Situation Report | June 1, 2021
As we reported last week in an alert to members, the state Department of Health (DOH) has announced a return to the Medicaid payment lag schedule that was suspended temporarily for some providers and plans in the pandemic.
This change only affects Medicaid providers and managed care organizations that are currently approved by the Department for a suspension of the Medicaid payment lag.
The purpose of the payment lag suspension was to help providers and plans with short-term cash flow relief during the COVID-19 pandemic and thus was considered a temporary accommodation by the Department.
DOH says it is returning providers back to the Medicaid cycle lag as an administrative action pursuant to the recently enacted 2021-22 state Medicaid Budget.
The notices have included a generic Dear Administrator Letter (DAL) along with an Excel spreadsheet that includes a long list of IDs for Medicaid providers (Certified Home Health Agencies, personal care providers and hospices) and plans that were approved for suspension of the Medicaid payment lag which is now being restored.
HCA members can review the Excel spreadsheet here to learn whether they are affected by this action. The list of provider IDs appears to be sequential, which should assist providers and plans in their search.
DOH will return to a Medicaid payment lag over two months. (Please see DOH’s letter for a chart showing the current payment dates compared to the new dates.) Under the current schedule, providers are expected to receive four checks in June 2021 and four checks in July 2021. The new schedule would result in three checks being released in both months rather than four. This change will start with cycle 2286and end with cycle 2290.
HCA members with questions or concerns can e-mail the Department at lag@health.ny.gov.