Issued: January 09, 2023
Partners to Start Plan of Correction for Backup Staffing Reports on Feb. 1
Partners Health Management monitors providers for compliance with contract requirements, including all applicable federal and state rules and regulations. Partners requests a Plan of Correction (POC) when a provider is found to be out of compliance with these requirements.
What is happening?
Effective Feb. 1, Partners will begin placing providers on a POC for noncompliance with reporting backup staffing. Noncompliant providers will be issued a written notification for a POC by Partners Quality Management department.
What must providers do?
Providers must submit the POC to Partners within 15 calendar days of the receipt or attempted delivery of the request.
Providers should retain a copy of their completed POC. Target dates for implementation of corrections should be within 60 days of the provider receiving the POC request, unless otherwise specified.
POCs should include the following components:
- A reference to the area of Out-of-Compliance
- A description of how each correction will be made
- A timetable for the implementation and completion of the corrective actions(s)
- The responsible person(s) who will ensure the POC is followed
Who should providers contact if they have questions?
For questions or more information, email backupstaffing@PartnersBHM.org. You may also visit the Partners’ website at https://providers.partnersbhm.org/back-up-staffing/ for more information on backup staffing.
Reminder: Backup Staffing Information for I/DD Innovations Services
LME-MCO Joint Communication Bulletin J# 427 reinstituted the requirement for providers of I/DD Innovations services to submit failure to provide back-up staffing reports effective August 16, 2022.
Partners set a deadline of five days after a reporting period ends to submit the reporting of back-up staffing incidents. This was effective with the reporting period ending on Nov. 30, 2022. Reporting periods are 1st-15th and 16th -last day of the month. This deadline helps us address any issues and questions so that we can process the data more quickly and efficiently to create helpful feedback and reports for providers and staff.
Providers should submit their back-up staffing incidents or Attestation of No Backup Staffing Incidents through an electronic online form. Links are below:
Back-up Staffing Guidelines
https://providers.partnersbhm.org/back-up-staffing/
Failure to Provide Back-up Staffing reporting form
Attestation of No Back-up Staffing incidents form
Reminders:
- Providers should rarely choose “Other” as a reason backup staffing was not provided. Based on reading through comments on past reports, most of the incidents with “Other” selected should be classified as “Trained Staff Unavailable.”
- Please select the option that most closely reflects the reason no backup staff was provided. If “Other” is chosen, enter a description of what that means in the Comments section.
- The Member ID field in the online electronic form should be completed with the member’s Alpha+ ID number, not their Medicaid ID number.
- If backup staffing was offered but declined, select “Backup Staffing Declined” as the reason backup staffing was not provided.
- Service breaks are not backup staffing incidents and should be documented in the member’s record with no backup staffing report submitted.