Covering Kids & Families of Indiana Newsletter |
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The 2024 Indiana Legislative Session Starts January 8th
You can find your legislator here.
You can follow CKF-IN on socials.
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Last month the White House released the first ever U.S. Playbook to Address Social Determinants of Health, a policy guide on ways to integrate social services, public health and the health care system to improve health outcomes in local communities by breaking down federal agency and local system silos. The Playbook highlights ongoing and new actions that federal agencies are taking to support health by improving the social circumstances of individuals. This includes initiatives by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Agriculture (USDA), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) among other federal agencies. The goals are to align investments that finance community infrastructure, offer grants to empower communities to address health related social needs, and encourage coordinated use of resources and data to improve health outcomes.
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This bill was introduced by Senator Sherrod Brown [D-OH] to assist schools and districts by providing integrated student supports, including medical, mental, nutrition health services, mentoring and youth development programs, technical assistance, and continuing education courses, to serve students, families and communities. The bill would invest $3.65 billion over the next five years to plan, implement, expand and support full-service community schools serving low-income students. It would also provide renewable grant opportunities and additional resources to existing community schools to build collaborative leadership structures and strengthen wraparound services that support the needs of students, families and neighborhoods. Additionally, it would build community school infrastructure by funding the establishment of state-level teams that provide professional development opportunities and resources for community school staff, work with schools and local educational agencies (LEAs) to develop and implement restorative justice principles, and collaborate with LEAs on integrating supports for community schools. The bill was referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
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Many early childhood and family-facing agencies providing health and social services work in siloes that create difficulties for the families navigating them, especially those with complex health and social needs.
Four key strategies to engage families and providers in cross-sector alignment solutions are presented in this brief. Teams, composed of Medicaid and early childhood-facing agency staff and other stakeholders, worked with community partners to engage families with young children and providers to inform alignment efforts.
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NEWS FROM THE INDIANA SCHOOL HEALTH NETWORK |
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2024 ISHN Conference Call for Sponsors
The Indiana School Health Network (ISHN) and Covering Kids & Families of Indiana invite you to sponsor the 16th annual ISHN Conference.
Conference sponsors have the opportunity to elevate awareness, establish connections, and network with conference attendees. Detailed information regarding sponsorship levels is provided below. Deadline for submission is April 1, 2024.
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2024 ISHN Conference Call for Proposals
The Indiana School Health Network (ISHN) invites school health professionals and advocates to submit proposals for a session at the 2024 Indiana School Health Network Conference on June 4-5, 2024. The conference will be held at the Embassy Suites Plainfield Hotel and Conference Center. This year's theme is "Seeds of Hope: Growing a Strong Future for Hoosier Kids."
All sessions are 60 minutes long, including Q&A and evaluation. Proposals will be selected based on the speaker's knowledge and expertise on the subject and the relevance to the conference theme including:
- Policies, practices or programs that promote cross-sector collaboration
- Managing physical, behavioral, and mental health conditions that influence educational achievement, especially proposals on chronic diseases, suicide and substance use disorder
- Role of school-based health centers in childhood development
- Emerging trends in early childhood education and health
- Promising practices advancing diversity, equity and inclusion
- Best practices in school-based Medicaid billing
- EPSDT screenings in schools
- Addressing children with special health care needs in school
- Best practices addressing ethics and boundaries
- Policies and legislation that advance school health outcomes for all students
- Effective Navigator outreach and enrollment practices for healthcare coverage
- Innovative Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) Model implementation
Special consideration will be given to proposals focused on alignment and coordination of services and resources, policy changes, social justice in education, and evidence-based programs promoting physical and mental health in schools.
Deadline for submission is January 9, 2024
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Promoting Mental Health and Well-Being in Schools: An Action Guide for School and District Leaders
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recently published an action guide for school administrators in kindergarten through 12th grade to identify evidence-based strategies, approaches, and practices that can positively influence students’ mental health. Adolescent mental health has gotten worse with almost a quarter of high school students reporting they had seriously considered suicide, according to the CDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey Trends Report, 2011-2021. The action guide describes six in-school strategies and provides tips to support successful and equitable implementation of each strategy.
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CHIP Premiums
In Indiana, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is known as Hoosier Healthwise package C. Children in package C routinely pay a premium but have not done so since 2020. It is expected that premiums will be reinstated sometime in 2024. Also starting January 1, 2024, all states must begin offering 12 months continuous coverage for children including those in package C. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) stated that families who miss premium payments should not lose their children’s coverage however states may require a first month’s premium for enrollment. Stayed tuned for information on how Indiana will implement this new federal policy.
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Marketplace News
CDO Applications
Marketplace extended the annual Certified Application Counselor Designated Organization (CDO) application window to January 17, 2024. Learn more here.
Marketplace Deadlines
January 15, 2024 - Marketplace open enrollment for 2024 coverage ends.
July 31, 2024 – Anyone losing Medicaid coverage between March 31, 2023 – July 31, 2024 is eligible for a 60 day special enrollment period (SEP) beginning the day they submit or update a Marketplace application. This Unwinding SEP will be automatically applied based on their answers to the application questions regarding Medicaid. Learn more here including how to answer the Medicaid coverage questions.
IDOI Information and Resources
The Indiana Department of Insurance (IDOI) issued a warning to Hoosiers seeking Marketplace coverage to be cautious of websites offering rewards in exchange for signing up through them. These “lead generating” third party websites collect personal information and may provide inaccurate information on health plans. IDOI provides a list of Marketplace insurance companies by county. IDOI recommends using www.healthcare.gov to review plans and to seek help from Indiana Certified Navigators.
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Medicaid Unwinding Data
Are you following the Medicaid Unwinding data? Here are a few resources of interest.
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Covering Kids & Families of Indiana Enrollment Trends – The latest version of Enrollment Trends is included in this newsletter (last item). It is updated whenever the state updates their enrollment report.
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Medicaid Monthly Enrollment Reports – The Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) shares reports that break down enrollment by age, health program, managed care entity (MCE), aid category, county, etc.
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CMS reports and Indiana dashboards – Data about Medicaid enrollment and renewals (unwinding) on the state and county level is available on the State’s return to normal website. Information breakdown includes race, ethnicity, age, dual eligibility (Medicare & Medicaid), Medicaid program and Managed Care Entity.
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Medicaid Enrollment and Unwinding Tracker – This tracker is offered by KFF and reviews reported data on the national and state level providing easy to understand charts.
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HealthCare.gov Enrollment Exceeds 15 Million, Surpassing Previous Years’ Milestones
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace enrollment continues at a record-breaking pace. As of December 15, 2023, for HealthCare.gov states and December 9, 2023, for State-based Marketplaces, preliminary data projects that over 19 million consumers will enroll in 2024 coverage through the ACA Marketplaces.
Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said. “The Marketplace clearly meets an important need in Americans’ lives, making access to health care possible for adults and their children. The Affordable Care Act connects more people to preventive and life-saving care, helping more people and their families live the American dream. We look forward to continuing to get people enrolled ahead of the January 16 deadline.”
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MACPAC Releases 2023 Edition of MACStats:
Medicaid and CHIP Data Book
The Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC) released the 2023 edition of the MACStats: Medicaid and CHIP Data Book, with updated data on national and state Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollment, spending, benefits, and beneficiaries’ health, service use, and access to care. As of July 2023, 91.5 million people were enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP. While enrollment is higher than in the same period the prior year, it has been decreasing from its peak following the end of the continuous coverage requirement that was attached to the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) increase under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA, P.L. 116-127).
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CMS Releases Three New Data Briefs on Enrollees in Medicaid and CHIP
These new data briefs build on a series of reports released earlier in 2023 that used first-ever national estimates of the demographic composition of Medicaid and CHIP, including analyses stratified by race, ethnicity, primary language, geography, and eligibility based on disability. These data briefs help describe the demographic makeup of program enrollees and provide a richer picture of the individuals served by Medicaid and CHIP, which together constitute some of the nation’s largest and most vital health coverage programs.
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988 Indiana
This time of year can be stressful, especially for those struggling with mental health or substance use disorders. 988 Indiana is encouraging Hoosiers to share resources found in 988 Indiana’s resource toolkit.
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Pushing the Envelope in School-Based Services: Graduating to a Higher Level of Pediatric Care
Wednesday, January 17, 2024
1:00 p.m.–2:00 p.m. ET
Click here to register for the free webinar from Manatt. Key topics include:
- An overview of the new CMS guidance and how it can simplify providing school-based physical and behavioral health care services to children and youth
- A spotlight on states and providers that are pushing the envelope and going beyond the norm in delivering innovative school-based services
- Strategies for expanding school-based health care offerings
- Proven approaches for taking advantage of previously existing and new opportunities to cover services for children and youth
- Next steps for Medicaid and education agencies to partner in improving care for children and youth
Even if you can’t make the live airing on January 17, click here to register for this free webinar and you’ll receive a link to view the program on demand.
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IHCP Enrollment
Total Membership decreased in November. With 2,038,407 members, there were 28,219, or
-1.37%, fewer members in November 2023 than in October 2023.
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© 2023 Covering Kids & Families of Indiana | All Rights Reserved |
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