Expanding Medicaid-covered school-based services, implementing new billing system, and strengthening State partnerships in Delaware. - Delaware School Based Services - Abstract Schools play an important and unique role in helping Medicaid eligible children access the physical and behavioral health care they need throughout their school day, with Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment (EPSDT) screens as an entry point to identifying needed services. Delaware sees the potential of Medicaid covered school-based services as being a key part of ensuring children can access the physical, mental health, and related services they require and deserve. Medicaid school-based services help meet children and adolescents where they are: in school, five days a week for seven hours a day. The Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS), Division of Medicaid and Medical Assistance (DMMA), and the Delaware Department of Education (DOE) have the following goal as it relates to the State Grants for the Implementation, Enhancement, and Expansion of Medicaid and CHIP school-based services: Improve the overall well-being, health, and educational outcomes for children across Delaware by expanding access to Medicaid covered school-based services. Delaware’s application for this Grant is reflective of the nationwide child and adolescent mental health crisis, to which Delaware is responding with action, as a part of the State’s broader commitment to the health and well-being of children and adolescents. This work will not be conducted in isolation; the Grant would build upon a strong foundation of initiatives Delaware has pursued in recent years related to children’s behavioral health. Delaware is requesting the full grant award amount of $2.5 million to pursue the goal described above, which DMMA and DOE will pursue through the following objectives: 1. Expand Medicaid covered school-based services to include behavioral health and other services documented in treatment plans beyond Individualized Education Plans /Individual Family Service Plans and EPSDT screening services. 2. Develop and implement a new, modern billing system that supports DOE to bill for Medicaid covered school-based services, and 3. Strengthen the partnership between DHSS and DOE, in collaboration with Local Education Agencies (LEAs), families, providers, and community members. The proposed budget included in this Grant application includes $1,000,000 for claims systems updates, approximately $1,000,000 in consultant costs, and approximately $500,000 for staffing costs. The grant funding will be used to address the required activities specified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. Delaware looks forward to partnering further with CMS on this opportunity.
