Late last week, the Department of Health sent email notifications to all but four LHCSAs that were deemed eligible for federal Medical Assistance Program (“FMAP”) funds. As we had reported previously, the DOH is expected to receive a total of $1.6 billion in funding over the next year, and these funds will be distributed to home care providers. In turn, home care provider recipients will be required to use the funds for designated purposes, with the first phase of funds having to be used for certain workforce retention and value-based payment programs. The first phase of the FMAP will be issued to the top billing 1/3 of LHCSAs (based on 2019 MLTC/MCO revenue). The DOH estimates that approximately 250 LHCSAs will receive this first phase of FMAP distributions.
The DOH has clarified some facets of the FMAP. First, the DOH is emphasizing that the initial distribution of FMAP funds, that will be issued to the approximately 250 agencies, is merely “phase one” of New York’s overall plan for the expected $1.6 billion in FMAP funding from the federal government. This phase is focused on “transforming the long-term care workforce and achieving value-based payment readiness.” The other facets of the State’s plan will target workforce transportation challenges, supporting CDPAP growth, and expanding capacity for the provision of NHTD and TBI services.
For providers that were selected for the first phase distribution, the DOH will host a webinar at the beginning of January to describe the qualification requirements. The agencies that received letters from the DOH are presumptive awardees and, to secure their FMAP award, certain information must be provided to the DOH via a questionnaire that was also distributed by the DOH. If you have any questions about FMAP or how to complete the DOH survey, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.