Virginia Law

A. DMAS shall determine enrollment in Medallion mandatory managed care.

1. Medicaid eligible persons not meeting the exclusion criteria set out in subsection B of this section shall participate in the Medallion mandatory managed care program. Enrollment in Medallion mandatory managed care shall not be a guarantee of continuing eligibility for services and benefits under the Virginia Medical Assistance Services Program.

2. DMAS reserves the right to exclude from participation in the Medallion mandatory managed care program any member who has been consistently noncompliant with the policies and procedures of managed care or who is threatening to providers, MCOs, or DMAS. There must be sufficient documentation from various providers, the MCO, and DMAS of these noncompliance issues and any attempts at resolution. Members excluded from Medallion mandatory managed care through this provision may appeal the decision to DMAS.

B. The following individuals shall be excluded (as defined in 12VAC30-120-360 and the § 1915(b) managed care waiver) from participating in Medallion mandatory managed care. Individuals excluded from Medallion mandatory managed care shall include the following:

1. Individuals who are inpatients in state mental hospitals;

2. Individuals who are approved by DMAS as inpatients in long-stay hospitals, nursing facilities, or intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities;

3. Individuals who are placed on spend-down, which is the process of reducing countable income by deducting incurred medical expenses for medically needy individuals, as determined in the State Plan for Medical Assistance;

4. Individuals who are participating in the family planning waiver;

5. Prior to April 1, 2019, individuals younger than 21 years of age who are approved for DMAS residential facility Level C programs as defined in 12VAC30-130-860;

6. Individuals, other than students, who permanently live outside their area of residence, which is the member's address in the Medicaid eligibility file, for greater than 60 consecutive days except those individuals placed there for medically necessary services funded by the MCO;

7. Individuals who receive hospice services in accordance with DMAS criteria;

8. Individuals with insurance purchased through the Health Insurance Premium Payment Program (HIPP);

9. Individuals requesting exclusion who are inpatients in hospitals, other than those listed in subdivisions 1 and 2 of this subsection, at the scheduled time of MCO enrollment or who are scheduled for inpatient hospital stay or surgery within 30 calendar days of the MCO enrollment effective date. The exclusion shall remain effective until the first day of the month following discharge. This exclusion reason shall not apply to members admitted to the hospital while already enrolled in a department-contracted MCO;

10. Individuals who request exclusion during assignment to an MCO or within a time set by DMAS from the effective date of their MCO enrollment, who have been diagnosed with a terminal condition and who have a life expectancy of six months or less. The individual's physician must certify the life expectancy;

11. Individuals who have an eligibility period that is less than three months;

12. Individuals who have an eligibility period that is only retroactive; and

13. Children enrolled in the Virginia Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Program established pursuant to Chapter 50 (§ 38.2-5000 et seq.) of Title 38.2 of the Code of Virginia.

C. Members enrolled with an MCO who subsequently meet one or more of the criteria of subsection B of this section during MCO enrollment shall be excluded from MCO participation as determined by DMAS. .

D. Individuals who are enrolled in localities that qualify for the rural exception may meet exclusion criteria if their PCP of record, as defined in 12VAC30-120-360, cannot or will not participate with the one MCO in the locality. Individual requests to be excluded from MCO participation in localities meeting the qualification for the rural exception must be made to DMAS for consideration on a case-by-case basis. Members enrolled in MCO rural exception areas shall not have open enrollment periods and shall not be afforded the 90-day window after initial enrollment during which they may make a health plan or program change.

Individuals excluded from Medallion mandatory managed care enrollment shall receive Medicaid services under the current fee-for-service system. When individuals no longer meet the criteria for exclusion, they shall be required to enroll in the appropriate managed care program.

E. Medallion mandatory managed care plans shall be offered to individuals, and individuals shall be enrolled in those plans. DMAS has sole responsibility for determining enrollment in the contractor's plan. DMAS utilizes an independent enrollment broker under contract to DMAS to assist members with making plan choices after initial preassignment and during open enrollment. An enrollment broker is an independent contractor that enrolls individuals in the contractor's plan and is responsible for the operation and documentation of a toll-free individual service helpline.

F. Members shall be enrolled as follows:

1. All eligible individuals, except those meeting one of the exclusions in subsection B of this section, shall be enrolled in Medallion mandatory managed care.

2. Individuals shall receive a Medicaid card from DMAS and shall be provided authorized medical care in accordance with DMAS procedures after Medicaid eligibility has been determined to exist.

3. Once individuals are enrolled in Medicaid, they will receive a letter indicating that they may select one of the contracted MCOs. These letters shall indicate an assigned MCO, determined as provided in subsection G of this section, in which the member will be enrolled if he does not make a selection within a period specified by DMAS of not less than 30 days. Members who are enrolled in one mandatory MCO program who immediately become eligible for another mandatory MCO program are able to maintain consistent enrollment with the member's currently assigned MCO if available. These members will receive a notification letter including information regarding their ability to change health plans under the new program.

4. Any newborn whose mother is enrolled with an MCO at the time of birth shall be considered a member of that same MCO for the newborn enrollment period.

a. This requirement does not preclude the member, once the member is assigned a Medicaid identification number, from disenrolling from one MCO to enrolling with another in accordance with subdivision H 1 of this section.

b. The newborn's continued enrollment with the MCO is not contingent upon the mother's enrollment. Additionally, if the MCO's contract is terminated in whole or in part, the MCO shall continue newborn coverage if the child is born while the contract is active until the newborn receives a Medicaid number or for the newborn enrollment period, whichever timeframe is earlier. Newborns who remain eligible for participation in Medallion mandatory managed care will be reenrolled in an MCO through the assignment process upon receiving a Medicaid identification number.

c. Any newborn whose mother is enrolled in an MCO at the time of birth shall receive a Medicaid identification number prior to the end of the newborn enrollment period in order to maintain the newborn's enrollment in an MCO.

5. Individuals who lose then regain eligibility for Medallion mandatory managed care within 60 days will be reenrolled into their previous MCO without going through assignment and selection.

G. Individuals who do not select an MCO as described in subdivision F 3 of this section shall be assigned to an MCO as follows:

1. Individuals are assigned through a system algorithm based upon the member's history with a contracted MCO.

2. Individuals not assigned pursuant to subdivision 1 of this subsection shall be assigned to the MCO of another family member if applicable.

3. Individuals who live in rural exception areas as defined in 12VAC30-120-360 shall enroll with the one available MCO. These individuals shall receive an assignment notification for enrollment into the MCO. Individuals in rural exception areas who are assigned to the one MCO may request exclusion from MCO participation if their PCP of record, as defined in 12VAC30-120-360, cannot or will not participate with the one MCO in the locality. Individual requests to be excluded from MCO participation in rural exception localities must be made to DMAS for consideration on a case-by-case basis.

4. All other individuals shall be assigned to an MCO on a basis of approximately equal number by MCO in each locality.

5. All eligible members are automatically assigned to a contracted MCO in their localities. Members are allowed 90 days after the effective date of initial enrollment to change to another MCO that participates in the geographic area where the member lives. Members residing in localities qualifying for a rural exception shall not be afforded the 90-day window after initial enrollment during which they may make a health plan or program change.

6. DMAS shall have the discretion to use an alternate strategy for enrollment or transition of enrollment from the method described in this section for expansions, retractions, or changes to member populations, geographical areas, procurements, or any or all of these; such alternate strategy shall comply with federal waiver requirements. "Retractions" means the departure of an enrolled managed care organization from any one or more localities as provided in this section.

H. Following the member's initial enrollment into an MCO, the member shall be restricted to the MCO until the next open enrollment period, unless appropriately disenrolled or excluded by the department, as defined in 12VAC30-120-360.

1. During the first 90 days of enrollment in an initial MCO, a member may disenroll from that MCO to enroll into another MCO for any reason. Such disenrollment shall be effective no later than the first day of the second month after the month in which the member requests disenrollment.

2. During the remainder of the enrollment period, the member may only disenroll from one MCO into another MCO upon determination by DMAS that good cause exists as determined under subsection J of this section.

I. The department shall conduct an annual open enrollment for all Medallion mandatory managed care members with the exception of those members who live in a designated rural exception area. The open enrollment period shall be the 60 days before the end of the enrollment period. Prior to the open enrollment period, DMAS will inform the member of the opportunity to remain with the current MCO or change to another MCO, without cause, for the following year. Enrollment selections will be effective on the first day of the next month following the open enrollment period. Members who do not make a choice during the open enrollment period will remain with their current MCO selection.

J. Disenrollment for cause may be requested at any time and the disenrollment reasons shall be in accordance with 42 CFR 438.56 (d)(2)(v).

1. The request may be made orally or in writing to DMAS and shall cite the reason or reasons why the member wishes to disenroll. Cause for disenrollment shall be in accordance with 42 CFR 438.56(d)(2), which includes the following reasons:

a. A member's desire to seek services from a federally qualified health center that is not under contract with the member's current MCO, and the member requests a change to another MCO that subcontracts with the desired federally qualified health center;

b. Performance or nonperformance of service to the member by an MCO or one or more of its network providers that is deemed by the DMAS external quality review organizations to be below the generally accepted community practice of health care. This may include poor quality care;

c. Lack of access to a primary care physician or necessary specialty services covered under the State Plan or lack of access to network providers experienced in dealing with the member's health care needs;

d. A member has a combination of complex medical factors that, in the sole discretion of DMAS, would be better served under another contracted MCO;

e. The member moves out of the MCO's service area;

f. The MCO does not, because of moral or religious objections, cover the service the member seeks; or

g. The member needs related services to be performed at the same time; not all related services are available within the network, and the member's primary care provider or another provider determines that receiving the services separately would subject the member to unnecessary risk.

2. DMAS shall determine whether cause exists for disenrollment. Written responses shall be provided within a timeframe set by department policy; however, the effective date of an approved disenrollment shall be no later than the first day of the second month following the month in which the member files the request in compliance with 42 CFR 438.56.

3. Cause for disenrollment shall be deemed to exist and the disenrollment shall be granted if DMAS fails to take final action on a valid request prior to the first day of the second month after the request.

4. The DMAS determination concerning cause for disenrollment may be appealed by the member in accordance with the DMAS client appeals process at 12VAC30-110-10 through 12VAC30-110-370.

5. The current MCO shall provide within two working days of a request from DMAS information necessary to determine cause.

6. Members enrolled with an MCO who subsequently meet one or more of the exclusions in subsection B of this section during MCO enrollment shall be excluded from Medallion as determined appropriate by DMAS.

K. In accordance with 42 CFR 438.3(q)(5) and 42 CFR 438.56(c)(2), a member has the right to disenroll from the contractor's plan without cause at the following times:

1. During the 90 days following the date of the member's initial enrollment into the MCO or during the 90 days following the date DMAS sends the member notice of that enrollment, whichever is later.

2. At least once every 12 months thereafter.

3. Upon automatic reenrollment under subsection G of this section if the temporary loss of Medicaid eligibility has caused the beneficiary to miss the annual disenrollment opportunity.

4. When DMAS imposes the intermediate sanction specified in 42 CFR 438.702(a)(4).