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439,000 Added to PA Medicaid Rolls

150,000 Pennsylvanians have enrolled in Medicaid since the Wolf administration officially launched its HealthChoices expansion on April 27.
Added to the 289,000 who enrolled during the Corbett administration’s Healthy Pennsylvania program, that means about 439,000 Pennsylvanians have obtained Medicaid coverage since the state expanded its Medicaid program as authorized by the 2010 federal health care reform law.
To learn more about the latest Medicaid enrollments, their financial impact on the state, and how the HealthChoices expansion works, see this Wolf administration news release.

2015-07-27T06:00:19+00:00July 27th, 2015|Affordable Care Act, HealthChoices PA, Healthy PA|Comments Off on 439,000 Added to PA Medicaid Rolls

State Shares Preliminary Thoughts on HealthChoices Procurement

In anticipation of releasing a request for proposals later this year seeking health insurers interested in participating in Pennsylvania’s HealthChoices program for Medicaid beneficiaries, the state’s Department of Human Services (DHS) issued a request for information (RFI) in late May seeking input from stakeholders and interested parties on what the state might do through its next generation of HealthChoices contracts to improve the program and its delivery of care.
Now that the deadline for submitting comments has passed, DHS has released a new document that shares the comments offered most frequently by those who responded to the RFI along with brief descriptions of some of the changes the department is considering when it solicits bids for HealthChoices managed care plans later this year.
Find the original May RFI here, SNAP’s response to that RFI here, and the recent DHS follow-up document here.

2015-07-02T06:00:19+00:00July 2nd, 2015|HealthChoices PA, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on State Shares Preliminary Thoughts on HealthChoices Procurement

SNAP Calls for HealthChoices Improvements

The Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania has urged Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services to pursue transformative innovation in the state’s HealthChoices Medicaid managed care program.
Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania logoIn particular, SNAP has called on DHS to create regional health collaboratives consisting of both insurers and providers to work together to deliver better, more coordinated care to Pennsylvania’s Medicaid population.
SNAP also recommended that the state finance innovation by implementing a Delivery System Reform Incentive Payments program, better known as DSRIP, to fund innovation in the state’s  Medicaid program.
SNAP’s suggestions came in response to a request for information issued by the state seeking recommendations for how to improve the HealthChoices program in anticipation of the state’s plan to rebid HealthChoices managed care contracts later this year.
See the state’s request for information here and find SNAP’s comment letter here.

2015-06-29T06:00:03+00:00June 29th, 2015|HealthChoices PA, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy, Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania|Comments Off on SNAP Calls for HealthChoices Improvements

PA Health Law Project Releases Monthly Newsletter

The Pennsylvania Health Law Project has published the April edition of Health Law PA News, its monthly newsletter.
Included in this edition are articles about the status of Pennsylvania’s latest Medicaid expansion effort; an explanation of state policy for calculating applicants’ income for the purpose of determining whether they are eligible for Medicaid; health insurance options for immigrants; and more.
Find the latest edition of Health Law PA News here.

2015-05-12T06:00:12+00:00May 12th, 2015|HealthChoices PA, Pennsylvania Medicaid laws and regulations, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on PA Health Law Project Releases Monthly Newsletter

PA Issues Bulletin on Medicaid Expansion

The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) has issued a new Medical Assistance Bulletin on the state’s expansion of its Medicaid program via the HealthChoices managed care program.
Bookshelf with law booksThe bulletin notifies providers of the introduction of a new adult benefit package that applies to all adult Medicaid recipients in the state, highlighting some of the major changes in benefits from past packages.  It also provides information about the state’s plan for a phased transition from the current private care option (PCO) insurance plans to HealthChoices plans over the coming months.
See DHS Medical Assistance Bulletin 99-15-05 here.

2015-04-30T06:00:10+00:00April 30th, 2015|HealthChoices PA, Medical Assistance Bulletin, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on PA Issues Bulletin on Medicaid Expansion

PA Completes First Phase of Medicaid Transition

Last weekend Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services (DHS) formally moved more than 121,000 people from the Corbett administration’s Healthy Pennsylvania Medicaid expansion program to the Wolf administration’s expansion of the state’s long-time HealthChoices Medicaid managed care program.
Those who were shifted had enrolled in Healthy Pennsylvania private coverage option (PCO) plans before the end of calendar year 2014.  In the next few days they will receive written notification of the shift.  All will receive the same Medicaid benefits:  a basic adult benefit package.
Individuals will no longer be able to enroll in PCO plans, and over the next few months more than 137,000 Pennsylvanians still in PCO plans will be shifted into HealthChoices plans in stages with completion expected by September 1.
For more information about the continued transition from Healthy Pennsylvania to HealthChoices, see this news release from the governor’s office.

2015-04-28T06:00:43+00:00April 28th, 2015|HealthChoices PA, Healthy PA, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on PA Completes First Phase of Medicaid Transition

PA Health Law Project Releases Monthly Newsletter

The Pennsylvania Health Law Project has published its March 2015 newsletter.
Included in this edition are articles about the state’s changes in how it is expanding its Medicaid program; a look at Governor Wolf’s proposed FY 2016 Medicaid budget; and closer examinations of a proposed expansion of services for older adults and people with disabilities and the budget of the state’s Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.
Find the Pennsylvania Health Law Project’s latest newsletter here.

2015-04-15T06:00:19+00:00April 15th, 2015|HealthChoices PA, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy, Pennsylvania state budget issues, Proposed FY 2016 Pennsylvania state budget|Comments Off on PA Health Law Project Releases Monthly Newsletter

New Web Site for PA Medicaid Expansion

Along with the Wolf administration’s decision to exit the Healthy Pennsylvania Medicaid expansion in favor of a more conventional approach comes a new web site dedicated to that expansion:  HealthChoices PA.
The new HealthChoices PA site features sections that describe the program and address the immediate implications of the state’s shift from Healthy Pennsylvania to HealthChoices PA.  It also offers an FAQ, resources for consumers and providers, and a gateway for applicants.
The address of the new site is  http://www.healthchoicespa.com.  Find it here.

2015-02-18T14:40:15+00:00February 18th, 2015|HealthChoices PA, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on New Web Site for PA Medicaid Expansion
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