CMHI's New Hampshire Medical Home Projects

Got Transition? The National Health Care Transition Center: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Grant: Transition Services in Adolescent Health-Healthy and Ready to Work. National Health Care Transition Center for Youth with Special Health Care Needs.

Project Period: July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2013
Purpose:Through a cooperative agreement between the US Maternal and Child Health Bureau/ HRSA and the CMHI at Crotched Mountain Foundation, Got Transition, the new National Health Care Transition Center, will focus on the implementation and dissemination of health care transition best practices in primary care medical homes and specialty settings for youth and young adults. The goals and objectives of Got Transition will be accomplished through partnerships among youth, families, health professionals, and policy makers. For more information about Got Transition's emerging initiatives, go to www.gottransition.org, the National Center's website that is currently under construction. Note: Please join us as a fan that "likes us" on the Got Transition Facebook page- where you will find current resources and dialogue related to health care transition topics. www.Facebook.com

Endowment for Health Theme Grant: Securing the Future of the Primary Care Medical Home, Improving primary care access and building practice capacity for coordinated care.

Project Period: 1 year from October 1, 2008 to September 30, 2009
Purpose: To improve the quality, effectiveness and availability of primary care for all New Hampshire residents by promoting primary care as a “medical home” that provides patient-centered primary care and coordinates all other care. This will be accomplished by launching and testing at six diverse practice settings a practice recognition technical assistance and improvement process that meets the national standards of a medical home. The Center for Medical Home Improvement will work in close collaboration with the Reimbursement and Medical Home Workgroups of the NH Citizens Health Initiative, the New Hampshire Institute on Health Policy and Practice, and NH Primary Care Task Force in order to develop the spread for a sustainable, statewide primary care practice recognition process.

Endowment for Health Convening Grant: Securing the Future of the Primary Care Medical Home

Project Period: 1 year, October 1, 2007 to September 30, 2008
Purpose: To foster a viable, informed, and innovative primary care system for all New Hampshire’s citizens based upon the medical home as the 21st century quality model. A multidisciplinary primary care task force was convened to address current primary care needs in NH and was charged with the following objectives: to determine how best to increase outreach capacity of NH professional organizations in support of the medical home model; create an alignment of NH primary care medical home efforts; determine the mission, emphasis and location of a resource for primary care technical assistance, research, and development; and, to plan a process to seek funding to secure a strong primary care medical home presence in NH.

The Medical Home Project for Children with Special Health Care Needs

Commencing in 2007, CMHI has received three annual state contracts from the New Hampshire (NH) Health and Human Services Division / Special Medical Services (SMS). SMS is the recipient of the NH Title V block grant and supports CMHI under a project entitled "Towards a Medical Home for All New Hampshire Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs". CMHI is working in collaboration with SMS on medical home planning, development of a pediatric Medical Home network and registry, creation of state policy regarding medical home supports, and provision of technical assistance to pediatric and family medicine practices working improving care for children/youth with special health care needs. More information on the NH Department of Health and Human Services Division/ Special Medical Services.

NH Citizen’s Health Initiative Reimbursement and Medical Home Work Group

CMHI’s Medical Director and Director participate in the New Hampshire Citizen’s Health Initiative (NHCHI). NHCHI’s objectives are to promote and facilitate the implementation of the Medical Home model across primary care, to create a uniform scorecard of quality measures from national norms – with benchmarks for primary, specialty, hospital and ambulatory care – and to align reimbursement to promoted comprehensive primary care and coordination of care with appropriate co-management with specialty care. The medical home workgroup is a joint effort of all public and private NH Payers and representatives of the clinical communities. A Multi Payer Medical Home Pilot project will begin 01/01/2009 and run for a period of 30 months. Ms. McAllister, CMHI Director, will lead the practice recruitment, application and enrollment process of this pilot for NHCHI with the explicit purpose to offer uniformity in patient attribution, reimbursement, technical support and outcomes measurement. More information »

Care Plan Oversight Reimbursement Pediatric Pilot Project

Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield (December 2007) and Harvard Pilgrim health plans (April 2008) began piloting with CMHI the development and use of a CPT code for care plan oversight reimbursement for child/youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN). Primary care practices must meet specific medical home eligibility criteria and apply for health plan approval in order to receive an annual prospective payment at $225 per CYSHCN care plan. CMHI provides vetting for primary care practices including technical assistance to apply and maintain health plan approval. It is anticipated that the health plans will honor payment under this “pilot” for at least two years from the date the health plan notifies the practice of reimbursement approval.

New England Genetics Collaborative (NEGC), Regional Genetics and Newborn Screening Collaborative

February 2008, CMHI’s Medical Director, Dr. W. Carl Cooley, began convening and chairing a Medical Home Work Group to design and develop a pilot program to test a new process of primary care medical home-based, longitudinal care of children with genetic conditions identified through newborn screening including the potential use of registries, planned care methods, decision support mechanisms, co-management with specialists, and application of family-and-patient centered practices. Funding for this project is through the University of New Hampshire Office of Sponsored Research recipient of a HRSA MCHB grant. More information »

Leadership Education in Autism Spectrum Disorders (LEASD)

Starting in Fall 2008, CMHI will work in partnership with Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) and the University of New Hampshire (UNH) Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Program (LEND) program to assure that all children in New Hampshire are screened for autism spectrum disorders at 18 and 24 months to assure early diagnosis and access to early intervention and family centered care for optimal development outcomes. This program expands upon the leadership and professional development in the area of ASD among community based professionals and university trainees. Funding for this project is through Dartmouth College, recipient of a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Maternal Child Health Bureau (MCHB) grant.