» $3.7 million contract to aid Washington state's Medicaid processes
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$3.7 million contract to aid Washington state's Medicaid processes

medicaid
Commonwealth Medicine’s Center for Health Care Financing (CHCF) has entered into a five-year, $3.75 million contract with the state of Washington to provide consulting services for the state’s Medicaid program, with the goal of saving the state money through centralizing and simplifying administrative processes.

Currently, Washington uses a variety of tools to complete time studies that help states document how much time is spent providing certain health services in programs such as Medicaid, which is partially funded by federal reimbursement. Under the terms of this contract, CHCF will employ its web-based random moment time study system to centralize and simplify the current administrative process for the state. The system documents workers’ functions and time spent performing the delivery of health care services to particular groups of Medicaid members; states use that information to submit accurate claims for those activities for federal reimbursement.

CHCF will also provide other administrative claiming support, including training and reporting.

The time study services will be provided to the state Medicaid agency and department of health, 33 local health jurisdictions and 126 school districts in Washington.

“The goal is to make a major impact through simplification,” said Teresa Pastore, the CHCF’s senior associate for school-based programs and local initiatives. “Ultimately, the claiming and time study process overall is streamlined and the state is able to realize substantial cost reductions while delivering appropriate health care coverage.”

In its brief 15-year existence, the CHCF has built a portfolio of public clients by identifying savings opportunities and enhancing operations, while offering a scope of services that surpasses what many other national vendors offer. This has included developing services and technology tools to help states and local entities determine which Medicaid activities would be eligible for federal reimbursement. For example, since establishing a school-based claiming team more than a decade ago, the CHCF has helped local governments in multiple states reclaim approximately $750 million in federal reimbursement.