Massachusetts Selects Two MCOs, Moving Selected Medicaid Populations To Health Insurance Marketplace

News Report | October 15, 2017

On October 3, 2017, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) announced it had selected two Medicaid managed care organizations (MCOs)—Boston Medical Center Health Plan and Tufts Health Public Plans—that will enroll about 200,000 of the...

Virginia Medicaid Launches Mandatory MLTSS Enrollment; Specialty Behavioral Health Services Included

News Report | October 15, 2017

On August 1, 2017, Virginia Medicaid launched enrollment for Commonwealth Coordinated Care Plus (CCC Plus), a new statewide Medicaid managed long-term services and supports (MLTSS) program that will provide integrated specialty behavioral health services. The CCC Plus is projected...

ACLU Sues Michigan For Allowing Religious Criteria To Exclude Prospective Foster & Adoptive Parents

News Report | October 15, 2017

On September 20, 2017, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan sued the state to challenge its policies allowing contracted faith-based child placement agencies to use religious criteria exclude prospective foster and adoptive parents. The plaintiffs allege that...

Arkansas Medicaid To Launch Provider-Led Shared Savings Entities For Members With Developmental Disabilities Or Mental Illness

News Report | October 15, 2017

On October 1, 2017, the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) began implementing the Medicaid Provider-led Arkansas Shared Savings Entity (PASSE) organized care model to coordinate care for about 30,000 beneficiaries with a developmental disability (about 8,000 people) or...

San Francisco Launches New Database To Improve & Streamline Services For Homeless People

News Report | October 15, 2017

The County of San Francisco is rolling out a new database to coordinate assessment and referral for people experiencing homelessness. The database, called the Online Navigation and Entry (ONE) System, has been implemented in May 2017 in the City...

New York DOL Rules Home Care Agencies Not Required To Pay For Meals & Sleep Breaks On 24-Hour Shifts

News Report | October 15, 2017

On October 6, 2017, the New York State Department of Labor (NYDOL) issued clarifications to its minimum wage rules, one of which stated that home care provider organizations are not required to pay workers on a 24-hour shift at...

New York State Adds Adult Care Centers, Schools, Child Care Programs & Day Care Centers As Telehealth Originating Sites

News Report | October 15, 2017

The State of New York has added adult care centers, adult schools, child care programs, and day care centers to the list of acceptable telehealth originating sites. For state residents with health care services provided via remote patient monitoring,...

20-Minute Screening Evaluates Cognitive Impairment Due To Schizophrenia

News Report | October 15, 2017

A 20-minute cognitive screening test is being developed for outpatient settings intended for people diagnosed with schizophrenia is able to assess the person’s degree of cognitive impairment and functional ability in terms of short-term memory, mental agility, and organizational...

60% Of Behavioral Health Sector Mergers & Acquisitions During 2017 Are By Private Equity

News Report | October 15, 2017

About 62% of mergers and acquisitions in the behavioral health sector that closed during the first three quarters of 2017 were by private equity investors. In total, 38 publicly announced deals closed between January and September 2017; about 53%...

Pennsylvania Child Abuse Reports Rose 41% Between 2014 & 2016

News Report | October 15, 2017

Between 2014 and 2016, child abuse reports across 13 Pennsylvania counties rose by 41%, and across the counties (Allegheny, Bucks, Cambria, Centre, Crawford, Dauphin, Delaware, Erie, Fayette, Luzerne, Monroe, Philadelphia, and York) the increases ranged from 17% to 78%. In...

Nightingale Analytics & VideoDoc To Launch Online Dementia Diagnosis Service In Ireland

News Report | October 15, 2017

Nightingale Analytics, in partnership with VideoDoc, has created an online dementia diagnosis service to be launched in Ireland in April, 2018. The initial launch will be followed by launches in the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States later...

New Jersey Medicaid To Move I/DD Community Care Waiver To The Comprehensive Waiver

News Report | October 15, 2017

In mid-September 2017, the New Jersey Department of Human Services (DHS), Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) informed beneficiaries with intellectual/developmental disabilities (I/DD) that their supportive services provided through the 1915(c) Community Care Waiver (CCW) would be transitioned to the...

Nearly 40% Of State & Federal Prisoners Pose No Public Safety Risk

News Report | October 15, 2017

About 39.5% of state and federal prisoners are unnecessarily incarcerated because they present no risk to public safety. These offenders represent about 576,000 of the total 1.46 million state and federal prisoners serving time for 370 different crime categories....

U.S. Adult Suicide Attempts Rise Over Past Decade

News Report | October 15, 2017

Between 2004 and 2013, the percentage of adults in the United States who reported making a suicide attempt during the past three years increased from 0.62% in 2004 to 0.79% in 2013. The number of suicide attempts by adults...

Delaware Bans Organ Transplant Discrimination On The Sole Basis Of A Recipient’s Disability, Including I/DD

News Report | October 15, 2017

On September 13, 2017, Delaware Governor John Carney signed legislation to ban organ transplant discrimination on the sole basis of a recipient's disability, including intellectual and developmental disability (I/DD). A number of medical and psychosocial criteria can be used by...

SNF Occupancy Rates Down From 91% In November 2016 To 82% In June 2017

News Report | October 15, 2017

Skilled nursing facility (SNF) occupancy decreased by 9.3 percentage points from 91% in November 2016, to 81.7% at the end of June 2017. The decrease was attributed to a change in the Medicare and Medicaid payer mix between March 2017...

12% Of California Public Employees Use Health Plan Price Transparency Tool

News Report | October 15, 2017

After the California state employee health plan launched a price transparency tool in 2014, about 12% of covered employees used it to search for prices on lab tests, office visits, and advanced imaging services. Among those who used the...

CMS Cuts Promotion Of & Opportunities To Enroll In Health Insurance Marketplace

News Report | October 15, 2017

On August 31, 2017, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Center For Consumer Information & Insurance Oversight (CCIIO) announced funding and other changes affecting promotions for the health insurance marketplace and enrollment opportunities. These include: A 90%...

United States Has 626 Health Systems

News Report | October 15, 2017

At the end of 2016, there were 626 health systems in the United States, according to new research from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). A health system is defined as including at least one hospital and...

Average Family Premiums For Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Rose 3% To $18,764 In 2017

News Report | October 15, 2017

The average family premium for employer-sponsored health insurance rose 3% to $18,764 in 2017. The average single-coverage premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance rose 4% to $6,690 in 2017. These findings were reported in “Health Benefits In 2017: Stable Coverage,...

Kent County Michigan Launches Performance-Based Foster Care Pilot

News Report | October 8, 2017

On October 1, 2017, Kent County, Michigan and the state Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) launched a five-year performance-based pilot to improve outcomes for children in foster care incentivizing safety, permanence, and placement stability. For the pilot,...

New Jersey To Launch $30 Million Performance-Based Enhanced Care Management Program For Opioid Use Disorder

News Report | October 8, 2017

The New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) is preparing to launch a performance-based enhanced care management (ECM) program valued at $30 million annually that will serve individuals with an opioid use...

Annual Autism Treatment Costs $19,000 Lower For Children Who Received Services Via Early Start Denver Model

News Report | October 8, 2017

Children diagnosed with autism at age 12 to 48 months who completed the two-year Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) autism treatment intervention had overall treatment costs over the subsequent three to five years that were about $19,000 lower than...

ACF Rescinds Guidance On State TANF Waivers For Work Requirements

News Report | October 8, 2017

On August 30, 2017, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Family Assistance (OFA) issued a notice informing states that it was rescinding its 2012 guidance allowing waivers for meeting the work requirements of the Temporary Assistance...

Between 2000 & 2015 U.S. Life Expectancy Rose, But At A Slower Rate Than Expected Due To Opioid Overdose Deaths

News Report | October 8, 2017

Life expectancy rose in the United States from 76.8 years in 2000 to 78.8 years in 2015, but during the same period, drug-poisoning deaths, mostly related to opioids, contributed to reducing life expectancy by 0.28 years. From 2000 to...

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