Jul, 13, 2020

State Health Updates: July 10

COVID-19 State Updates

  • Maryland – The Maryland Health Benefit Exchange announced it is entering the final week for Marylanders to enroll in health insurance coverage through the Coronavirus Emergency Special Enrollment Period and the Easy Enrollment Health Insurance Program. Individuals have until July 15 to enroll in coverage. Nearly 53,000 residents have enrolled since mid-March.
  • Nebraska – The state updated its COVID-19 dashboard this week to include race and ethnicity data.
  • North Carolina
    • The Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) issued a Request For Proposals for an initiative that will send up to 250 community health workers to historically underserved areas with high COVID-19 caseloads. Starting in August, teams of trained frontline public health professionals will connect North Carolinians affected by COVID-19 with needed services and support.
    • NCDHHS issued a Statewide Standing Order for COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing. The order allows testing sites to collect and submit samples to a laboratory for COVID-19 testing without requiring a specific order and authorizes testing sites to receive results directly from laboratories. This will facilitate community-based testing sites and reduce barriers to testing, especially for members of historically marginalized populations who may be less likely to have a medical home.
  • Oregon – The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services extended its emergency order for health insurance companies through Aug. 2, 2020. The order requires health insurance companies to provide at least a 60-day grace period to pay any past-due premiums; pay claims for any covered services during the first 30 days of the grace period; extend all deadlines for reporting claims and other communications, and provide members with communication options that meet physical distancing standards. SHVS also has an expert perspective on state decisions to extend grace periods.

Other State Updates

  • Louisiana – The Louisiana Department of Health, in partnership with Adaptation Health, issued a Request for Information (RFI) for the Louisiana Medicaid Innovation Challenge. The Innovation Challenge supports Louisiana Medicaid by identifying market-ready solutions to engage members through the appropriate use of technology.
  • North Carolina – NCDHHS announced that the state’s NCCARE360 technology platform is now available statewide. NCCARE360 is used to coordinate whole-person care and unites traditional healthcare settings with organizations that address non-medical drivers of health, such as food, housing, transportation, employment and interpersonal safety.
  • Oregon – The Oregon Health Authority hosted a public meeting on July 9 of the PartnerSHIP, which is tasked with developing the 2020-2024 State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP). The meeting reviewed priority populations and recommendation to center Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC); provided feedback on implementation framework; and reviewed and approved final strategies.
  • Virginia – The Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services announced two new dashboards that support the agency’s goals for greater transparency and gives stakeholders access to key financial information about the state’s managed care programs that oversee 98 percent of the state’s 1.6 million Medicaid members.
  • Washington – The Health Care Authority announced that through the state’s Cascade Care public option procurement process, they have identified five carriers as apparently successful bidders. The agency will review the bids and enter contract negotiations to ensure residents are able to enroll in a Cascade Care plan beginning November 1.
  • Wisconsin  — The Department of Health Services (DHS) is inviting interested organizations to apply to pilot a new hub and spoke model intended to help Wisconsin Medicaid members with substance use disorders and other physical and behavioral health issues that challenge their efforts in recovery.