Medicaid Expansion 1915(i) Providers

Overview

The BCBSND Medicaid Expansion program provides the opportunity to Providers who deliver home- and community-based services to individuals with behavioral health conditions for our ND Medicaid Expansion members. These services support individuals to live safely and successfully in the community of their choice and avoid a higher level of care than they need.

BCBSND began administering services for North Dakota’s Medicaid Expansion program effective January 1, 2022. 1915(i) Providers who have credentialed with the North Dakota Department of Human Services (NDDHS) ND Medicaid program can now participate with BCBSND Medicaid Expansion network program.

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How to get started

1. Enroll as a North Dakota Medicaid 1915(i) provider with the State of North Dakota.

a. Make sure to enroll all affiliated clinics and individual providers who may be rendering services.

b. Enrolled 1915(i) providers choose to offer one or more of the following services: Care Coordination, Respite, Training and Support for Unpaid Caregivers, Non-Medical Transportation, Family Peer Support, Peer Support, Supported Education, Benefits Planning, Pre-Vocational Training, Supported Employment, and Housing Support.

2. Provider groups/agencies also need to enroll in our BCBSND Medicaid Expansion network by contacting our Provider Contracting department at providercontracting@bcbsnd.com.

a. Confirmation from Provider Contracting before proceeding with reviewing eligibility and/or other tasks, is also necessary for this step. See the Contracting and Credentialing section below for more information.

3. Get registered for Availity if you don’t already have an account.

a. Medicaid Expansion requires electronic submission. It is important to register as soon as possible to avoid delays in submissions and payment(s). 

b. See section Availity Essentials Provider Portal below.

4. Understand the Medicaid Expansion Member ID Card.

a. BCBSND Medicaid Expansion member IDs begin with a YME prefix.

b. Member Identification Card Quick Reference Guide

5. Sign up for HealthCare News (HCN).

a. To subscribe, visit our provider webpage at https://www.bcbsnd.com/providers/news-resources/healthcare-news and click on the Sign up for HealthCare News link. Then enter your email address to start receiving HCN.

b. This allows providers to receive timely information and updates on policies, benefits coding or billing updates, education and more which is delivered directly to your email. We understand not all HCN will apply to 1915(i), so we will put 1915(i) in the article subject or Medicaid Expansion if it reaches beyond 1915(i).

6. Once enrolled with both DHHS and BCBSND, verify the member’s benefit requirements for eligibility to receive 1915(i) services by calling BCBSND at 701-282-1003 during normal business hours.

a. It is the provider’s responsibility to verify a member’s 1915(i) eligibility. Reasons for this include, but are not limited to, a member being eligible for Medicaid Expansion but not eligible for 1915(i) services. A member may lose eligibility for 1915(i) services during their treatment. It is the provider’s responsibility to verify a member’s 1915(i) eligibility.

7. Verify if the service requires precertification by utilizing PA checkpoint.

a. More information on precertification requirements can be found in the Requirements for Authorization requests section below.

8. Enter the members plan of care into Therap. See Requirement for Authorization below for more details on Therap.

9. Begin submitting claims.

Please note, it is important to understand the documentation requirements prior to rendering services. Information can be found within policies such as, but not limited to 1915i-Provider-Requirements.pdf as noted in the Applicable Guidelines section below, as well as the “Documentation Requirements” section of the Medicaid Expansion provider manual.

Contracting and credentialing as a 1915(i) provider

Important first steps as outlined above:

  • The first step is enrolling with ND DHHS.
  • Once enrolled with DHHS and confirmation is received, you can reach out to the BCBSND Provider Contracting team.

a. This step is required if you want to participate in the BCBSND Medicaid Expansion network as a 1915(i) provider.

b. After initial contact, Provider Contracting will send an email with more information about the contracting process. They will also ask for:

- A copy of the agency W9
- The agency address(es)

Note: A signed agreement by both the provider and BCBSND, does not mean you are ready to see members and/or submit authorizations or claims. Provider Contracting will send a secondary email upon execution with information regarding next steps.

- BCBSND must receive information on individual providers at each agency, from DHHS in order for BCBSND to set up providers accordingly.
- Once the file(s) are received and providers are added to the BCBSND system, an additional email notice of specific provider active enrollment will be sent from prov.net@bcbsnd.com. Once that is received, authorizations and claims can then be filed.

  • Register for Availity Essentials before seeing members.


Additional Contracting and Credentialing Guidance:

  • BCBSND will accept the certification process completed by DHHS in lieu of credentialing with BCBSND.
  • Credentialing of Peer Support Specialists and Care Coordinators is not required for Medicaid Expansion Network Participation with BCBSND; however, the provider must be enrolled in Medicaid in ND. This enrollment information will be shared by DHHS with BCBSND to ensure the most accurate details are loaded into our system.
  • Background checks will not be conducted by BCBSND as these provider types fall outside our credentialing policy.

The timeline for the above processes may vary depending on the timeliness and completeness of the documentation received from the provider(s) and ND DHHS.

For provider group/agency contracting questions email providercontracting@bcbsnd.com. For questions relating to individual provider set up, email prov.net@bcbsnd.com.

Availity Essentials Provider Portal

Availity Essentials is a secure online provider portal that can be used 24/7 to:

  • Verify member eligibility and benefits for ND Medicaid Expansion members
  • Request precertification/authorizations
  • Submit claims and review claim status
  • Correct and void claims
  • View electronic remittance advice (835)
  • View Electronic Funds (EFT) payments
    • EFT payments should post the following Wednesday after a claim is finalized.

To use Availity Essentials:

1.    Review the Availity Essentials provider portal getting started course.

2.    Begin registration on the Availity Essentials provider portal.

  • Choose a person to be the administrator for your organization.
  • Sign up as provider who has a National Provider Identification (NPI) number.
    • For questions on Availity Essentials registration, contact Availity Client Services at 1-800-282-4548, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.

3.    Once registered through Availity Essentials, you will have access to free training and help tips

  • To access training, log into your Availity Essentials account.
  • You will find a 1915(i) specific training guide in BCBSND Payer Spaces here.
    • If you prefer to watch a video related to this guide, click here and look under the resources section.
  • For additional Availity help, click on Help & Training or Payer Spaces located on one of the two menu bars.
  • Through Help & Training or Payer Spaces, the administrator and provider can find training resources to learn how to submit a claim, review the remittance viewer and administrative responsibilities and tasks.
  • Through Claims & Payments, the provider Administrator will also need to sign up for payment remittance advice notification and electronic funds transfers (EFT) through transaction enrollment.
  • The BCBSND Availity Essentials webpage, listed in the Additional Resources section below, also has additional information regarding functionality, and how to search for training materials.

Requirements for authorization requests

For dates of service on/after Jan.1, 2025, the prior authorization requirements for 1915(i) services for home and community services will no longer be required.

However, Plans of Care must be submitted and approved prior to rendering services to BCBSND Medicaid Expansion members.

1915(i) providers will follow the1915(i) DHHS plan “Home and Community-based Services administration of operation" guide located at https://www.hhs.nd.gov/sites/www/files/documents/1915i/ND-24-0017%20Approval.pdf.

Plan of Care and SMART goal requirements

Plan of Care and SMART goal requirement documentation will continue into 2025, to align with the standards outlined by DHHS.

DHHS offer training opportunities to learn about these requirements:

Services delivered outside of the administrative guidelines need review for medical necessity prior to administration of services.

More information on 1915(i) guidelines and procedures can be found below in the Applicable Guidelines section.

Billing Requirements

1915(i) providers should refer to the policies and/or procedures outlined on the www.bcbsnd.com website as applicable as well as the Applicable Guidelines section below..

Information on the procedural codes, which align with the “Code and Modifier” column on the Service Limits and Codes document.

*The allowance on a claim is based on the ND Medicaid 1915(i) Fee Schedule in effect on the date of service.

Requirements to submit claims

Claims will be submitted through the Availity Essentials provider portal. Availity Essentials is a secure online portal to submit, review and manage claims.

Claims must:

  • Be submitted within the appropriate timeframes.
  • Have the correct member information such as name, date of birth and insurance ID card number.
  • Be submitted with all required provider data such as, TIN, provider name, NPI, and Medicaid ID number, as applicable.

Claims must be sent to BCBSND within the following timeframes:

  • Six months from the date of service for members who have only a Medicaid Expansion plan
  • Six months from the enrollee’s retroactive coverage notification
  • 365 calendar days from the date of service for claims involving third-party liability

Note: New claims should be submitted with a Frequency Type 1: Initial Claim. Claims submitted outside of the timeframes listed above will be denied unless BCBSND or its subcontractors created the error.

Instructions to submit a claim electronically

Availity Essentials is the electronic way to submit, review and manage claims. Your company may have chosen to utilize a clearinghouse for claim submissions, if that is the case, please work with your clearinghouse accordingly.

You must be registered with Payer ID 55891-BCBSND.

To submit a new claim, a claim correction or view claim status, refer to the Availity Essentials webpage.

Through Claims & Payments, the provider Administrator can also sign up for the electronic remittance advice (ERA) notification and electronic funds transfers (EFT) through transaction enrollment. More details on these steps can be found on the BCBSND Availity Essentials resource webpage.

For more information and detailed instructions relating to claims and/or claim status, see Availity Essentials help topics (requires login to Availity Essentials).

Claim Corrections and Void Requests

1915(i) providers may need to correct a claim due to billing errors, by submitting a replacement or void (cancellation) of the previously processed claim. Providers will follow the appropriate guidelines and timeframes to correct claims.

  • Claim corrections must be:
    • Submitted after the original or previously processed claim has finalized.
    • Submitted within 90 days from the initial/original claim remittance date.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Applicable Guidelines

1915(i) providers should understand and utilize these guidelines prior to rendering services. As part of your Plan of Care, all the applicable forms below will need to be completed.

Additional Resources

1915(i) Resources | Health and Human Services North Dakota

You can utilize the table of contents within the Medicaid Expansion provider manual to find additional helpful information.

Questions?

For general questions, call our ND Medicaid Expansion Customer Contact Center at 1-833-777-5779.

For BCBSND contracting questions, email providercontracting@bcbsnd.com.

For Availity Essentials registration and electronic claim submission questions, contact Availity Client Services at 1-800-282-4548.