Medicaid Increased Reimbursement Update - May 16, 2013
The Office of Medical Assistance (OMA) has recently shared that they are still experiencing delays in the enhanced reimburesement process. The OMA hopes that the contracting process will be finalized soon, at which time the payment system will begin processing all claims for physicians who have completed the self-attestation process. One additional note - OMA will be unable to pay the enhanced rate until the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approves the state plan ammendment (SPA). Physicians will remiain in pending status until the American Board of Physician Specialties contract is signed and the SPA is approved by CMS. If you have any questions or concerns about this process, please contact the OMA at 1.800.686.1516.
Medicaid Increased Reimbursement Update - March 5, 2013: The Office of Medical Assistance (OMA) has recently released an update providing additional information about the timeline for increased reimbursement. Currently, no physicians have received confirmation of their enrollment. The OMA's current goal is to provide status updates to all physicians who have completed the registration process by the end of March. This update would let physicians know the status of their application, and if accepted, provide physicians with a timeline for reimbursement. The Ohio AAP will continue to be on top of this issue.
Ohio AAP Supports Proposed Medicaid Expansion - Media Release
The following statement is attributed to Judith T. Romano MD, FAAP, President of the Ohio Chapter American Academy of Pediatrics in response to the announcement that the executive budget for SFY 2013-2014 will include proposed expansion of Medicaid:
“As the President of the Ohio Chapter American Academy of Pediatrics, I represent nearly 4,000 pediatricians throughout Ohio, and we want to thank Governor Kasich for including Medicaid expansion in his executive budget proposal. As pediatricians, we support access to care for all children, and while expansion of Medicaid is a means to that end, it must be executed in conjunction with other elements of the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA).
The ACA included a temporary increase in Medicaid payment rates to at least those of Medicare for specialists, family practices and pediatricians. Over the past several months, media reports have indicated that providers in our state are choosing NOT to accept Medicare patients due to the low profit margin of such patients. However, pediatricians throughout Ohio have been accepting Medicaid patients at rates well below those of Medicare for years and doing so at a loss. The temporary increase in our Medicaid reimbursement to Medicare rates included in the ACA will mean that we are able to expand access to care for more children.
While the Ohio AAP helped secure this two-year Medicaid payment increase, more work remains to be done to make sure Medicaid pays appropriately beyond 2014. We are supportive of Medicaid expansion, but we believe the temporary increase must be made permanent in order to ensure access to care in the long-term for all Ohio children.
Children’s health is an investment in primary prevention, addressing the development of disease at its earliest and most preventable stages. Medicaid expansion will help ensure access to care for those children who have no coverage right now and are falling through the cracks. Children are our future and our success as a state and as a nation is dependent on them. We must support their physical, cognitive and social-emotional health and development so that they may reach their potential. Access to high quality Pediatric care is a necessity for this to become a reality.”
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MITS Update - January 25, 2013 - The Office of Medical Assistance has extended the grace period until Saturday, February 2. For additional details, please see the below posts.
"The Crucial Role of Recess in School" - Pediatrics has recently published an article that emphasizes the importance of recess in schools. The article, which can be found here, is the work of Robert Murray, MD and Catherine Ramstetter, PhD, both members of the Chapter's Home and School Health committee. If you are interested in finding out more or becoming part of this committee, please contact Elizabeth Dawson at edawson@ohioaap.org.
MITS Update - December 29, 2012 - Due to the advocacy efforts of the Ohio AAP and its partners, the Office of Medical Assistance (Medicaid) announced today that they will now be providing a two (2) week grace period for registering to receive the enhanced reimbursement. A memo detailing this announcement can be found here.
Additionally, you can also find a document that outlines the process for attaining MITS log-ins and passwords for Group Practices by clicking here.
MITS Update - December 26, 2012- The Office of Medical Assistance memo regarding the primary care physician enhanced reimbursement can be found here.
A few notes about the memo:
-Physicians can register starting January 1, 2013
-Physicians will only be eligible for enhanced reimbursement beginning the day they attest
-The Office of Medical Assistance is working to provide physicians with some sort of grace period, however, there is currently no grace period in place.
Excerpt from the release:
"What do I have to do to apply to receive the enhanced payments?
Physicians MUST REQUEST the reimbursement by self-attesting that they are an eligible provider by applying through the MITS portal on the Ohio Medicaid's website. In order to register, applying physicians MUST have a current MITS account with an active login and PIN. Providers can apply beginning on January 1, 2013.
Physicians can access the MITS portal here:
https://www.ohmits.com/prosecure/authtam/login?HOSTNAME=portal.ohmits.com
Physicians who do not have a MITS account can sign up for one at:
https://portal.ohmits.com/public/Providers/tabid/43/Default.aspx
If additional assistance is needed regarding signing up for a MITS account, please call the Medicaid Provider Call Center at 1-800-686-1516."
MITS Update - December 18, 2012- Update from Melissa Wervey Arnold, Ohio APP Executive Director:
We wanted to provide you with a brief update on the provider portal for the Medicaid enhanced reimbursement to PCPs.
First and most critical, the portal will not be ready by January 1, 2013. The likely scenario is that it will be online the 3rd week in January and eligible providers will have a window to apply and receive retroactive reimbursement. We are advocating for a large window for the initial enrollment, but to date, don’t have an answer on how long that window will be to register.
The Office of Medical Assistance (Medicaid) is preparing a public document to share that will provide more information and steps to register. We have given them feedback on the most commonly asked questions we have heard from you, so we are hoping that document addresses those questions and concerns.
Finally, in the initial meeting about the portal, OMA thought that they would be able to link providers to their certifying websites to allow for easier attestation. However, that no longer is feasible, and instead providers will have to list their specialty board, including certification number and effective dates. We will forward more info as it becomes available, and we will be updating our website as we receive more information.
Feel free to check back often, as we will post updates on the system as they become available, as well as a link to the portal when it is able to be accessed. Further information about MITS, along with contact information for any of your questions, can be found here: MITS Home
Ohio Senator Shannon Jones promotes Bike Helmet Safety - Ohio State Senator Shannon Jones (R, District 7) recorded a short video to promote bike helmet safety, specifically the Ohio AAP 'Put a Lid on it' campaign. This campaign is focused on raising awareness about the important issure of injury prevention. Senator Jones' video can be found here.
A Win for Children AND Pediatricians - The U.S. Supreme Court today ruled by a vote of 5-4 that the Affordable Care Act is constitutional. The AAP commends the decision as a historic step forward for children and their pediatricians. This ruling preserves key child health provisions, including the law's protections against pre-existing condition exclusions, Bright Futures preventive services being offered at no cost to families, and the payment parity provision, which increases Medicaid payment rates to Medicare levels for 2013 & 2014. For additional detail, see the Academy's coverage on www.aap.org.
Safety, Sandwiches and Slapshots - The 2012 Foundation Fundraiser will take place on Tuesday, August 7, 2012 from 11:30am to 1:30pm (VIP tours from 1:30-2:30pm) at Nationwide Arena in Downtown Columbus.
Safety, Sandwiches and Slapshots will be a fun event, focused around the Ohio AAP Foundation's main goals of Injury Prevention, Obesity Prevention, Early Literacy and Foster Care support. For more information, or to register for the event, click here.
Building Mental Wellness - Even though the first wave of the Building Mental Wellness (BMW) project is well under way, it is not too early to start thinking about the next wave of the project. Wave 2 of BMW will likely begin in November 2012 and will allow additional practices to take part in this exciting project! If you would like to be involved in the next wave of the project, please contact Sean O'Hanlon at sohanlon@ohioaap.org.
Injury Prevention Learning Collaborative - Recruitment has begun for the Injury Prevention Learning Collaborative. If you would like more information about the project, or if you would like to participate, please contact Sean O'Hanlon at sohanlon@ohioaap.org.
New Early Literacy Program Launched - The Ohio AAP Foundation is in the process of developing a new Early Literacy program. Due to lack of federal dollars, Reach Out and Read Ohio is no longer in official existence under the Ohio AAP Foundation. The Foundation is excited about moving forward with new opportunities in supporting early literacy while maintaining its past relationships throughout the state. If you are interested in being part of this process, please contact Sean O'Hanlon at sohanlon@ohioaap.org or call (614) 846-6258.