In place of the Policy Advisory Council (PAC) update, the county team is using a newsletter in the style of County Connections to communicate critical information.
The content is designed for county human services directors and leadership.
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Letter from the Executive Director
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month
This month presents an opportunity to underscore the importance of our comprehensive, collaborative work to develop an equitable, accountable and effective behavioral health system that improves the health and well-being of Coloradans. It also serves as an opportunity to celebrate all the amazing work in process to achieve this shared goal. Consider this:
Investment. First, we want to thank the Polis-Primavera Administration and the legislature for continued investments in Medicaid’s behavioral health budget, with a funding increase of over $400 million since 2018, and a behavioral health budget over
$1 billion for the 2022-23 fiscal year. We also invite you to celebrate the $450 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding approved by the Polis-Primavera Administration and the legislature, generated from the Behavioral Health Transformation Task Force Recommendations report and designed to transform the behavioral health system to the betterment of all Coloradans.
Legislation. These transformational investments are memorialized in a host of bills moving through the legislature this 2022 session. These bills establish the Behavioral Health Administration (BHA) HB22-1278, improve access and quality outcomes, invest in local behavioral health programs, enhance physical and behavioral health integration with Department grants HB22-1302, invest in the establishment of universal contracts, create transparency into pay disparities and opportunities to close those disparities HB22-1268, redefine the safety net, improve care for historically marginalized communities and more.
Community Mental Health Center (CMHC) and Safety Net Accountability and Efficiency. The Department is also working to increase behavioral health provider accountability and relationship modernization in four areas: (1) new cost reporting templates, protocols and technical assistance will be released this month and will be used to calculate reimbursement rates for CMHCs effective July 1, 2023, expanding to all safety net providers the next year; (2) a universal contract will define obligations of safety net providers in meeting the needs of their communities while also holding payers like Medicaid and the BHA more accountable to behavioral health providers; (3) value based payments will align with universal contracts and will create and reward shared patient outcome and health equity goals; and (4) providers will identify opportunities to reduce administrative burden for discussion with HCPF, CDHS and the BHA.
Thank you for your collaborative efforts to revitalize, strengthen and transform our behavioral health system and increase accountability across all aspects of the industry. We appreciate your partnership and your passionate engagement.
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Medical Programs Renewal Revamp Training
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In February and March 2022 HCPF offered training on the new renewal revamp project for Medicaid and CHP+. This project is the foundation for renewal processing for Medical Assistance programs going forward as well as being central to the requirements at the end of the PHE. It is critical for all of us to be well versed and knowledgeable regarding the newly implemented policies and system changes. As a result, HCPF is monitoring eligibility worker completion of training for Medical Assistance programs. The purpose of this article is to provide you with a report of members of your staff who have not taken the required Training, Medical Assistance Renewal Revamp.
This is a mandatory training that requires 100% completion within the designated timeframe for all eligibility workers who have access to Medical Assistance programs. Currently, our data shows 30% of eligibility workers statewide have completed the required training.
Staff members have the option to either complete the live webinar recorded version or the web-based training. The trainings can be found in SDD’s COLearn LMS at: colearn.csod.com under the following titles:
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Medical Assistance Renewal Process (Renewal Revamp) *Web-Based Training—This is a high-level overview, providing a general description of the renewal revamp and suited for users who perform intake or those who need to become familiar with the process.
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Medical Assistance Renewal Process (Renewal Revamp) *Live Webinar Recording—This provides more in-depth details and is geared towards users who work on renewals for Medical Assistance.
If staff have completed the live recording or the web-based training, and received a certificate of completion, they are in compliance and do not need to complete this series again. Staff members who did not attend the live recording or complete the web-based training must complete this required training by no later than May 31, 2022.
Staff members who have a COLearn account can access the training by logging in to colearn.csod.com.
Staff members who do not yet have a COLearn account can create an account here:
100% of eligibility workers will need to complete the training by no later than May 31, 2022, to maintain compliance with training requirements.
Please review the attached report and filter by eligibility site to see which staff member needs to complete the training. We will begin sending this report out weekly. When you open the report, you may need to enable editing and enable content before you can filter for each county.
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Thank you so very much for your partnership as we together engage on this renewal revamp journey.
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Inter-Agency Transfer Procedure
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Section 10 CCR 2505-10-8.100.3.C - Transferring Requirements
To avoid unnecessary delays in processing, this document should be followed when a family or individual moves from one county to another within Colorado, We know that some of the terminology in the document is outdated (it was written in 2012), but it is still relevant and should be followed.
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Below are the resources available on the renewal process and the templates. In addition, our communications team just posted a toolkit to encourage members to update their contact information.
Toolkits for Partners
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County Admin Rules Technical Assistance Meetings
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Technical Assistance meetings are scheduled to review new guidance based on the new county administration rules. During these meetings, the memo authors and other staff will be available to answer questions.
Below is the link to join. Any and all county staff are encouraged to attend.
Monday, May 9, 12-1:30 p.m.
Or dial: (US) +1 347-380-8578 PIN: 483 038 525#
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New Federal Poverty Level Charts
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Income guidelines are now available for the Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) Medicaid program and the Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) program effective April 1, 2022.
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Medicaid Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) and CHIP Application Processing Time Report Released by CMS
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released its fourth Medicaid Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Application Processing Time Report. This report shows the average number of calendar days that elapsed between the date the state agency received an initial application and the date a final MAGI eligibility determination was made.
The data included in this brief represents states’ Medicaid and CHIP eligibility and enrollment activity for the February through April 2021 period, and was submitted to CMS by state Medicaid and CHIP agencies as part of the Medicaid and CHIP Eligibility and Enrollment Performance Indicators process. Nationally, among the 48 states reporting data to CMS’ specifications for February-April 2021, more than 51% of MAGI determinations at application were completed in under 24 hours. Nearly 71% were completed in less than 7 days.
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County Relations Team Introduces
Customer Relationship Management System
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Do you need help? Do you have a question? Does a case need to be escalated? There are two ways you can contact the HCPF County Relations team.
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County Relations Web Form—try this method first. It allows you to enter details to help us resolve your issues.
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County Relations E-mail—You can still contact us by email at [email protected]. Your email to us will automatically create a service ticket with your email included. We cannot open encrypted messages within our ticketing system.
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Overflow Processing Center
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At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government declared a Public Health Emergency (PHE). As a result, most Health First Colorado and Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) members have remained enrolled (known as Continuous Coverage, or “locked-in”) and have been eligible to receive benefits during the PHE.
At the end of the PHE, these members will require an eligibility review within the timeframe given by our federal partners at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The Department received funding for the Overflow Processing Center (OPC), which will assist counties with the end of PHE workload and then will continue to assist with backlogs of Health First Colorado and CHP+ applications, eligibility determinations, and redeterminations ongoing.
Prowers County has been selected as the vendor for the OPC. They are located in Granada, CO and are a different entity from Prowers Department of Human Services (DHS).
The Department excited to announce that the Overflow Processing Center (OPC) is fully staffed! All OPC staff is currently attending training with the Staff Development Center (SDC). The OPC will implement a soft launch with one or two selected counties to finalize their internal processes, quality, timeliness and the customer experience so they are able to seamlessly accept work from other eligibility partners.
The OPC will release a launch announcement that will include resources such as an Operational Memo, FAQ and information on how eligibility sites can request their assistance.
The Department’s goal is to keep eligibility sites informed about the status of Overflow Processing Center and to continue to partner through the challenges resulting from the Public Health Emergency.
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The CDC has approved an additional booster dose for people who may be at higher risk of severe outcomes from COVID-19. People over the age of 50 can now get an additional booster four months after their prior dose to increase their protection.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) fully approved the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine on Jan. 31, 2022. The Moderna vaccine has been available under emergency use authorization (EUA) for individuals 18 years of age and older since Dec. 18, 2020.
The COVID-19 Pfizer booster is approved for anyone 12 and older. The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment encourages all Coloradans age 12 and up to get a booster dose as soon as possible if it has been at least six months since they got their second dose of Pfizer or Moderna, or at least two months since they got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
As a reminder, children ages 5-11 are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccines and boosters are common practice in routine childhood vaccination. Many vaccines require multiple doses at specific intervals to be most effective. Anyone with questions about boosters is encouraged to speak with their health care provider.
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Recent Memo Series Issued to Counties
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OM 22-019
The purpose of this Operational Memo is to detail the requirements process for county
departments of human/social services to submit county-created communications to the
Department of Health Care Policy & Financing (the Department) for review and
approval, following County Administration Rules at 10 CCR 2505-5 1.020.8.
OM 22-018
The purpose of this Operational Memo is to set expectations and provide guidance
regarding the federally required Reporting Year (RY) Payment Error Rate Measurement
(PERM) audit for Medical Assistance eligibility determinations. The audience for this
memo is all county departments of human/social services, Medical Assistance (MA) Sites, and Eligibility Application Partners (EAPs), collectively known throughout this
memo as Eligibility Sites.
The Department of Health Care Policy & Financing (the Department or HCPF) and
eligibility sites who conduct eligibility determinations are subject to review and
compliance with federal audit requirements.
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Department Contacts & Resources
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