Hurricane Katrina Information for Mississippi Hospitals

Medicaid Uncompensated Care

The message below is from the Division of Medicaid indicating that the Uncompensated Care Pool has been approved and claims may now be submitted. MHA staff is just now reviewing all of the attachments, but we wanted to distribute this long-awaited information to you ASAP. We will be following up with more information as necessary. If you have questions or need more information, contact Amy Arrington at (800) 289-8884, (601) 368-3215 or aarrington@mhanet.org.

From: Sheila W. Meadows
Sent: Monday, March 27, 2006 4:08 PM
Subject: Medicaid Uncompensated Care Program

The Mississippi Division of Medicaid has received approval of limited federal funding for uncompensated care provided to individuals from a county or parish declared a disaster area as a result of Hurricane Katrina who required medically necessary services in accordance with S. 1932 and were without private insurance, Medicaid or SCHIP in any state, Medicare, health care vouchers from any state, federal, or charity organization, or any other method of health care coverage including patient payments even if made based on a sliding fee scale at the time the services were rendered.

Attached is detailed information regarding this program. We are requesting your assistance in disseminating this information to members of your associations. Additionally, the information will be posted to the Medicaid website, www.dom.state.ms.us.

Effective immediately, the Division will begin accepting claims for the Uncompensated Care Program. Claims hand delivered to the Division should be brought to Suite 207 in the Robert E. Lee Building. Claims being mailed should be sent to:

Division of Medicaid
ATTN: Uncompensated Care Claims
Suite 801, Robert E. Lee Building
239 North Lamar Street
Jackson, MS 39201-1399

Download pharmacist_notice_for_uccp.doc (Notice for pharmacists)

Download ms_dom_uncompensated_care_form.doc (Uncompensated care form)

Download Title_XIX_Pharmacy_Invoice.pdf (Title XIX pharmacy invoice)

Download summary_of_s.1932 - Katrina Relief - Uncompensated Care.doc (Summary of S. 1932)

Download individual_assistance_designated_counties.doc (Individual assistance designated counties)

HHS releases funds for Katrina-related health care

The Department of Health and Human Services has released $1.5 billion in funding to 32 states to help offset the medical costs of caring for Hurricane Katrina evacuees. The funding is part of $2 billion provided for that purpose in the Deficit Reduction Act, signed into law in February, and will allow the states to claim roughly $4.5 billion in federal matching funds. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services granted special, emergency Medicaid eligibility to hurricane victims in the 32 states. “While the bulk of the funds will go to state Medicaid programs, several states that took in the largest number of evacuees will receive special grants to reimburse providers who cared for those ineligible for Medicaid but still unable to pay for their medical care,” HHS said.

[ via AHA News ]

Hurricane Katrina Uncompensated Care Fund

This is the latest information provided to us by the Division of Medicaid.

1. Providers will be required to supply a “printed/paper” UB92.
2. The UB92s will be submitted in a batch.
3. The state will provide you with a one page cover sheet to include with the batch. You may not use an Excel or other spreadsheet. (Sorry, we had hoped a spreadsheet would do)
4. The Division does not have final approval from CMS for their distribution plan, but you will be notified ASAP when they do.
5. The pool does not include any individual whose Medicaid benefits were exhausted at the time of treatment.

We will provide additional information as we receive it, but if you have questions, you may contact Mary Patterson, MHA vice president for policy, at (800) 289-8884, (601) 368-3204 or mpatterson@mhanet.org.

Hurricane Katrina Uncompensated Care Pool

In the budget reconciliation package that passed Congress late last year, funds were set aside to establish an uncompensated care pool to provide reimbursement to providers who treated patients affected by Hurricane Katrina. Due to technical points of order, the final budget reconciliation package must be voted upon by the US House of Representatives when they return to Washington at the end of this month. However, we anticipate that they will swiftly approve this package.

The Division of Medicaid has outlined the operation of the uncompensated care pool in Mississippi to CMS, and we expect the plan to be approved when the funding is made available by Congress later this month.

In an effort to speed the processing of uncompensated care pool claims, we are urging all hospitals to begin collecting the information they will need to submit to the Division of Medicaid in order to receive reimbursement from this pool. Information available at this time is listed below.

• The Uncompensated Care Pool will cover dates of service from August 28, 2005 through January 31, 2006.

• Reimbursement is available for medically necessary care provided to individuals who resided in or were displaced from counties or parishes declared an “individual assistance designated county or parish” as a result of Hurricane Katrina. A list of these counties and parishes is attached.

• Reimbursement is available for care provided to individuals without private insurance, Medicaid in any state, Medicare, or healthcare vouchers from any state, federal or charity organization or other method of health care coverage at the time the service was rendered.

• In order to request reimbursement a provider must submit manual claims to Medicaid. Medicaid will prepare an Uncompensated Care Reimbursement Form. The information that will be required on this form includes:

• Recipient Name
• Home Address (address from which individual was displaced; county & state)
• Social Security Number (optional)
• Date of Birth/Age
• Sex
• Services rendered (by applicable billing code)
• Charges for treatment

• Providers will be reimbursed for services that would have been covered through the Mississippi Medicaid program and will be reimbursed according to current Mississippi Medicaid rates at the date of service.

• There is no prior authorization process, and patients are not required to enroll with Medicaid in order for a provider to receive reimbursement.

MHA recommends that all Mississippi providers begin compiling the information that will need to be submitted to Medicaid to receive reimbursement. As soon as the uncompensated care pool is formally approved and a reimbursement form is finalized by the Division of Medicaid, we will be distributing that information to each member.

However, it is our understanding that the uncompensated care pool funds will be paid by CMS on a “first come, first served” basis without any specific state allocations. Therefore it is imperative that Mississippi providers submit their claims as quickly as possible.

In addition, please note that Medicaid will be conducting retrospective reviews to ensure the integrity of payments and will have the authority to recoup inappropriate payments.

If you have questions, please contact Mary Patterson, MHA vice president for policy, at (800) 289-8884, (601) 368-3204 or mpatterson@mhanet.org.

Attached below is a list of Katrina-designated counties and parishes.

Download katrina_designated_countiesparishes.doc