A big question that many people with developmental disabilities have is:
WILL I LOSE MY CARE COORDINATOR?
The not-so-simple answer is that no one can answer that right now. It depends on who your PASSE is, and how they decide to handle this.
DHS has released a presentation that explains what a Person Centered Service Plan is and what a care coordinator is, but here’s an explanation of what’s going on.
In 2008, a federal regulation went into effect requiring care coordination and case management to be done by different people, but Arkansas has continued in most cases allowing the same person to combine both jobs into one job. The rule is supposed to serve as a check & balance to protect people getting services. DHS says we won’t get anymore leniance, and we have to follow the “conflict-free case management” rule starting in 2019.
According to DHS, it has the financial records of all care coordination and case management hours spent, and it included that in the data used to determine what the big global payment will be. In order to be in compliance with federal regulation, DHS will require the PASSE to do 3 big duties to cover “care coordination” and make it become “conflict free.”
How will the rest work? DHS says that the money to pay for the big 3 “conflict free” duties AND the rest of the duties now called “case management” will be given to each PASSE in the global payment. So in other words, the global payment will not just cover services like therapies and supported living; the global payment will include administrative needs like case management that your provider has been doing for you. DHS will give the PASSEs that money in 2019 and allow them to choose how to spend it.
What does all of this mean?! Well, this basically means that your PASSE would choose whether or not to pay your current care coordinator, and the PASSE gets to choose whether or not you keep your same care coordinator (who would in 2019 be called your case manager).
Clear as mud? Thought so. Find out more below about what a care coordinator will do and what a Person Centered Service Plan is!
Medicaid Saves Lives 