Leveraging the Buying Value Resources to Advance Health Equity Measurement
On Tuesday, September 24, State Health and Value Strategies hosted a webinar showcasing how the Buying Value suite of resources can help states, employers, consumer organizations and providers implement quality measures to incentivize high-quality, high-value, equitable healthcare. The webinar highlighted two free, Excel-based tools, the Buying Value Measure Selection Tool and the Buying Value Benchmark Repository.
New CMS Guidance: CAA Requirements for the Provision of Medicaid and CHIP Services to Incarcerated Youth
On Monday, August 19, State Health and Value Strategies hosted a webinar on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) recently released State Health Official (SHO) letter providing implementation guidance on the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (CAA) requirements that states provide specific services for children and youth eligible for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program and involved in the juvenile justice system. During the webinar, experts from Manatt Health provided a detailed overview of CMS’ guidance in the SHO letter and discussed key operational and policy considerations for states.
Revisions to the Federal Standards for Race and Ethnicity Data Collection
On Monday, July 15, State Health and Value Strategies hosted a webinar on the revisions to the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Statistical Policy Directive No. 15: Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity. During the webinar, experts from the State Health Access Data Assistance Center (SHADAC) and Health Equity Solutions reviewed the new OMB standards for race and ethnicity data collection, described the history of federally-defined race and ethnicity data collection standards, and highlighted the motivations for the revisions. The webinar also featured a discussion of the implications for health equity and provided guidance for implementing the standards in partnership with key stakeholders.
CMS Final Rules Part 3: Home and Community-Based Services
On Thursday, June 6, State Health and Value Strategies hosted the final webinar in a three-part webinar series on CMS’ highly anticipated final rules: (1) Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program Managed Care Access, Finance, and Quality (the “Managed Care Rule”), which focuses on managed care delivery systems; and (2) Ensuring Access to Medicaid Services (the “Access Rule”), which focuses on fee-for-service delivery systems and program improvements for home and community-based services (HCBS) across delivery systems. Building on Parts 1 and 2 of the webinar series, Part 3 provided a detailed overview of provisions in the Access Rule that aim to enhance access to HCBS, standardize quality measures and reporting requirements, and help address long-standing shortages in the direct care workforce.
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CMS Final Rules Part 2: Managed Care Payments, Quality, and Oversight
On Monday, May 20, State Health and Value Strategies hosted the second in a three-part webinar series on CMS’ highly anticipated final rules: (1) Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program Managed Care Access, Finance, and Quality (the “Managed Care Rule”), which focuses on managed care delivery systems; and (2) Ensuring Access to Medicaid Services (the “Access Rule”), which focuses on fee-for-service delivery systems and program improvements for home and community-based services (HCBS) across delivery systems. Part 2 focused exclusively on key provisions in the Managed Care Rule related to provider payment, financing, quality, and in lieu of services.
CMS Final Rules Part 1: Access, Enrollee Engagement, and Provider Payment Transparency
On Thursday, May 9, State Health and Value Strategies hosted the first in a three-part webinar series on CMS’ highly anticipated final rules: (1) Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program Managed Care Access, Finance, and Quality (the “Managed Care Rule”), which focuses on managed care delivery systems; and (2) Ensuring Access to Medicaid Services (the “Access Rule”), which focuses on fee-for-service delivery systems and program improvements for home and community-based services (HCBS) across delivery systems. During Part 1 of the webinar series, experts from Manatt Health provided an overview of the provisions in both rules regarding access monitoring, enrollee engagement, provider payment transparency, and HCBS.
CMS Final Rule on Medicaid and CHIP Eligibility, Enrollment, and Renewal
On Thursday, April 11, State Health and Value Strategies hosted a webinar on CMS’ recently released final rule, “Medicaid Program; Streamlining the Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Basic Health Program Application, Eligibility Determination, Enrollment and Renewal Processes.” Experts from Manatt Health reviewed key Medicaid and CHIP provisions in the final rule and discussed considerations for state policymakers as they prepare to build upon their current platforms and planning processes to comply with the federal requirements.
Mapping Health Equity: New Tools for States
On Thursday, February 22, State Health and Value Strategies hosted a webinar to introduce two new interactive tools: the Health Equity Impact Tool (the Impact Tool) and the Health Equity Policy Tool (the Policy Tool). The Impact Tool is a multi-part online evaluation for state agencies to examine their equity work at a high level while the Policy Tool is a framework for reviewing and evaluating the impact on equity of current or proposed policies. During the webinar, experts from Health Equity Solutions reviewed how and why the tools were created and how to use the tools to understand the scope of equity work for a state agency.
Promoting Continuity of Coverage and Care for Children During Unwinding and Beyond
On Thursday, January 18, State Health and Value Strategies hosted a webinar to discuss the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS’) recently released suite of Medicaid unwinding-related guidance that includes a focus on ensuring eligible children maintain Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage. During the webinar, experts from Manatt Health reviewed high-value strategies outlined in CMS’ guidance that states can implement to promote continuity of coverage for children and discussed key considerations for state policymakers.
Preparing to Implement the 12-Month Continuous Enrollment for Children Requirement
On Thursday, November 16, State Health and Value Strategies hosted a webinar on provisions included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (CAA) that require states to provide children up to age 19 with 12 months of continuous enrollment (CE) in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program starting January 1, 2024. During the webinar, experts from Manatt Health reviewed recent sub-regulatory guidance from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and considerations for states as they prepare to newly take up CE for children or modify existing CE policies to meet the CAA requirement.