The Partnership Center Newsletter: Special Edition
CMCS Informational Bulletin
DATE: January 7, 2013
FROM: Cindy Mann, Director
Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services
SUBJECT: Connecting Kids to Coverage Outreach and Enrollment Grant Opportunity and Important Information on Key Medicaid and CHIP Provisions of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012
We are pleased to announce that today the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a solicitation for applications for Connecting Kids to Coverage Outreach and Enrollment Grants. These grants, funded under the Affordable Care Act, continue efforts to find and enroll eligible children in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) that were initially funded under the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA). Past grant projects have demonstrated the creative use technology to enhance outreach efforts, sponsored successful enrollment telethons, incorporated Medicaid and CHIP sign-ups into school routines and much more. Outreach is one of the important factors behind the strong and improving children’s Medicaid/CHIP participation rate which, according to the Urban Institute, stands at 85.8 percent for the nation.
A total of $32 million is available for grants to states, local governments, community-based and non-profit organizations. Indian health care providers and tribal entities also are eligible to apply. (In addition, a separate funding opportunity exclusively for Indian health care providers and tribal entities will be made available for outreach and enrollment grants at a later time.)
Proposals are due on February 21, 2013, with grant award notification anticipated on June 1, 2013. Grants are expected to range in size from $250,000 to $1 million for a two-year period, beginning June 1, 2013 and ending May 31, 2015.
This round of grants (Cycle III) will support outreach strategies similar to those conducted in previous grant cycles, and also may be used to build community-based resources for assisting families with the application process. Proposals should focus on one of the following five areas:
1. Engaging schools in outreach, enrollment and retention activities;
2. Bridging health coverage disparities by reaching out to subgroups of children that exhibit lower than average health coverage rates;
3. Designing and executing targeted enrollment strategies to streamline health coverage enrollment for individuals participating in SNAP, WIC or other public benefit programs;
4. Establishing and developing application assistance resources to provide high quality, reliable Medicaid/CHIP enrollment and renewal services in local communities; and
5. Conducting training programs to equip communities to help families understand the new application and enrollment system and to deliver effective assistance to families with children eligible for Medicaid and CHIP.
The solicitation for the Connecting Kids to Coverage Outreach and Enrollment Grants, which includes full instructions for how to apply, can be found at http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do;jsessionid=7HLcQrnbZzyKpyvgJkFVpggTRFhWRfxMrWCrdlHXmKWpNGppqZSC!-804278280?oppId=214153&mode=VIEW. CMCS will hold at least two teleconferences to provide interested parties an opportunity to ask questions. The first teleconference will take place on January 16, 2013, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. eastern time. The dates, times, and call-in numbers for this and future teleconferences will be posted on the InsureKidsNow.gov website at www.insurekidsnow.gov/professionals/outreach/grantees.
We encourage all eligible interested parties to apply for the Connecting Kids to Coverage Outreach and Enrollment Grants and look forward to continuing state and community-based efforts to ensure that all children have the health coverage and care they need.
Important Information on Key Medicaid and CHIP Provisions of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012
The American Taxpayer Relief Act (ATRA) of 2012 extended the authorization for three Medicaid and CHIP provisions – Transitional Medical Assistance (TMA), the Qualifying Individuals (QI) Program and also continued the state option to provide Express Lane Eligibility (ELE) for children.
• Transitional Medical Assistance (TMA) – TMA provides certain families with continued Medicaid coverage for at least 6, and up to 12, months after the family becomes income ineligible for Medicaid under section 1931 due to earnings. States also have the option to offer wraparound assistance to supplement coverage available through an employer. The authorization for TMA was extended by Section 622 of the ATRA through December 31, 2013.
• Qualifying Individuals (QI) Program –The QI program permits states to use Medicaid funding to assist individuals with their Medicare cost sharing obligations. The QI program serves individuals with incomes between 120% and 135% of the federal poverty level (FPL). Section 621 of the ATRA authorizes the QI program through December 31, 2013.
• Express Lane Eligibility (ELE) - ELE permits states to rely on findings from an Express Lane agency to conduct simplified eligibility determinations and facilitate children’s enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP. Section 623 of the ATRA extends the authority for ELE for an extra 12 months, through September 30, 2014.
HHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
January 2013 Webinars
The HHS Partnership Center continues to host a series of webinars for faith and community leaders. All webinars are open to the public and include a question and answer session where you can ask HHS staff any questions you may have. We also encourage you to submit questions you would like to have answered on the webinars to partnerships@hhs.gov.
To participate in one of the webinars, please select your preferred topic from the list below and submit the necessary information. After registering you will receive an e-mail confirmation containing information about joining the webinar. Please contact us at partnerships@hhs.gov if you have registration problems.
January 16 at 12:30 pm ET
Text4Baby is a free texting service that helps improve maternal and child health and reduce infant mortality. The presentation will highlight how Text4Baby works, why it is effective and how to share this resource with others.
January 22 at 2:00 p.m. ET
A presentation on the main provisions in the Affordable Care Act, the health care law, and how to access care in your community in Spanish.
January 31 at 2:00 pm ET
Access to healthy and affordable food is a central issue affecting the health of our nation’s children.
Mary Haftmann-Dailer and Cindy Hammer from Catholic Charities West Virginia will share their innovative Wellness Works program, a comprehensive community-based approach to addressing the health and nutritional needs of their food pantry consumers.
.png)
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario