EXPANDING BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ACCESS TO ADDRESS OHIO’S OPIOID CRISIS Our state’s opioid crisis is multi-faceted, and Ohio’s fragmented system is not structured to address it. OHA advocates to align stakeholders (providers, payers, law enforcement and others) to achieve excellence in Ohio’s behavioral health system to address the opioid crisis. By aligning appropriate financial incentives to assure access, stakeholders can work together to improve outcomes and reduce overall system costs.
IMPLEMENTING OHIO MEDICAID BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SYSTEM REDESIGN OHA engages clinical and financial professionals at member hospitals to work with the Ohio Department of Medicaid on the implementation of the state’s behavioral health system redesign and conversion to managed care. OHA’s Health Economics & Policy team has led member education and feedback sessions between members, policymakers and payers as Ohio’s Medicaid managed care plans in 2018 implemented a new behavioral health benefit package and coding structure for reimbursement. Led by the Governor’s Office for Health Transformation, in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Ohio Department of Medicaid, key aspects of the redesign include: Aligning Medicaid behavioral health services with national coding standards Developing new services for people with high intensity service and support needs and disaggregating certain existing services to provide for lower acuity service coordination and support services Moving the Medicaid behavioral health benefit to Medicaid managed care
HOSPITAL LEADERS DEFINE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PRIORITIES OHA convened a Behavioral Health Leadership Council to identify the policy priorities vital for system improvements statewide. Member hospital leaders’ priorities included: Modernizing Medicaid reimbursements Aligning incentives with Medicaid managed care organizations Optimizing the clinical workforce Aligning incentives with law enforcement, courts and prisons