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Home Health HIPAA Compliance

Connecticut Electronic Visit Verification

EVV has been mandated for the state of Connecticut for personal care and home health care agencies. Electronic visit verification is required for all Medicaid Personal care services administered within the state. When is the official start date?  What specific types of care and organizations does it apply to, and what are the requirements? Are agencies free to use any EVV system? In this blog, we will explore and answer all of those questions as we focus on all aspects of Connecticut’s Electronic Visit Verification

Click here for information on Approved Connecticut EVV Software

 

Electronic Visit Verification for Connecticut Agencies

 

To review Alora’s EVV System for Connecticut, click here.

 

Connecticut Electronic Visit Verification Information

Nationwide EVV mandates were born out of a push for compliance with the requirements established within the 21st Century Cures Act. The Federal 21st Century Cures Act (2016) required that U.S. states inclusive of Connecticut implement an electronic visit verification (EVV) system for agencies delivering certain types of care. Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) software by definition is a system designed to electronically capture and verify provider visit information.

What is EVV?

EVV, or Electronic Visit Verification, is a web-based system that verifies when provider visits occur and electronically documents the precise time services begin and end. EVV ensures that people receive the exact care services they have been approved to receive.  This technology is now required by law for all Medicaid personal care services in the state of Missouri. Electronic visit verification allows providers to confirm that services were actually delivered using a variety of electronic methods. EVV compliance can be achieved in a number of ways, including the use of mobile applications with Global Positioning Systems (GPS), telephony from landline phone systems, approved fixed devices, or even biometric recognition solutions (including smartphone applications, or in-home EVV devices). 

In order to comply with the CURES Act, the Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS), selected Sandata as the state aggregator. In essence, this means that Missouri providers of personal care services and home health care services are free to choose any EVV vendor that best suits their needs, so long as it is compatible with the data delivery specifications enacted by the CT DDS with Sandata.

 

The State of Connecticut selected Sandata to be its Electronic Aggregator Solution for Electronic Visit Verification (EVV), however, all providers are free to use an alternate EVV System for Connecticut as long as the system meets the aggregator specification requirements.

 

What is the start date for EVV in Connecticut?

 

January 1, 2024, for home health care services (Jan 2023 for personal care services)

In 2016, Section 12006 of the 21st Century Cures Act established a requirement for all states to use an Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) system. Medicaid home health care
services (HHCS) and personal care services initially were instructed to begin using EVV by January 1, 2023. The Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS) requested and received approval for a Good Faith Effort (GFE) exemption request from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to delay the EVV implementation timeline for HHCS. All providers were then instructed to comply with the Home health care services mandate prior to January 1, 2024.

 

What EVV information is required to be transmitted

In concert with the 21st Century Cures Act, Missouri agency requirements for EVV state that compatible systems must electronically capture:

  • The identity of the patient who receives a service
  • The identity of the caregiver who provides the service
  • The exact type of care/services that were provided
  • The exact location of the services provided
  • The exact date of services provided
  • The start and end times of the visit 

 

What agencies must participate in Electronic Visit Verification in Connecticut?

 
Agency Providers and direct hires who provide specific support to Individuals who live in their own homes, family homes or Community Companion Homes.
 

What agencies are exempt from EVV in Connecticut?

 
Individuals who reside in a 24-hour residential setting such as CLA, CRS, or SNF are excluded from EVV – Guidance from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) notes that EVV requirements do not apply to congregate residential settings where 24-hour service is available (e.g., group homes) (CMS 2018a).  This is because services are available round-the-clock.  EVV requirements also do not apply to services provided at the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly sites (CMS 2018a).
 
WAIVER Services included in DDS Electronic Visit Verification
These services can take place in the individual’s home or the community.
  • Adult Companion
  • Blended Supports
  • Individualized Day Support (IDN and IDV)
  • Individualized Home Support
  • Personal Support
  • Hourly Respite, in home
  • Senior Supports (Hourly)
  • Clinical Behavioral Support (add date to be determined)
  • IHS Group 1 staff 2 individuals
  • IHS Group 1 staff 3 individuals

 

IF MY AGENCY HAS NOT ADDRESSED EVV IMPLEMENTATION, WHAT SHOULD I DO?

While the state has selected Sandata as the aggregator, your agency is free to select an approved EVV system for Connecticut electronic visit verification. 

Click here to review Alora’s approved system for Connecticut EVV

 

LEARN MORE ABOUT HOME HEALTH SOFTWARE WITH BUILT-IN EVV FOR CONNECTICUT

 

NJ Medicaid EVVConnecticut home health care and personal care agencies are free to choose any compliant EVV system for Connecticut, Alora Home Health Software for Connecticut offers an award-winning solution, consistently rated as the easiest to use by caregivers and managers alike. Alora is a compatible EVV system for Connecticut Medicaid EVV protocols. Caregivers can complete visits on their smartphones or tablets…while administrators can enjoy the power of managing the entire agency from the convenience of their mobile devices or desktop computers. Alora was engineered with the expertise of real home health professionals and software technology experts, resulting in an extraordinarily easy-to-use software system. With free training and an easy-to-use interface, agency adoption is seamless and quick.

 

INTEGRATED AUTOMATIC EVV DATA TRANSMISSION 

 

As a certified EVV Vendor for Connecticut Medicaid.  Alora automatically transmits EVV information to the Sandata aggregator for visits completed as planned.  For visits that need manual review, such as a caregiver forgetting to clock out, Alora queues the visits for manual review and approval before transmitting to Sandata.

Alora ensures compliance with Connecticut’s EVV requirements, with a built-in solution accessible within your main Alora Home Health Software. When everything is in one place, running your agency becomes easier.

 

 

Features & Benefits of Alora’s Connecticut Home Care Software

  • Live-Monitor visit activities and avoid the possibility of lost revenue due to no-shows
  • Enjoy faster billing – completed visits are automatically readied for billing and payroll through Alora’s EVV automation
  • Ensures patients are administered the planned medically necessary services
  • Go paperless with Alora’s Plan of care-based visit notes
  • Eliminate the inefficiency associated with manual data entry
  • Centralize workflow into one complete solution for CT Home Health Care & EVV
  • Improve the efficiency of home health aides & caregivers during and post-visit
  • Reduce the chances of errors in documentation

 

Schedule a Demo

Visit the following link to learn more about Alora’s complete software for CT home health agencies.

Alora’s dynamic emr for home health system features an integrated EVV solution that offers compatibility with the Connecticut Department of Social Services EVV requirements. Alora’s EVV  protocols offer an enhanced EVV solution that is fully integrated into a powerful Home Health Software for Connecticut agencies.

REQUEST INFORMATION FOR ALORA’S CONNECTICUT EVV SYSTEM

MassHealth EVV Requirements

 

 

 

 

 

More about ALORA

Connecticut Medicaid EVVAlora makes work life easier for both administrators and caregivers. The benefits of having Electronic Visit Verification fully integrated within Alora’s Connecticut homecare software system begin with the fact that Alora already houses visit information from the point the caregiver arrives at a patient’s home. Upon their arrival at a patient’s residence, caregivers can simply press “Start Visit” and proceed with patient care.

Stand-alone EVV systems lack prior data from the visit, lack information on a client’s Medicaid ID, and lack agency information, caregiver identity, and details of the services being provided. Caregivers are forced to enter all of this information upon arrival, wasting time and raising the risk of manual entry mistakes. A state-approved system requires extensive training and the hassle of navigating EVV data in two separate systems. Alora’s EVV solution removes these burdens from agencies with a centralized interface designed for both agency admin and caregiver ease. Caregivers can use Alora EVV on their mobile device of choice.

ALORA offers: Telephony Automation for Added Assurance – An All-in-One Solution for Connecticut Home Health Care – An Award-Winning Solution for Productivity, Efficiency, and Financial Success

See it for yourself

Learn additional information about electronic visit verification in Connecticut by visiting the Connecticut Department of Social Services website

THE ALORA HOME HEALTH BLOG

Read the Alora blog and website to learn more about home health software for Connecticut, Connecticut compatible EVV, and recent news, articles, and commentaries, as well as other issues that pertain to Connecticut Home healthcare in the state and beyond. For more information on our blog, or for questions or feedback, please send us an email to HomeHealthSoftware@AloraHealth.com

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