Wednesday, July 26, 2006
CMS offers Kansas funding for Medicaid reform
["CMS to fund state plans for transforming Medicaid to increase quality and lower costs," Press Release, The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 25 July 2006.]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a statement recently announcing the agency's commitment to significant Medicaid reform in the states, and backing up that commitment with funding to encourage innovation:
States will receive $150 million over 2007 and 2008 to fund research and design of ways to transform their Medicaid systems, to the increase quality and efficiency of care, Mark B. McClellan, M.D., Ph.D., administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced today.
“These transformation grants express the core goal of the DRA to give states the kind of flexibility they need to deliver high quality care in an efficient and more economical way,” said Dr. McClellan. “With these grants states can streamline and modernize their systems, stabilize the growth of the program, and protect it into the future.”
Funds for the Medicaid “transformation grants” were authorized by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) and are aimed at state adoption of innovative systems to get more value out of the money they spend providing healthcare to their citizens who are low-income elderly, children and people with disabilities.
A number of the areas of particular interest to CMS have been highlighted in recent Flint Hills Center publications, such as:
- Improving rates of collection from estates of amounts owed under Medicaid.
- Reducing waste, fraud, and abuse under Medicaid, such as reducing improper payment rates.
- Improving coordination of care through care management programs and other steps to prevent complications and duplicative or unnecessary services.
- Implementation of performance-based payment programs to provide rewards and support for high-quality care.
- Implementation of programs to promote personal control over services, with greater emphasis on prevention steps.
The money is there for the taking, but the deadline for the grant submission is fast approaching:
While the DRA set aside $75 million for each of 2007 and 2008, the grant fund solicitation will be for both years at one time. All states will be eligible for a grant and grant amounts will be variable dependent upon the number of states that apply.
No state matching funds are required for these special grants. States must submit applications by September 15, 2006. More information on the grants and how state Medicaid agencies can apply for them is on the CMS Web site at: www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidTransGrants.
[Michael Bond, "Reforming Medicaid in Kansas - A Market-Based Approach," The Flint Hills Center, 2 February 2006.
Roger Van Etten and Brian Vazquez, "Kansas Estate Recovery Primer," The Flint Hills Center, 22 September 2006.]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a statement recently announcing the agency's commitment to significant Medicaid reform in the states, and backing up that commitment with funding to encourage innovation:
States will receive $150 million over 2007 and 2008 to fund research and design of ways to transform their Medicaid systems, to the increase quality and efficiency of care, Mark B. McClellan, M.D., Ph.D., administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced today.
“These transformation grants express the core goal of the DRA to give states the kind of flexibility they need to deliver high quality care in an efficient and more economical way,” said Dr. McClellan. “With these grants states can streamline and modernize their systems, stabilize the growth of the program, and protect it into the future.”
Funds for the Medicaid “transformation grants” were authorized by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) and are aimed at state adoption of innovative systems to get more value out of the money they spend providing healthcare to their citizens who are low-income elderly, children and people with disabilities.
A number of the areas of particular interest to CMS have been highlighted in recent Flint Hills Center publications, such as:
- Improving rates of collection from estates of amounts owed under Medicaid.
- Reducing waste, fraud, and abuse under Medicaid, such as reducing improper payment rates.
- Improving coordination of care through care management programs and other steps to prevent complications and duplicative or unnecessary services.
- Implementation of performance-based payment programs to provide rewards and support for high-quality care.
- Implementation of programs to promote personal control over services, with greater emphasis on prevention steps.
The money is there for the taking, but the deadline for the grant submission is fast approaching:
While the DRA set aside $75 million for each of 2007 and 2008, the grant fund solicitation will be for both years at one time. All states will be eligible for a grant and grant amounts will be variable dependent upon the number of states that apply.
No state matching funds are required for these special grants. States must submit applications by September 15, 2006. More information on the grants and how state Medicaid agencies can apply for them is on the CMS Web site at: www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidTransGrants.
[Michael Bond, "Reforming Medicaid in Kansas - A Market-Based Approach," The Flint Hills Center, 2 February 2006.
Roger Van Etten and Brian Vazquez, "Kansas Estate Recovery Primer," The Flint Hills Center, 22 September 2006.]
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