Happy Thursday! Enjoy your NCMS Morning Rounds.
July 8, 2021
North Carolina Immunization Program (NCIP)
The North Carolina Immunization Program (NCIP) works in conjunction with the federal vaccine supply program, called the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program. The VFC program is a federal initiative created to help families of children who may not otherwise have access to vaccines by providing free vaccines to doctors who serve them.
The VFC program:
- Provides federally purchased vaccine, for eligible children, at no charge to public and private providers;
- Automatically covers vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), established by resolution and approved by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC);
- Saves parents and enrolled providers out-of-pocket expenses for vaccine purchases; and
- Reduces or eliminates vaccine cost as a barrier to vaccination of eligible children.
Learn more here.
Temporary Provider Rate Increases and Clinical Policy Changes Extended thru July 31
NC Medicaid is extending COVID-19 temporary provider rate increases for all providers except hospitals and clinical coverage policies through July 31, 2021. While the rate increases for providers authorized under SL 2020-4 were set to expire on June 30, 2021, NC Medicaid has discretion to continue these and other temporary rate increases assuming budget availability. NC Medicaid will continue to provide updates in July on the status of these increases and may end the legislated or other rate increases at the end of July if these rate increases are not funded by the NC General Assembly.
Note: FQHCs’ unique Core/T1015 rates are increased by 5% effective July 1, 2021 as part of the temporary COVID-related rate increases. Those FQHCs who elected an Alternative Payment Methodology increasing their PPS rates by 43% will still have those enhanced rates continued for the duration of the Public Health Emergency.
Quality Payment Program: 2021 APM Incentive Payments
CMS published 2021 Alternative Payment Model (APM) Incentive Payment details on the Quality Payment Program (QPP) website; eligible clinicians and surrogates can log in to see what was paid by your National Provider Identifier and organization. Read 2021 Learning Resources for Qualifying APM Participant (QP) Status and APM Incentive Payment to learn more.
In the News
Gene Therapy To Regenerate Cardiac Muscle After A Heart Attack Passes A Key Test In Pigs, STAT, 6-30-21
Learning Opportunity
NCTracks Provider Training : Prior Approval Medical (Zoom), Tuesday, July 13, 2021, 9:30 a.m. – Noon
This course shows authorized users how to electronically submit, inquire about and void prior approvals for different kinds of medical services. At the end of this training, authorized users will be able to:
- Submit medical prior approval requests
- Inquire about prior approvals
- Void a prior approval
Meeting Information:
Follow the steps below for audio and visual access to the Zoom online training sessions:
- Dial US Toll Free 833-568-8864
- Enter meeting ID 161 270 4694#
- Press the # key
- Enter meeting passcode 6228645859#
- From an internet browser, enter the URL https://gdit.zoomgov.com/j/1612704694?pwd=OGJ1NXVyS0tBSENYVnpCQUptaVh2QT09
Providers may choose to use the computer audio instead of dialing in.
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