Medicaid e-News: Eastern Iowa Brain Injury Group Benefits from Amerigroup Laptop Contribution

August 19, 2020 | Issue 8 | Volume 5

Success Story

Eastern Iowa Brain Injury Group Benefits from Amerigroup Laptop Contribution

A donation of laptops to a clubhouse for Iowans with brain injuries is helping members maintain access to existing or modified Medicaid services during COVID-19.

Amerigroup Iowa contributed four Chromebook laptop computers to Empower House, which is located in Davenport.

The computers will allow Empower House members to make virtual connections, including through social activities and programs.

"Amerigroup Iowa is pleased to partner with Empower House to ensure individuals have the resources to stay connected, promote health and wellness, and enable emotional and social support," said Jeffrey Jones, president, Amerigroup Iowa. "This program is an extension of our digital-first approach as a company, to connect with members when they want and how they want it, putting them at the center."

The four Chromebooks are part of a larger statewide effort by Amerigroup Iowa that has resulted in the donation of 200 laptops, many of which have benefitted at-risk young people transitioning out of foster care or other residential care and into an independent adulthood. The project is in partnership with the Youth Policy Institute of Iowa.

News and Announcements

Disaster Relief Resources

There are many efforts underway to get help to those who have been affected by the derecho on August 10. The DHS website is the best place to access our resources all in one place. Items shared through social media may not be complete or have all the information you need to ensure access the correct resources.

For information on DHS derecho recovery resources, including food assistance replacement, visit our site here.

Grants Available for HCBS, SUD, and MH Providers

The IME is now accepting applications from Home- and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver and habilitation direct service providers, substance use disorder (SUD), and mental health (MH) service providers to receive a grant from the Department to help offset impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The IME will be distributing a total of $50 million in grants to providers. This money was provided to the State under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The $50 million will be divided between HCBS ($30 million), MH ($10 million), and SUD ($10 million) providers. This funding is being distributed through the state and is different from the federal funds Medicaid providers may have already received.

Eligible provider types for both Fee-for-Service and Managed Care may apply online for a grant from the IME. The IME will determine the payment amount each provider receives, splitting the funding proportionally based on respective claims data from State Fiscal Year 2019 (SFY19).

More details can be found in Informational Letter 2149-MC-FF-CVD.

Application Portal for the Provider Relief Fund Reopened

On August 10, 2020, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the reopening of the application portal for the Provider Relief Fund for eligible providers who missed the initial application deadline.

The reopening of the application portal allows providers who received nominal automatic payments from the first general distribution, but did not apply for additional funds by the initial June 3, 2020, deadline or returned these automatic payments, to now apply for Provider Relief Fund payments.

The deadline has been extended to August 28, 2020.

Member Open Choice Period Starts September 1, 2020

A majority of current IA Health Link and Hawki members will be in an open choice period starting September 1, 2020, through October 30, 2020. Members may change their Managed Care Organization (MCO) for any reason during this time.

Members will begin receiving materials materials in the mail later this month.

Members are not being reassigned and do not have to change MCOs if they don't want to. If members want to keep things just the way they are, they do not have to do anything.

Members who wish to change MCOs must submit their request to IME Member Services starting September 1, 2020.

You can find more information on the DHS website.

Register for Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) Stakeholder Meeting

Registration is now open for the first in a series of stakeholder informational meetings on Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) implementation. The sessions will be led by the IME and the Managed Care Organizations (MCOs), and will include representatives from CareBridge, the MCO EVV solution.

The first session will be held virtually on August 31, 2020, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. The focus of the first session will be provider agencies. Future stakeholder meetings will focus on Individual Consumer Directed Attendant Care (I-CDAC) and Consumer Choices Options (CCO) providers.

Providers interested in attending the August 31, 2020, virtual meeting, can register online. The deadline to register is 5 p.m. on August 28, 2020.