[NYAPRS Enews] CMS Announces New Medicaid Emergency Psychiatric Demonstration Program

[Harvey Rosenthal]

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES 
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services 
Room 352-G 
200 Independence Avenue, SW 
Washington, DC 20201 
Office of Media Affairs 

New Demonstration Program To Help States To Improve The Quality Of Care
For Patients Suffering From A Psychiatric Emergency 

 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced a new
Medicaid Emergency Psychiatric Demonstration designed to provide states
with more flexibility and resources to care for Medicaid beneficiaries
with mental illnesses. 

 

This demonstration provides up to $75 million in funding to states over
three years, as authorized by the Affordable Care Act, to help care for
Medicaid patients (aged 21 through 64) with psychiatric emergencies, in
private inpatient psychiatric facilities with 17 or more beds, also
known as institutions for mental diseases (IMDs).  The demonstration
defines psychiatric emergencies as expressions of suicidal or homicidal
thoughts or gestures resulting in a determination that the patient is
dangerous to himself or to others.  

 

As a result, in order for states to receive federal reimbursement for
medical assistance to care for psychiatric emergencies warranting
hospitalization, Medicaid patients must receive services in non-IMD
settings such as general hospital emergency rooms, which can often
result in higher cost and less appropriate care settings.  This
demonstration will permit federal reimbursement for treatment of
psychiatric emergencies in IMD settings, providing Medicaid patients
with improved access to psychiatric treatment and enabling states to
ensure the provision of needed services at lower cost. 

 

"By changing the way the federal government can partner with states in
the care of those suffering from mental illness, we are giving states
the resources needed to provide higher quality care," said CMS
Administrator Dr. Don Berwick. "The Affordable Care Act was clear in its
charge that we must continuously strengthen our commitment to mental
health parity -- which remains one of the most silent, yet pervasive
conditions affecting millions of Americans." 

 

The Medicaid Emergency Psychiatric Demonstration is part of the CMS's
commitment to improving the quality of care available to Medicaid
beneficiaries.  The demonstration is being administered by the Center
for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (the Innovation Center).  Created
by the Affordable Care Act, the Innovation Center is committed to
achieving the three aims of better health, better health care, and
reduced costs through improvement for CMS beneficiaries by testing
delivery system models. 

CMS is now accepting applications to participate in this demonstration
from interested State Medicaid Directors.  States will be selected
competitively based on their application proposals.   More information,
including the solicitation, application and fact sheet can be found at
http://www.cms.gov/DemonstrProjectsEvalRepts/MDP/itemdetail.asp?filterTy
pe=none&filterByDID=-99&sortByDID=3&sortOrder=ascending&itemID=CMS124907
4&intNumPerPage=10
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filterType=none&filterByDID=-99&sortByDID=3&sortOrder=ascending&itemID=C
MS1249074&intNumPerPage=10>  

 

 

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