MEDICAID/CHIP NEWS, INFORMATION, AND RESOURCES (February 20, 2019)

MEDICAID WAIVERS

Updated 1915(c) Waiver Application
On January 28, 2019, CMS released a revised application and technical guide for Medicaid 1915(c) waivers, used to provide home-and community based services. According to this information provided by the National Association of States United on Aging and Disabilities, the application includes some notable additions and modifications including:

• A request for information about whether the state administers any quality of life/quality of care surveys of waiver participants, such as the NCI or NCI-AD surveys; and
• Updates to several sections to reflect recent guidance and policy developments, including the sections on public input and self-direction.

View the updated waiver instructions.
View the updated waiver application form.

MEDICAID RESOURCES

The Kaiser Family Foundation has released a new brief, Section 1115 Medicaid Demonstration Waivers: The Current Landscape of Approved and Pending Waivers. The brief discusses some of the newer elements of Medicaid waivers, including “community-engagement” (work, etc.) requirements, substance-abuse initiatives, and the use of Medicaid to pay for services to address the social determinants of health (a North Carolina pilot program to address housing instability, transportation, food insecurity, and interpersonal violence and toxic stress).

REMINDER:

• Approved and pending Medicaid waiver applications can be found on gov.
• The Kaiser Family Foundation regularly updates its state-by-state §1115 Medicaid Waiver Tracker, and also provides related waiver resources and definitions.