Wisconsin
In Wisconsin:
- Most Medicaid services are delivered primarily through Medicaid Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs). When families are enrolled in ForwardHealth (the state Medicaid program) they are also enrolled in an HMO. If there are multiple HMOs available in the area where the family resides they are able to select between them. Once families are enrolled the HMO sends them an enrollment packet with information related to the services they can receive. Medicaid will cover certain services – such as behavioral or oral health services – if they are not among those provided by the HMO in which the beneficiary is enrolled.
- There were a total of 1,173,355 beneficiaries enrolled in Wisconsin’s Medicaid program as of July 2011. Of these 747,046 were enrolled in managed care. 366,441 beneficiaries were enrolled in Commercial MCOs, 344,602 were enrolled in Medicaid-only MCOs, and 34,975 were enrolled in a Prepaid Inpatient Health Plan (PIHP) to receive either Long Term Care services (33,990) or Mental Health wraparound services (985). Wisconsin delivers mental health and substance abuse wraparound services to children with severe emotional disturbances through two programs called Children Come First and Wraparound Milwaukee.
Wisconsin provides EPSDT services through HealthCheck, the state’s EPSDT program. This includes all behavioral health, mental health, and dental services provided through the benefit. As of 2013, 585,552 individuals were eligible for EPSDT through Wisconsin’s Medicaid program. According to CMS data from 2013, Wisconsin achieved an EPSDT screening ratio of 97% and a participation ratio of 71%. 145,930 children received dental services of any kind, with 132,181 receiving preventive dental services.
Last updated June 2014
| Medical Necessity |
Under Wisconsin’s administrative code (DHS 101.03(96m)), medical necessary services are:
“(a)Required to prevent, identify or treat a recipient’s illness, injury or disability; and
(b) Meets the following standards:
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| Initiatives to Improve Access |
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| Reporting & Data Collection | Managed care contracts in Wisconsin require that enrolled children receive at least 80% of the expected number of HealthCheck screens; managed care organizations that fail to meet this metric face recoupment of some of their capitation payments. |
| Behavioral Health |
Children are screened for behavioral health issues during HealthCheck preventive visits.
Managed care contract language requires that managed care organizations develop relationships—through memoranda of understanding or contracts—with community agencies that deliver behavioral health services to Medicaid beneficiaries.
Wisconsin Medicaid covers Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) services for enrollees 10 years of ago and older. Substance abuse screening tools approved for use by the state are:
Wisconsin Medicaid is a partner to two initiatives called Children Come First and Wraparound Milwaukee. These are multi-agency, community based programs of mental health and other drug abuse services for children with severe emotional disturbances (SED). The goal of the programs is to both keep children with SED out of institutions, and to reallocate resources previously used for institutionalization of SED children into community-based services.
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| Support to Providers and Families |
Support to Providers
Wisconsin Medicaid maintains a ForwardHealth Portal, which provides provider information (including provider handbooks) and serves as an interface to the MMIS. The portal also includes a page with useful links for Managed Care Organizations (MCOs).
Support to Families
Wisconsin has a program called Healthy Start, Grow Smart. This initiative created a series of fourteen free booklets, starting with Pregnancy and running through Twelve Months. These booklets are available in English and Spanish, and help new parents with developmental milestones, and information that is relevant for doctor visits during the child’s first year. Wisconsin also has a HealthCheck toll free hotline for families that have questions or problems with the program.
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| Care Coordination |
Managed care contracts in the state encourage managed care organizations to “assist with the coordination of covered mental health services” by establishing contractual relationships with community-based mental health agencies and school-based providers.
The Wraparound Milwaukee program contacts with eight community agencies for over 100 care coordinators to facilitate the delivery of services to the SED children in the program using an individualized wraparound approach.
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| Oral Health |
Children are given mouth exams as part of a HealthCheck preventive care exam. Children who need additional dental care are referred to a dental provider and these services are covered by HealthCheck.
HealthCheck nursing agencies are reimbursed by Medicaid for providing dental sealants to Medicaid beneficiaries under age 21.
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For individuals living with complex, often chronic conditions, and their families, palliative care can provide relief from symptoms, improve satisfaction and outcomes, and help address critical mental and spiritual needs during difficult times. Now more than ever, there is growing recognition of the importance of palliative care services for individuals with serious illness, such as advance care planning, pain and symptom management, care coordination, and team-based, multi-disciplinary support. These services can help patients and families cope with the symptoms and stressors of disease, better anticipate and avoid crises, and reduce unnecessary and/or unwanted care. While this model is grounded in evidence that demonstrates improved quality of life, better outcomes, and reduced cost for patients, only a fraction of individuals who could benefit from palliative care receive it. 
