Alaska Medical Assistance Newsletter A Monthly Newsletter for Alaska Medical Assistance Providers March 2012 Xerox 1835 S. Bragaw St., Suite 200 ACS is Now Xerox Anchorage, AK 99508-3469 Affiliated Computer Services Transitions to Xerox Web Address http://medicaidalaska.com Brand Two years ago Xerox acquired Affiliated Computer Services (ACS), Alaska Medicaid's Phone Numbers fiscal agent. On Wednesday, January 25, 2012, Xerox officially retired the ACS name 907.644.6800 800.770.5650 (toll-free) from most of Xerox’s service businesses – including Government Healthcare Solutions. All communication will now bear the Xerox name and logo. Fraud and Abuse Hotline 907.644.5975 or This change does not require any action by you, the provider. Please continue to use 800.256.0930 (toll-free) the same addresses for mailing your claims or correspondences; the same phone numbers for inquiries and faxes; and the same website, http://medicaidalaska.com, for Recipient Services information on Alaska Medicaid billing and training. 907.644.6800, option 6 800.780.9972, option 2 (toll-free) If you have any questions regarding this transition, please call Provider Inquiry at 907.644.6800, option 1, or 800.770.5650, options 1, 1 (in-state toll free). Provider Inquiry 907.644.6800, option 1 800.770.5650, option 1, 1 (toll-free) VacTrAK Helps Ensure Timely and New Provider Enrollment Portal Appropriate Immunizations http://enroll.medicaidalaska.com Fax Numbers A Letter to Providers from PA...........................................................907.644.8131 Drs. Ward Hurlburt, State Director of Public Health, PA: Travel, MRI, ...............................907.644.5982 PA Mental Health ............................866.653.1435 and Joe McLaughlin, State Epidemiologist SUR........................................................907.644.8128 EPS.........................................................907.644.9845 Dear Colleague: Finance ................................................907.644.8120 The purpose of this letter is to encourage your practice to enroll in VacTrAK, Alaska’s Training ...............................................907.644.9845 Attachments/RTD ...........................907.644.8122 immunization information system (IIS). The state of Alaska is seeking to increase or ...........................................907.644.8123 provider enrollment in this system, which will help ensure that children in our state Enrollment ..........................................907.646.4273 receive timely and appropriate immunizations. According to the US Centers for Disease Provider Inquiry................................907.644.8126 Control and Prevention, in 2010, Alaska ranked 42nd in the nation among the states with respect to immunization coverage rates for infants and young children. We can In this issue and should do much better! A tool such as VacTrAK has been an important resource for ACS is Now Xerox ...................................................... 1 increasing immunization coverage rates in other states like Wisconsin and Mississippi VacTrAK Helps Ensure Timely and Appropriate Immunizations ................................. 1 that lead the national coverage ranking list. Another benefit to patients is that Translation and Interpretation Services.......... 2 statewide IISs help ensure timely immunization for children if families move or change New Precertification Requirements providers. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 20% For 2012........................................................................ 2 Upcoming Holiday.................................................... 2 of US children see more than one healthcare provider by their second birthday. Spring Training for Providers................................ 3 WebEx Training.......................................................... 3 In addition to benefiting your patients, there are numerous benefits to you in utilizing RBRVS-Based Fee Schedules Now Available.. 3 VacTrAK. The following is a list of some of these benefits: Health Care Corner................................................... 3 Update Coming to Preferred Drug List ............ 3 • Obtaining consolidated patient immunization records New Federal Medicaid Website Available ...... 3 Alaska Medicaid Introduces RSS Feeds ........... 4 • Viewing automatically generated vaccine forecasts Claim Rejection Error Corrected.......................... 4 Ask Medicaid ............................................................... 5 (Continued on p 2) Diagnosis Code Now Required on Claims for All Provider Types.......................... 5 1 A Monthly Newsletter for Alaska Medical Assistance Providers March 2012 (Continued from p 1) • Generating reminder/recall notices Translation and New • Managing vaccine inventory and Interpretation Precertification meeting state requirements for VFC enrolled providers Services Requirements For • Improving accuracy of immunization records Federal Mandates for 2012 • Reducing paperwork Providers The 2012 Alaska Medicaid Select Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Diagnoses and Procedures • Producing official immunization and federal regulations implementing Precertification List is now available on records Title VI prohibit exclusion of individuals the Qualis Health website at • Accessing provider-specific on the grounds of race, color, or national http://www.qualishealth.org (under immunization completion rates at any origin from participation in programs that Healthcare Professionals select Alaska time receive federal funding. As recipients of Medicaid – Division of Health Care federal funding through Medicaid Services, then under Announcements click Currently, there are over 130 Alaska payments which are, in part, federally on Select Diagnoses/Procedures organizations/facilities participating in funded, enrolled providers may not Precertification List). You may go directly VacTrAK, representing hundreds of employ practices that have a to the 2012 precertification list at individual health care providers across the discriminatory impact on individuals. http://www.qualishealth.org/sites/default state. As of February 16, 2012 there were /files/AK-Medicaid-Precert-List.pdf. 508,320 persons listed in VacTrAK that Medicaid-enrolled providers are obligated had two or more vaccines on-record. to provide access to health care services, Please review the new 2012 list as including language interpreting services, changes have occurred. Enrollment is easy, quick, and free − when needed, for patients who have just go to our website to download the Limited English Proficiency (LEP). enrollment application at: https://vactrak.alaska.gov/iweb. For more The U.S. Department of Health and information please call the Alaska Human Services has published a Immunization Program at 907-269-0312. document that includes a four-factor analysis that guides providers through If your practice is not already enrolled in the process of determining the extent of VacTrAK, we need your help. The more their obligation to offer LEP services, and effectively we can pull together as a development of a plan to meet the needs statewide public health/health care of the LEP population. This document, provider team, the greater our impact will “Guidance to Federal Financial Assistance be on raising the health status bar in Recipients Regarding Title VI Prohibition Alaska! Against National Origin Discrimination Upcoming Sincerely, Affecting Limited English Proficient Persons”, is available in Volume 68, Holiday Number 153 of the Federal Register, published Friday, August 8, 2003, and State of Alaska Closure Ward B. Hurlburt, MD, MPH available at The state’s offices will be closed in honor Director Division of Public Health and http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2003- of Seward’s Day on March 26, 2012. Chief Medical Officer, DHSS 08-08/pdf/03-20179.pdf. Joe McLaughlin, MD, MPH State Epidemiologist and Chief Section of Epidemiology, DHSS 2 A Monthly Newsletter for Alaska Medical Assistance Providers March 2012 In addition, you can attend from the Spring Training comfort and convenience of your own office! Health Care for Providers Check the Xerox website at Corner April Training Dates in http://medicaidalaska.com under Training >Schedule to view a list of topics A study released by the Alaska Section Seward and Nome that will be presented at these WebEx of Epidemiology said that 9,000 It’s not just for baseball teams. On-site sessions, and register today. Alaskans were hospitalized due to falls education will be offered in two locations from ’05-’09. The highest rates were for providers. April 3 through 5 will see RBRVS-Based Fee among seniors, especially Natives and classes offered in Seward, and in Nome those in the northern part of the state. the dates are April 10 through 12. There are many simple preventative Schedules Now measures to reduce the chances of a fall. These courses will prepare you and your For more information, see the fall injury- staff to accurately bill for services Available prevention page at reimbursed by Medicaid, Denali KidCare, and CAMA. Classes will include Effective January 1, 2012 http://www.cdc.gov/HomeandRecreatio introductory courses such as Recipient Resource Based Relative Value Scale- fee nalSafety/Falls/index.html Eligibility, Claims Management, Prior schedules for services provided on and after December 1, 2011 are now Authorizations, Guidelines for Record Keeping, Tribal courses, a Tribal Specific available at http://medicaidalaska.com Workshop, and Advanced