. The initiative will increase testing capacity in more than 100 ZIP codes, providing testing access for 2.2 million African American, Latinx/Hispanic and American Indian individuals. Two vendors have been identified to begin this work, Vidant Health and Orig3n, Inc.

The initiative emphasizes a community testing approach. The awarded vendors are required to connect individuals with medical homes and provide services with culturally and linguistically appropriate standards, working within existing trusted community partnerships; additionally, no payment from the individual will be needed for the testing. Insurance, if available, will be billed but no co-pays or cost-sharing will be asked of anyone seeking testing. Those who are uninsured will have full access to free testing at these sites.

Communities were selected based on low testing capacity and high African American, Latinx/Hispanic and/or American Indian populations. Higher concentration of elderly populations with multiple chronic conditions and higher rates of construction and seasonal farm work were also factors.

For more information on testing, please see the Frequently Asked Questions about Testing. For more information about North Carolina's response to COVID-19, visit   nc.gov/covid19.


Updated:  COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for State Medicaid and Children's Health
Insurance Program (CHIP) Agencies1
Eligibility and Enrollment

Presumptive Eligibility
Can states use hospital presumptive eligibility (HPE) to determine eligibility for individuals seeking coverage on the basis of a disability?

States may be able to help expedite provision of medical assistance to applicants who must meet a disability test through extension of hospital presumptive eligibility to populations excepted from modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) methodologies. See COVID-19 FAQs for State Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Agencies, updated May 5, 2020, FAQ II.E., for additional information related to presumptive eligibility (PE).
The requirements for continuous coverage under section 6008(b)(3) of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act do not apply to individuals receiving coverage during a presumptive eligibility period. Coverage for individuals receiving coverage during a presumptive eligibility period ends for individuals who do not timely submit a full Medicaid application or who are determined not eligible based on submission of a full application. See COVID-19 FAQs on implementation of Section 6008 of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, updated April 13, 2020, Question B.8, available at https://www.medicaid.gov/state-resourcecenter/
downloads/covid-19-section-6008-faqs.pdf, for additional information on the requirements for continuous coverage for individuals in a presumptive eligibility period.

Upcoming Events
Wednesday:  July 8, 2020
Provider Relief Fund Medicaid and CHIP Distribution Webcast 

Time: 4:00 pm
Thursday:  July 9, 2020
Joint NC DMHDDSAS and DHB (NC Medicaid) COVID-19 Update  for NC Providers

Time: 3:00 pm
Friday:  July 10, 2020
Benchmarks' Friday Membership Webinar

Time: 8:30 am
 
Meeting ID: 626 815 379
Password: 081879
One tap mobile
+13126266799,,626815379# US (Chicago)
+19292056099,,626815379# US (New York)
Friday:  July 10, 2020
Q&A WEBINAR FOR VAYA HEALTH NETWORK PROVIDERS

Time: 11:00 am
New:  Monday, July 13, 2020
Addressing the Needs of Families Affected by Substance Abuse Through FAST: A Voluntary, Nonjudicial Program

Time: 1:00 pm
Tuesday:  July 14, 2020
Building Partnerships to Enhance the  Peer Workforce: Panel Discussion

Time: 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm
Tuesday:  July 14, 2020
Partnership for Children of Wayne County Overview

Time: 3:30 pm thru 4:30 pm
Wednesday:  July 15, 2020
The Very Best of NatCon Learning Delivered to Your Desktop

Time: 12:00 pm thru 3:00 pm
Monday:  July 20, 2020 
PCIT Information Calls

Time:  10:00 am
 
Meeting number: 730 385 489
You can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter your meeting number. Or, join by phone: 1-650-479-3207 Access code: 730 385 489 
Thursday, July 23, 2020
Autism and Covid-19:  Teaching the rules in this new norm

Time:  11:30 am thru 1:00 pm
LME/MCO Updates
Please click on each of the following links to view details sent out from each LME/MCO.

Benchmarks' wants to be sure to make the following list handy for our members to visit and suggests a peek at least once per week to find information that may be pertinent to your agency and contracts.