How To Become Medicaid Certified

How Do I Become A Medicaid Specialist

A career as a Medicaid specialist usually requires at least a high school diploma and can require a bachelors degree, depending on the scope of the job. Some Medicaid specialists perform mostly clerical or billing-related duties, and others serve more in the capacity of a social worker. Prior experience in these areas can help in your quest to become a Medicaid specialist. In some cases, the employer will require prior experience working with Medicaid.

Medicaid is a United States federal healthcare program that is administered by the states. Each state can have variations in who qualifies for the program and how payments are made. Income requirements and other requirements also must be met. Generally, low-income families with children, low-income pregnant women, people with disabilities and nursing home residents are eligible to apply for benefits.

In addition to meeting education and experience requirements, you need other qualifications to become a Medicaid specialist. First, you should be well-versed in Medicaid laws. While on the job, you also will be expected to keep up to date on any changes or pending changes. Other skills important to the job are good communication skills, computer skills and attention to detail.

How To Get A List Of Medicaid Assisted Living Facilities In Arizona

Step 1: Youll need to visit the Public Health Licensing section of the ASDHS site mentioned above. As of this time, their site looks like this:

Arizonas Safest Facilities

Again, this is a State of Arizona managed and approved site, so the information presented should be taken as accurate and very up-to-date. The site claims that the information is updated on the first day of every month. The lists I produced today confirm that.

From the site, they say:

Step 2: Youll notice that youve hit a gold-mine of facility and provider information. Not only can you get complete list of all Senior Living providers Statewide, you can get a targeted list of providers that accept Medicaid.

Go to the 2nd Type of Provider and youll be able to get a list in a number of formats including:

• Access
• Delimited
• PDF

I like PDF, as it is very readable, and most people are familiar with this format. Of course, if you want to further filter or sort the data on your own afterward, youd want to choose Excel, for example, to get the data in a malleable, spreadsheet format.

Step 3: Youll notice that this list is huge, and includes providers other than Assisted Living Facilities. What you can do is do a search within the document and then just enter the words Assisted Living and you can easily jump through the results that include those words.

Here is a snapshot of part of the very large document, and the type of facility data it includes:

Read Also: Healthplus Medicaid Provider Phone Number

Below We Have Outlined Some Of The Key Steps To Opening A Medicare

If you would like more help with getting your agency off the ground, or preparing for accreditation, you may be interested in reaching out to an ACHC Certified Consultant. Our Certified Consultants have been trained in ACHC Accreditation Standards, survey approach, and processes to better prepare healthcare clients for the accreditation survey. Find a Certified Consultant on achc.org.

Read Also: Will Medicaid Pay For Braces For Adults

Key Steps To Opening A Medicare

While starting a new skilled home health agency can be exciting and rewarding, it can also be a long and time-intensive process. Although there is a growing need for HHAs with the population of people age 65 and older expected to reach 19.6 percent by 2030, CMS in recent years has imposed significant financial and operational barriers that HHAs must navigate.

Because ACHC was created by home care providers, we understand these unique challenges that you face. Our goal as your partner in accreditation is to offer resources and education to help you through this process and fully prepare you for accreditation. One of these resources that ACHC has recently developed is a free On-Demand Home Health Start-Up Webinar that walks you through the process of starting an HHA in more detail. This webinar can be found on AccreditationUniversity.com.

Why Do You Need To Follow The Steps

The steps to take for Medicaid to pay for nursing home care will help you know that you have documented everything that is required. You must learn what can be done to help your loved ones get into an assisted living facility, and you will find that you have many papers and documents to send in. The requirements for Medicaid nursing home care are set up so that they know the people coming are qualified. They must qualify your case so that they can set up a payment program with the nursing home.

Recommended Reading: Humana Medicaid Long Term Care

How To Become A Medicaid Provider

Providers delivering autism spectrum disorder services must be enrolled with SCDHHS as a Medicaid provider to deliver and bill for Medicaid state plan benefit ASD services.

To enroll with SCDHHS as a Medicaid provider:

*Note, BCBA and BCaBA providers must enroll individually. If there is a group practice, a group enrollment must also be completed.

To enroll with one of the managed care organizations , a provider must be an approved Medicaid provider. Providers need to contact the MCO directly to complete the network enrollment process. Providers are not required to enroll with a MCO, but they may not be reimbursed by the MCO for services provided to beneficiaries enrolled in managed care.

To enroll with a MCO:

• Contact each MCO to begin the process of contracting, credentialing and enrolling.
• MCO contact information:

  Healthy Blue 757-8286

  First Choice by Select Health 741-6605

  Molina Health Care of South Carolina 237-6178

P. O. Box 8206 Columbia, SC 29202-8206 | Email: | phone: 549-0820

Language Services

If your primary language is not English, language assistance services are available to you, free of charge. Call: 1-888-549-0820 .

Course To Study For Health Insurance License

There are states which require and offer classroom training with a licensed health insurance agent who will help prepare you for the exam. This is a convenient option, as you have someone who can answer your questions as you progress through the course. This training usually lasts a week, with the exam coming at the end of the class.

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Become A Medicare Provider Or Supplier

Ready to become a Medicare provider or supplier? This guide will help you enroll in three steps.

Do not use this guide if

• Youre a DMEPOS supplier. DMEPOS suppliers should follow the instructions on the Enroll as a DMEPOS Supplier page.
• Youre an institutional provider. If youre enrolling a hospital, critical care facility, skilled nursing facility, home health agency, hospice, or other similar institution, you should use the Medicare Enrollment Guide for Institutional Providers.

Use this guide if any of the following apply:

• Youre a health care provider who wants to bill Medicare for your services and also have the ability to order and certify.
• You dont want to bill Medicare for your services, but you do want enroll in Medicare solely to order and certify.
• You wish to provide services to beneficiaries but do not want to bill Medicare for your services.
• You want to enroll as a supplier who does not dispense or furnish durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies .

Keep Your Information Current

Its important to keep your enrollment information up to date. To avoid having your Medicare billing privileges revoked, be sure to report the following changes within 30 days:

• a change in ownership

Becoming A Medicare Certified Provider

• Post author

Want to know how to become a medicare certified provider? The CMS accreditation process requires a survey performed by Sate Survey Agencies conducted to ascertain whether or not a provider or supplier meets all applicable requirements for participation in the Medicare and/or Medicaid programs.

During the survey your companys performance and effectiveness to render safe and effective quality care, will be evaluated. Sections of the survey include your efforts to prevent contagion, fire, contamination, structural design, maintenance problems, staff credibility, organization etc..

Why do you want to be CMS accredited?

Currently there are 44 million Americans enrolled in Medicare programs and 1 in 5 people are enrolled in Medicaid. Combined thats about one third of the US population using Medicaid and Medicare. If youre not affiliated, youre potentially missing out on a lot of clientele, and depending on what your practice is, this could be your most beneficial clientele.

Compared to other private insurance companies, Medicare as a federal insurance policy, has much quicker reimbursement turnarounds as a streamlined payment mechanism. Although Medicare holds a limited margin of profits at 10-15% and will not substantially grow your business, rather it results in an excellent source of cash flow for any practice, and aiding in income loss prevention that may come from down time.

Also Check: Nursing Homes That Accept Medicaid

Job Description At A Glance

It is simple. When you become a Medicare insurance agent, there are two main groups you are marketing to.

• Those are turning 65 and becoming eligible for Medicare health benefits.
• Those who are disabled, under 65, and are eligible for Medicare.

Selling Medicare health insurance can be rewarding in many ways, including personally, professionally, and financially. You are helping a lot of people who need it and building strong relationships along the way.

Submit An Enrollment Application For Your Provider Type

A NYS Medicaid Enrollment Application must be submitted by prospective providers. Go to the Provider Index page on this site. Each Provider enrollment form has:

• a separate instructions document for field-specific instructions, additional forms and/or documentation
• The enrollment form to be submitted
• Links to all additional forms that may be submitted based on provider type

Applications that are missing one or more requirements will be sent back to the enrollee for completion.

Read Also: Income For Family Of 5 For Medicaid

What If My Provider Is Not Approved

Medicare only covers care from certified Medicare providers. If you receive a typically covered service from a non-certified provider, your care may not be covered.

If you wish to continue using that provider, you may have to pay all costs out of pocket.

Where can I find covered Medicare providers?

Medicare provides a tool to help you find Medicare providers and make comparisons about the care they provide.

Why Would I Need Long

Reasons for needing long-term care include:

• Age. The older you are, the more likely you will need long-term care.
• Gender. Women outlive men by about 5 years on average and so they are more likely to live at home when they are older.
• Disability. Having an accident or chronic illness that causes a disability. 69 percent of people age 90 or more have a disability.
• Health status. A chronic condition such as diabetes or high blood pressure makes you more likely to need care.
• Living arrangements. If you live alone, youre more likely to need paid care than if youre married or living with a partner.

Dont Miss: Can You Receive Both Medicare And Medicaid

Also Check: Does Medicaid Cover Home Sleep Studies

How To Become A Medicare Certified Home Health Agency

Home health care agencies employ nurses, certified nursing assistants and home health aides, who take care of the elderly in their homes. If you are compassionate, hardworking and have business sense, opening a home health care agency will not be difficult. Before you open your agency, make sure you obtain Medicare certification. Not only will this give you clients peace of mind, but allow you to bill Medicare for your services.

Check with your state’s department of health. The federal Medicare system has its own enrollment guidelines, but it allows states to set additional guidelines.

Medicare serves people 65 or older, people under age 65 with certain disabilities, and people of all ages with End-Stage Renal Disease , according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Fill out the Provider/Supplier Enrollment Application and send it to your state’s Medicare administrative contractor. Submit all necessary documentation with your application. Owners of home health care agencies must pass a criminal background check, have a billing address and a business license.

Obtain a National Provider Identifier . Without this number, you can’t bill Medicare. You can apply online at the National Plan and Provider Enumeration website or call 1-800-465-3203 for an application.

Hire nurses, CNAs and home health care aides who are certified and have passed a criminal background check. Medicare will not pay for services rendered by an employee who isn’t certified.

A Detailed Guide On How To Become Medicare Certified As A Dentist

Becoming Medicare certified has become essential in the modern age and its time to understand what the process entails. The average dentist may understand the importance of doing so, but wont know where to begin. For those wanting to learn how to become medicare certified as a dentist, weve done our best to provide a detailed guide to simplify matters.

Sign up for an NPI

Before doing anything else, a dentist will need to sign up for the National Provider Identifier . This is necessary to enroll in Medicare. This process can be completed online and doesnt take long. Move forward with the official NPI application, fill in the relevant details, and send it as soon as possible. The application may have to be mailed over to the main NPI address listed on the site. Please remember, this is the first step towards becoming certified.

Fill Out the Medicare Enrollment Application

The next step is an important one and has to be managed with patience. The dentist is expected to acquire an NPI before filling out the Medicare Enrollment Application. This application can be found on the main Medicare website and is available through their online enrollment system . Take the time to go through the different steps, understand whats required, and then fill out the application. PECOS has a straightforward setup and may require additional documentation to verify certain credentials including the dentists name/address. Make sure to send this information in to move the process along.

Recommended Reading: Florida Medicaid In Home Care

Does Medicaid Cover Assisted Living

Older adults with Medicaid coverage might have better luck finding financial assistance, depending on where you live. Medicaid coverage for assisted living varies by state because the state and the federal government jointly fund Medicaid. Currently, the majority of the 50 states offer some sort of financial assistance through Medicaid for assisted living services.

Read Also: If I Have Medicaid Do I Qualify For Food Stamps

Unitedhealthcare Dual Complete Plans

Plans are insured through UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company or one of its affiliated companies, a Medicare Advantage organization with a Medicare contract and a contract with the State Medicaid Program. Enrollment in the plan depends on the plans contract renewal with Medicare. This plan is available to anyone who has both Medical Assistance from the State and Medicare. This information is not a complete description of benefits. Call TTY 711 for more information. Limitations, co-payments, and restrictions may apply. Benefits, premiums and/or co-payments/co-insurance may change on January 1 of each year.

Read Also: Medicare Part D Medicaid Dual Eligibles

How Do I Take The Ahip Test

To take the online test you must register through the AHIP website. If you have registered any time after June 2012 then you wont need to register again.

Simply login through the AHIP website using your National Producer Number as your user name and the password you used when you logged in last.

The Ahip test is a 50 question open book test and is administered online with a 2 hour time limit. You must pass both parts of the test to be AHIP certified for the current year.

PSM is proud to offer our agents a discount for AHIP certification at $125. The test normally costs $175 for 3 attempts and you must score a 90% to pass. If you fail all 3 attempts you will need to apply again for 3 more attempts.

Once you have completed the AHIP certification you must then upload it to the website of each carrier you wish to work with.

Upon uploading the certification, the carrier will normally have additional carrier specific training listed in order to satisfy their requirements to sell.

Be aware that many carriers will not accept 3 failures in a given year. If you dont pass on the 3rd attempt, you would not be able to sell their products for that year, even if you did go on to pass the AHIP test.

There are a number of self-study courses available to help prepare you for the test. We strongly recommend you take training courses that cover the same material, to ensure youre prepared to take the test.

You can access the carrier specific certification instructions from the links below: