HRSA Announces ‘Extenuating Circumstances’ Option for Provider Relief Fund Reporting
HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) this week said it will allow healthcare providers to submit a
Request to Report Late Due to Extenuating Circumstances for the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Reporting Period 1 if one or more certain extenuating circumstances apply to their situations.
Starting Monday, April 11 and continuing through Friday, April 22 at 11:59 p.m. ET, providers who did not submit their PRF Period 1 report by the required deadline may request to submit a late Reporting Period 1 report, via a DocuSign form, if the following extenuating circumstances exist:
- Severe illness or death: if a severe medical condition or death of a provider or key staff member responsible for reporting hindered the organization’s ability to complete the report during the reporting period
- Impacted by natural disaster: if a natural disaster occurred during or in proximity to the end of the reporting period and damaged the organization’s records or information technology
- Lack of receipt of reporting communications: if an incorrect email or mailing address on file with HRSA prevented the organization from receiving instructions prior to the reporting period deadline
- Failure to click “submit”: if the organization registered and prepared a report in the PRF Reporting Portal, but failed to take the final step to click “submit” prior to deadline
- Internal miscommunication or error: if an internal miscommunication or error regarding the individual who was authorized and expected to submit the report on behalf of the organization and/or the registered point of contact in the PRF Reporting Portal
- Incomplete Targeted Distribution payments: if the organization’s parent entity completed all General Distribution payments, but a Targeted Distribution(s) was not reported on by the subsidiary
According to HRSA, requests to report late due to extenuating circumstances must indicate and attest to a clear and concise explanation, although the agency will not require supporting documents.
If HRSA approves an organization’s request, the organization will receive a notification to proceed with completing the Reporting Period 1 report. Providers will have 10 days from the date they receive the notification to submit a report in the PRF Reporting Portal.
Click
here to learn more about reporting requirements, or call the Provider Support Line at (866) 569-3522 between 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. ET for additional information.
CMS Releases Two Sets of FAQ About ‘No Surprises Act’ Requirements
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) this week released two sets of frequently asked questions (FAQ) regarding requirements enacted in the
No Surprises Act.
CMS issued an
FAQ on April 6 that provides additional explanation about the law’s requirements and prohibitions, as well as clarification regarding the independent dispute resolution process and associated fees. A day earlier, CMS released an
FAQ with additional information about developing good-faith estimates for uninsured or self-pay patients.
Thorn Run Partners Memo Highlights Medicare & Medicaid Flexibilities During the PHE
Thorn Run Partners, a bipartisan lobbying firm that works with NABH, recently highlighted a host of flexibilities in the Medicare and Medicaid programs during the ongoing Covid-19 public health emergency (PHE).
The 14-page memo includes information about recent guidance from CMS, PHE extensions, PHE-related policies in the $1.5 trillion omnibus spending package that President Biden recently signed into law, and more.
Click
here to read the memo.
NABH Supports ‘Behavioral Health Information Technology Now Act’
NABH is pleased to support the
Behavioral Health Information Technology Now Act, a new bill that would offer financial incentives to behavioral healthcare providers for health information technology adoption.
Reps. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) and Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) introduced the bill in an effort to coordinate care between physical and mental healthcare—and also include behavioral healthcare providers from a key resource that they have been excluded from for years.
“The National Association for Behavioral Healthcare applauds Reps. Matsui and Mullin for recognizing that for far too long, behavioral healthcare providers have not received health information technology funding that other providers have benefited from,” NABH President and CEO Shawn Coughlin said in a news release about the legislation on April 6. “Their legislation would enable behavioral healthcare providers to coordinate care across behavioral healthcare service systems, primary care facilities, and specialty medicine providers more efficiently.”
Specifically, the bill would:
- Finance behavioral health information technology (IT) adoption at $250 million
- Condition funding allocations to providers based on: 1) acquisition of health IT systems that comply with 2015 certification standards, and 2) attestation of provider compliance with Trump Administration Interoperability and Data Blocking regulations
- Direct the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to develop voluntary behavioral health IT standards.
Reminder: NABH Denial-of-Care Portal is Open to Members
NABH’s Denial-of-Care Portal is available for members to provide information about their experiences with managed care organizations that impose barriers to care through insurance-claim denials.
This NABH member-only, survey-like tool allows users to add the name of a managed care organization, type of plan, level of care, type of care (mental health or substance use disorder), duration of approved treatment, duration of unapproved treatment, criteria used to deny a claim, and more.
The portal allows members to submit individual examples of claim denials or upload multiple entries via Excel. It also includes sections on appeals and physician participation. In time, the tool could be a valuable resource for the NABH team’s advocacy efforts.
Please e-mail
Emily Wilkins, NABH’s administrative coordinator, if you have questions about the portal.
Register Today for the 2022 Annual Meeting!
NABH will host its 2022 Annual Meeting—
Shaping the Future of Behavioral Healthcare—from June 13-15 at the Mandarin Oriental Washington, DC.
Please remember to
register for the meeting and
reserve your hotel room today!
Fact of the Week
Veterans who take medications for opioid use disorder (OUD) for at least 15 days have more than a 50% decreased risk of dying by suicide compared with those not taking OUD medications, according to a
study in the April issue of the
American Journal of Psychiatry.
For questions or comments about this CEO Update, please contact Jessica Zigmond.