In December 2023, the state Department of Health Services (DHS) announced that it would extend its free telehealth service to ensure rapid access to COVID-19 antiviral drugs through April 10, 2024.  With this service in place, any Wisconsinite 18 years of age or older who tests positive for COVID-19 is able to receive a telehealth consultation with a health care professional seven days a week during the hours of 8:00AM – 8:00PM.  If the patient is eligible for treatment, the patient will receive a prescription for a COVID-19 antiviral drug that may be filled at a pharmacy.  If the patient does not have access to a pharmacy, the prescription drug will be shipped overnight to the patient.  For more information, go to the DHS website. 

In recent weeks, the state Department of Health Services (DHS) released a Forward Health Update entitled “Home Health Care Services Electronic Visit Verification Soft Launch Announcement.”  

Starting on January 1, 2024, DHS will require home health agencies to use an electronic visit verification (EVV) system if they are providing home health services covered by Medicaid.  This is being implemented to ensure that the State of Wisconsin receives its full allocation of Medicaid funding from the federal government. 

If you have any questions about EVV implementation, please contact DHS EVV Customer Care at 1-833-931-2035 or VDXC.ContactEVV@wisconsin.gov from Monday through Friday, 7:00AM – 6:00PM (Central Time). 

On Wednesday, December 6, WiAHC Board Chair Jayne Thill and her Compassus colleague and fellow WiAHC member Brenda Lefeber met with state Senator Rachael Cabral-Guevara (R-Appleton). Cabral-Guevara, who currently serves as chair of the Senate Health Committee, is also a nurse practitioner and worked in home health care early in her career. 

During the meeting, the group discussed the value of home health care and the regulatory and policy challenges the home health industry faces. Their conversation also touched on the challenges with prior authorization for home health care. Sen. Cabral Guevara not only expressed an interest in our issues, offered her help on prior authorization obstacles.

On November 30, Senator Melissa Agard (D-Madison) announced her candidacy for the position of Dane County Executive.  As such, she immediately stepped down as Senate Democratic Leader. Very soon thereafter, Senate Democrats elected Senator Dianne Hesselbein – who represents a Senate district in the western Madison suburbs – to be the new Senate Democratic Leader.  Senator Hesselbein assumed that position immediately after being elected.

Once Senator Hesselbein was elected as Senate Democratic Leader, she resigned from most of her committee positions – including her role as the top Democrat on the Senate Health Committee.  Soon thereafter, she announced committee changes for Senate Democrats.  Of interest to WiAHC, Senator LaTonya Johnson of Milwaukee is the new top Democrat on the Senate Health Committee and Senator Tim Carpenter of Milwaukee is a new member of the Senate Committee on Mental Health, Substance Abuse Prevention, Children and Families.  It’s notable that Senator LaTonya Johnson is also the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on Mental Health, Substance Abuse Prevention, Children and Families. 

In early December, the state Department of Health Services announced that it updated its webpage addressing post-COVID-19 pandemic Medicaid renewal data to include an interactive dashboard.  Specifically, this dashboard includes enrollment data for BadgerCare Plus, Medicaid and other programs that are funded by the state government.  DHS will update this page on the third Thursday of each month – by 2:00pm.

In mid-November, the state Department of Health Services announced that tobacco and vape product use among underage individuals increased by 1.7% from 2022 to 2023.  Specifically, it increased from 11.9% in 2022 to 13.6% in 2023.  This research is based on an “underage” definition of individuals younger than 21.  Per a federal law enacted in 2019, the minimum age to purchase tobacco and vape products was increased from 18 to 21.  However, despite efforts in the Legislature, Wisconsin has not updated state law to increase the minimum age from 18 to 21.  There are seven other states that also have not updated their respective state laws in a similar manner.

The Care Coordination Team from Superior Health Quality Alliance developed a FREE Home Care toolkit to prevent emergency department visits and hospital readmissions through timeliness of care of home care services. The Timeliness of Care Toolkit (described below) includes a Home Care Intake Scripting Tool (HIS Tool), and Home Care Acceptance Tracking Tool (HAT Tool).  

• Timeliness of Care Toolkit: 
• • The HIS (Scripting) Tool can be used to guide your initial and ongoing discussion with potential clients and/or caregivers. It normalizes home care as a crucial component of health care to improve well-being and prevent relapses and readmissions. 
  • The HAT (Tracking) Tool is an Excel spreadsheet that is very easy to use, requiring only 2 checkmarks (if services were accepted or declined,  and if the scripting tool was used). There are (optional) drop-down responses (why services were declined, and suggestions for improvement). The HAT Tool provides weekly and monthly comparisons of home care acceptance rates, correlating with the use of the HIS (scripting) Tool.

Home Care Agencies can download, use, and share the links to the Timeliness of Care Toolkit with other agencies. You can start by viewing the 30-minute Instructional Video, refer to the PowerPoint, and use the Example HAT Tool to practice before you begin using the toolkit. 

• Time for implementation: The Excel tool is very easy to use and implement. It may add a minute (or two) to your intake process, and it calculates acceptance rates automatically. 

From the Desk of NAHC - November 22, 2023

More people die from chronic disease than from acute disease. What this suggests is that the future will be about the management of chronic disease and not acute illness. The number of people going into hospitals will be fewer and they will spend less time there. What will increase by geometric progressions is the number of people cared for at home.

While sheer demographics and increased life expectancy – perhaps the greatest gift of the 20^th and 21^st centuries – have and will continue to increase the demand for home care services, our community will grow for other reasons, as well. Those other reasons mostly center around the great work done by home care workers and the unique services they provide.

So, as we begin this holiday season, here are the top ten reasons to be thankful for home care:

1.      Home care keeps families together. There are few, if any, social values more important than keeping strong families together and this is particularly true in times of illness.

2.      Home care is safer than the alternatives. While hospitalization is sometimes necessary, statistics show that hospitals can be dangerous for patients. It is not uncommon for patients to develop new or additional health problems (about 20 percent of hospital patients develop an infection or other illness) as a result of hospitalization, but those risks are minimized with care at home.

3.      Home care is the most personal care. Home care is tailored to the needs of each individual and delivered on a person-to-person basis with lots of one-on-one interaction between the patient and caregivers. When we care for people in their own homes, we tell them they are special, they matter and they are loved.

4.      Home care involves patients in their own care. In home care, the patient and his or her family are taught to participate in the caregiving by monitoring the health of the patient and taking steps to get well and maintain wellness.

5.      Home care is a much better value. Studies have repeatedly shown that home care is far less expensive than institutionalization. In fact, home care is, on average, 10 times less expensive than a hospital and about four times less expensive than a nursing home.

6.      Home care is more efficient. By caring for people at home, we allow them to avoid room and boarding expenses. In addition, the dazzling improvements in health technology are enabling people to monitor their own health as never before. Thanks to the development of the Internet and other technologies, telemedicine has more potential than ever. What’s more, technology has now developed that make it possible to treat most illnesses as well or better at home than in a hospital.

7.      Home care is the only way to care for some people. In many rural parts of America or even dense urban areas, home care is the only available form of health care. Nurses and aides routinely visit patients in rural areas using unorthodox modes of transportation such as horses, dog sleds and boats.

8.      Home care extends life. Allowing people to age at home not only adds life to their years, it adds years to their lives. Studies by nursing schools and government agencies have established beyond reasonable doubt that home care extends longevity because home care personnel and the intensely personal services they provide assist people not only medically, but psychologically and spiritually, as well.

9.      Home care reduces stress. There is nothing like a health crisis to create stress, not only for the patients, but for their loved ones, as well. Hospitals, with their remoteness, their size and their state of frenzied activity, usually add to this stress. Home care, on the other hand, which is quieter and far more peaceful, has been shown to reduce the stress of patients and their families.

10.   Home care is what people want. Home care is the preferred form of health care for America’s infirm and disabled. In fact, home care is preferred by a margin of 90 percent over comparable institutional care by the infirm. People facing terminal illnesses are increasingly choosing the form of home care known as hospice.

Home care is the oldest and most reliable form of health care, so it is no surprise that America is returning to it. However, home care is also the newest form of health care, as people increasingly prefer it over hospitalization and the advance of medical and other technologies make it possible – even preferable – to treat many maladies at home. The public is demanding that home care become more available than ever and our elected leaders must respond to this demand. NAHC is here to ensure that they do.

ForwardHealth Update 2023-40, "Home Health Care Services Electronic Visit Verification Soft Launch Announcement"

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) has published ForwardHealth Update 2023-40, “Home Health Care Services Electronic Visit Verification Soft Launch Announcement.”

For dates of service on and after January 1, 2024, DHS will require use of an electronic visit verification (EVV) system for Medicaid-covered home health care services. The affected services codes can be found on the EVV website. EVV is required by federal law. All states must require EVV system use to maintain full federal Medicaid funding.

Please feel free to direct any questions to Wisconsin EVV Customer Care – Monday through Friday; 7 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. – at 833-931-2035 or VDXC.ContactEVV@wisconsin.gov.