Retro SARs; ASWOM Benefit Plan; Town Halls; Learning Community

Retroactive Medicaid Service Authorization Requests

Effective February 24, 2020, Partners Utilization Management Department will review requests for Retroactive Medicaid requests within 90 days from the Modified Date in NC Tracks.  This is a change from the 30-day timeframe posted in February 2019 Provider Bulletin #90.  All Retroactive Service Authorization Requests (SAR) must be submitted to UM for medical necessity review.  For further questions on Retroactive Medicaid requests, please contact the MHSU UM Workgroup at 704-842-6436.

Eligibility & Enrollment – ASWOM Benefit Plan

As of February 1, 2020, enrollments in the ASWOM (Adult Substance Abuse Women) benefit plan will be valid for one year only. Partners will not enroll this benefit plan for an end date of 12/31/2099.

The end date for any existing members that are active and currently obtaining services under the ASWOM benefit plan prior to February 1, 2020 has been adjusted to January 31, 2021.

In the event that a member would qualify again for ASWOM at the end of their benefit plan end date, the provider will need to submit a Client Update Request (CUR) requesting to add ASWOM for the next year and note in the comments section the qualifying factor(s) for client being enrolled into ASWOM.

Qualifying criteria:

In order for a member to qualify for the ASWOM benefit plan, the member must be female, 18 years of age or older with a substance abuse diagnosis and meet at least one of the following criteria:

• Be pregnant
• Have dependent child(ren) under the age of 18 in their care and custody, and/or
• Seeking custody of child(ren) under the age of 18

Providers with questions may contact Partners Enrollment and Eligibility by emailing EligibilityEnrollment@partnersbhm.org or you may call Becky Ford (336-527-3211) or Debbie Eldridge (336-527-3234).

DHHS Hosts Town Hall Meetings

North Carolina’s public Behavioral Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) System is undergoing major changes. The NC Department of Health and Human Services wants to hear from its consumers, families and advocates about how the system is working and how we can assist in creating a system that improves health outcomes and promotes recovery for all North Carolinians.

The Department will host Town Hall Meetings with Deputy Secretary Kody Kinsley in three locations in March. Registration is recommended but not required to attend. Register for any of the sessions listed below by visiting bit.ly/BH-IDD-town-halls.

SAMHSA BRSS TACS Learning Community for Supervisors of Peer Workers

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Bringing Recovery Supports to Scale Technical Assistance Center Strategy (BRSS TACS) is pleased to announce a Learning Community to Improve the Supervision of Peer Workers.

This learning community is open to supervisors of peer workers who want to learn, strengthen, and apply core competencies related to their position. If you have experience working in a peer role and currently supervise other peer workers, you are encouraged to apply.

The learning community will meet virtually for three months, from April 2020 through July 2020. Participants will have the opportunity to learn from plenary sessions led by national leaders in the field of peer support services and participate in online discussions with supervisors from across the country. Each participant will concentrate on developing a supervisory implementation plan for their organization during workgroup sessions.

The BRSS TACS team will host the virtual sessions on Monday afternoons from 2-3 p.m. ET. Participants will learn in small workgroups that expert faculty members will facilitate. Workgroups will meet during weeks without scheduled plenaries.

Please note that SAMHSA encourages learning community members to attend all plenary and workgroup sessions to maintain consistent contact with stakeholders.  

The learning community has the following four educational objectives:

• Learn and begin to master skills of supervision
• Increase understanding of the varieties of peer support practices
• Acquire practical tools that promote peer support integration in the organization
• Connect with others who have similar goals and challenges

If you would like BRSS TACS to consider you for participation in this learning community, please complete the online application by 8 p.m. EST on Monday March 2, 2020. Each interested individual in an organization must fill out and submit an application. Applicants will learn of their acceptance into the learning community no later than March 23, 2020.

If you have questions or require additional information, please contact the BRSS TACS team at 781-247-1803 or email jbushell@c4innovates.com.