All States/Territories

ADvancing States has released the association’s 2016 policy priorities. The priorities document outlines issues and recommendations regarding a wide range of health and human services programs important to older adults and people with disabilities. These include issues such as: • Implementation of the Older Americans Act reauthorization; • Medicaid LTSS innovations; • Support for caregivers; and • Employment for people with disabilities •

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released their monthly report for March 2016 on Medicaid and CHIP application, eligibility determination, and enrollment data. States provides data to CMS on factors related to key application, eligibility and enrollment processes using the Medicaid and CHIP Performance Indicator Project. The data is then used to inform CMS on the operations of the programs in each state and to share state performance data publicly.

The Bipartisan Policy Center released a new report, as a part of its Senior Health and Housing Task Force. The report examines the intersection between senior health and living at home, as well as noting the significant limitations of appropriate housing for a rapidly expanding senior population. The report offers a number of recommendations.

On Wednesday, May 11, the Administration for Community Living (ACL) published a final rule that implements the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) of 2014 transfer of the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) from the Department of Education to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The final regulations will remain in effect until Friday, July 1, 2016.

On October 6, 2015, a public workshop was convened by the Institute of Medicine and the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education to learn about the supports that are needed for community living and maximizing independence. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine published a summary of the workshop that includes the policy and research that is needed to support independent living in the community.

The annual 2014 Medicaid Managed Care Enrollment Report created by the Division of Managed Care Plans and the Data and Systems Group in the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services at CMS, with assistance from Mathematica Policy Research, was released this week. Data on Medicaid enrollment is collected from every state, territory, and the District of Columbia, and is broken down into categories by program, population, and state. The report provides tables with nationwide data and data by state.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released their monthly report for February 2016 on Medicaid and CHIP application, eligibility determination, and enrollment data. States provides data to CMS on factors related to key application, eligibility and enrollment processes using the Medicaid and CHIP Performance Indicator Project. The data is then used to inform CMS on the operations of the programs in each state and to share state performance data publicly.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a final rule in April 2016, that implements mental health parity in Medicaid, a requirement of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA). The National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD) published a comprehensive summary of the final rule.

On April 21, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule on managed care in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). This document contains a table that serves as a reference guide to the implementation dates for provisions in the final rule.

On April 21, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule on managed care in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The final rule enhances transparency in Medicaid and CHIP managed care, supports states in contracting with health plans that offer higher-value care, improves consumer and stakeholder engagement, and, where feasible, aligns quality measurement and improvement in Medicaid and CHIP managed care with other systems of care.