Navigator - Provider Newsletter from Colorado Access

In March 2022, a new multi-step renewal process for all Health First Colorado (Colorado’s Medicaid Program) and Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) members will be implemented. The Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF) is hosting three learning sessions to share information with community partners about this “Renewal Revamp” project. The sessions are scheduled for Tuesday, February 15th; Thursday, February 17th; and Tuesday, February 22nd. Click here to learn more.

As of January 15, 2022, Health First Colorado will cover at-home, over-the-counter COVID-19 tests through the Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics & Supplies (DMEPOS) benefit. The interChange system is being configured to align with this guidance for providers billing CHP+FFS, with the exception that CHP+ members are limited to eight tests per member each month. Once a CHP+ member is enrolled into a CHP+MCO, all claims for tests should be billed to the member’s MCO.

Click here to learn more under “What’s New” > “At-Home Over-The-Counter COVID-19 Test Coverage.”

School-based health centers (SBHCs) increase access to quality health care and keep children healthy so they can thrive in school. They reduce school absences, increase the health of everyone at school, and increase engagement in classes. This month, join us to celebrate and appreciate the services SBHCs provide in Colorado, including comprehensive primary care, behavioral health services, and some oral care. We support 31 SBHCs across Regions 3 and 5 of Colorado.

Click here and here to learn more about SBHCs.

Our diabetes landing page has resources and information to educate members on diabetes. It has information on managing and testing for diabetes and how diabetes impacts heart health, oral health, and depression. It includes information and resources to aid in management of their diabetes. Visit coaccess.com/diabetes to learn more. If you have any questions about this landing page, please email populationhealth@coaccess.com.

Autism: Core Concepts for Primary Care
Join the Extension for Community Health Outcomes (ECHO) Colorado for a two-part series supporting providers in the screening, diagnosis, and management of patients with autism spectrum disorder and related developmental delays. There will be five weekly virtual sessions on Wednesdays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. from March 2nd to 30th. Click here to learn more and to register.

Pediatric Psychiatry in Primary Care: Core Essentials
The Colorado Pediatric Psychiatry Consultation & Access Program (CoPPCAP) is hosting a free, seven-week ECHO series that will cover knowledge and skills to assess and treat pediatric mental/behavioral health conditions in primary care, including topics like assessment and screening, ADHD, anxiety, depression, suicide, and trauma. Each session will provide a didactic overview of the topic, followed by participant-initiated case-based discussion.

The series will be on Thursdays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. from March 3rd through April 14th. Click here to learn more and to register.

Pediatric Psychiatry in Primary Care: Beyond Core Essentials
CoPPCAP is also hosting a free, six-week ECHO series that will cover knowledge and skills needed to assess and treat pediatric mental/behavioral health conditions in primary care, including topics like non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), substance use disorders, antipsychotics and aggression, digital technology and health, the physically ill child, and natural therapies. Each session will include a brief didactic overview of the topic followed by participant-initiated, robust case-based discussion.

The series will be on Thursdays from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. from March 3rd through April 7th. Click here to learn more and to register.

Transgender Health: Core Concepts for Primary Care
Join ECHO Colorado for a free, case-based “bootcamp” weekly series that will convey the core concepts of gender-affirming care to prescribing primary care providers who are interested in improving care for transgender and gender non-binary patients. This series is appropriate for individuals who are new to the topic or who would like to refresh their training. Sessions include a brief didactic presentation by an expert, and discussion of participant-submitted cases. Participants are highly encouraged to submit de-identified patient cases for group discussion and expert consultation.

The series will be on Thursdays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. from March 3rd to 24th. Click here to learn more and to register.

Community Events

Legislative Education & Advocacy Day

Mental Health Colorado’s Legislative Education & Advocacy Day (LEAD) is on Friday, February 18th from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. This virtual event will reckon with behavioral health transformation in Colorado and discuss what reforms are needed for adult access to mental health care. Click here to learn more and to register.

18th Annual Rocky Mountain Geriatric Conference
This conference is Monday, March 28th through Tuesday, March 29th at the Westin in downtown Denver. Register soon, as the early registration discount ends in a few weeks. Click here and here to view the schedule and register.

If you have an upcoming community event that you'd like us to share, please email us.

Our new office of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) is launching several initiatives to support our provider network and promote culturally responsive care. The first is a 40-minute video series on our learning management system (LMS) that covers the core topics of stereotyping, microaggressions, diversity, diversity-focused recruitment, unconscious bias, and cultural intelligence. Updates on the next initiative will be announced in this newsletter. Health equity can only be achieved through collaborative leadership and partnership, and we thank you for engaging with us in this important work.

Visit providerrelationslms.learnupon.com to access the video series.

The Denver Health STEP Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) is for teenagers 14 to 18 years old who need therapeutic support beyond the general outpatient setting. The IOP is an eight-week program with an embedded initial four-week early recovery phase. It’s aimed at helping teens begin to understand their relationship with substance use and struggles with mental health and equip them with the tools necessary to make positive changes in their lives. Click here to learn more.

If you are a primary care or behavioral health provider and are interested in referring a patient, please call 303-602-4848.

We regularly monitor behavioral health and substance use disorder (SUD) documentation to ensure all participating providers who deliver these services meet documentation standards. Our quality team’s provider monitoring tool is based on regulations, bill manuals, industry best practices, and other sources that support quality documentation.

Our quality team has developed comprehensive trainings on the most up-to-date behavioral health and SUD documentation standards, including general documentation, assessment, treatment planning, psychotherapy progress notes, and case management. We want providers to use these training materials to help ensure quality and improve documentation of services.

Here are some ways you can ensure that your charts meet documentation standards:

Review the quality improvement behavioral health documentation training and/or the quality improvement substance use disorder documentation training. Both can be found on our provider learning management system. If you need access to get to this training, please contact your provider network specialist directly or email providernetworkservices@coaccess.com.
Conduct a peer or self-audit of your charts using the documentation standards in the trainings.

When HCPF standards evolve, we will update training materials in a timely manner. If you have any questions about quality documentation standards, please email qualityimprovement@coaccess.com.

Text4Health is an SMS (text message) based wellness program for Health First Colorado members who are 18 and older. Text4Health supports wellness by sending members messages in both English and Spanish that support screening reminders, health surveys, health education, health challenges, reminders, and other miscellaneous topics. Reminders are based on member age, gender, and eligibility.

Screening reminders follow check-ups and screenings recommended by the U.S. Preventative Task Force, including physical, dental, mammogram, cervical, and colon screenings. Health education messages cover topics such as obesity, blood pressure, cholesterol, heart disease, sexually transmitted diseases, and smoking. Health challenges include a four-week diet challenge and a four-week exercise challenge.

If you have any questions about this program, please email populationhealth@coaccess.com.

Our Text4Baby program is an SMS (text message) wellness program for pregnant Health First Colorado and CHP+ members who are 18 and older. Text4Baby provides educational messages timed to gestational age or birth age, as well as interactive surveys, modules and reminders to improve maternal and child health outcomes, for pregnant and new mothers and their partners with babies up to age 1, as well as providers. Surveys and modules help assess prenatal, postpartum, and well-baby visit attendance, as well as prenatal risk assessments or missed childhood vaccines.

“Starter pack” messages begin on the first Monday after a pregnant member is enrolled. “Pregnancy protocol” messages begin after the completion of the “starter pack” for members who enroll as pregnant and give their baby’s due date. Messages are sent on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and are timed around the baby’s due date. They encourage members to get more information on a topic by clicking on URLs in the message.

“New baby” messages begin after the member’s due date has passed, or on the first Monday, Wednesday, or Friday after enrollment. These messages will last until the baby turns one year old, and cover topics such as vaccinations, well visits, and appointment reminders for both mother and baby.

If you have any questions about this program, please email populationhealth@coaccess.com.

As of December 2, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that as part of the Medicaid EPSDT benefit, states must cover COVID-19 vaccine counseling visits, as well as stand-alone vaccine counseling visits related to all pediatric vaccines. It is not a federal requirement to cover vaccine counseling for children and pregnant adults enrolled in CHP+, but CMS has communicated that states have the option to cover these services.

Vaccine education is important to assist members in accessing the necessary information to make informed decisions, and we would like to clarify that vaccine counseling has been, and will continue to be, a covered service under the CHP+ benefit in Colorado for children and pregnant individuals.

Each year, we run Health Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) rates for a set of core performance measures for our CHP+ HMO plan and compare these rates against regional and national rates to prioritize and design internal programs and performance incentive programs across the provider network. We use HEDIS rates to identify opportunities to eliminate gaps in care and to improve health outcomes for CHP+ HMO members.

The Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF) has finalized the aggregate HEDIS report for Child Health Plan Plus. We encourage you to review this report and look for areas of opportunity you can contribute to and improve outcomes. If you have any general questions about HEDIS or measurement year 2020 HEDIS rates, please email qualityimprovement@coaccess.com.