EVV Systems
Information about an Electronic Visit Verification System
With nationwide mandates going into effect in 2020 and 2021, many agencies that provide home health care and personal care have been required to implement an EVV system for the Electronic Visit Verification of visits conducted by caregivers at the place of residence. These requirements are generally spearheaded by the individual states based on the requirements set forth by the 21st Century Cures act. In essence, the federally mandated 21st Century Cures Act, requires that all U.S. states implement EVV solutions for home care agencies providing services funded by Medicaid.
With COVID-19 as well as other complications making the process difficult for many of these states, “good faith extensions” were enacted upon request, to help ease the regulatory burdens of getting state-provided EVV systems up and running. Some states offered an “Open model” system by which providers could select whatever EVV vendors they chose to meet the requirements, while others offered a state-sponsored “Free” EVV system to agencies. Alternate EVV systems can generally be used, so long as these systems work with the state selected aggregators or free systems, to make the transmission of data uniform and in line with the requirements of the 21st Century Cures Act.
EVV SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
How EVV began at the federal level
As previously stated, the national push for EVV began with the conception of the 21st Century Cures Act. This act was initially introduced to provide accountability and efficiency in the world of homecare, reducing the chance of fraud and other payment-related difficulties. The 21st Century Cures act requires electronic visit verification (EVV) systems for Medicaid-funded personal care services (PCS) and home health services.
Within the 21st Century CURES Act, Section 12006 details the requirement that states were required to implement a compliant EVV system for Medicaid-funded Personal Care Services (PCS) by January 1, 2019, and additionally for Home Health Care Services (HHCS) by January 1, 2023. Federal legislation actively delayed any possible penalties for PCS implementation until January 1, 2020.
To meet the requirements of the 21st Century Cures Act, an EVV system must collect the following data from home visits:
- The name of the individual receiving Homecare services
- The name of the caregiver providing the home care services
- The details of the type of service provided by the caregiver
- The exact time and date the homecare services were performed
- The start and end time of service provided
- The physical location (address) of where the services were provided
Many states have already implemented, or are currently in the process of final implementation of an EVV system. You can read more about EVV system requirements by state by visiting the home health software tips blog. If you would like information or to schedule a demo of Home Health Software with built-in EVV for your agency click here.
STATE PROVIDED VS ALTERNATE EVV SYSTEMS
In almost every case regardless of which state they are located, home health and personal care agencies are free to choose whether to use a state-provided system, their current EVV provider (if they have one), or an alternate evv system of their choosing. This choice comes down to whether agencies would prefer a centralized system or a system they are already familiar with, versus trying to implement a sometimes free state-provided system. The impact of this choice brings the cost/benefit of:
- Managing EVV separately through a state-approved “free” system for financial reasons
- Managing EVV separately through a stand-alone EVV system capable of meeting the state’s EVV requirements
- Managing EVV through an alternate EVV system that is centralized (a full-solution home health software with integrated EVV)
Some home health software vendors go the extra step to be certified as an “alternate” vendor within individual states. Such vendors generally attempt to offer a solution that offers seamless integration with a state selected EVV aggregator such as Sandata.
Alora Home Health Software is designated as an alternate EVV vendor in many states. Select a state by clicking on the appropriate link on the right sidebar of this page to learn more about Alora’s EVV system for the applicable state.
MORE ABOUT ALORA EVV SYSTEM FEATURES
Alora’s EVV was designed to not only fulfill 21st Century Cures act and individual state requirements but additionally, its feature capabilities anticipate and simplify the aspects of homecare and personal care visit workflow that in the past cost agencies time and productivity.
EVV SYSTEM FEATURES AT A GLANCE
- Medicaid-compliant EVV
- Captures and sends patient and caregiver signatures, visit start time and end time with GPS location
- Plan of Care based Visit Note
- Viewable Schedules
- Live monitoring & Alerts: Real-time, color-coded views of the status of all visits
- Mobile ready. Operates across smartphones, tablets, and other devices.
- EVV data flows in the system for billing and payroll.
- The simplicity of use improves caregiver efficiency & patient satisfaction
HAS THE CURES ACT EVV MANDATE MADE YOUR LIFE EASIER?
Have you found yourself spending countless hours manually entering EVV data within two separate systems? Will it take even longer to comply with your state’s billing requirement to have the EVV start and end time on each visit line on the claim? If so, consider making the switch to Alora, which was engineered to make work-life easier for you and your staff.
Alora automates EVV workflow – EVV data captured can flow into billing and payroll without needing manual intervention. All visits that occur as planned, automatically and seamlessly flow through the system. Any visit that did not follow the rules set by you will be held in a queue for admin approval or correction. This solution can improve your agency’s efficiency exponentially while simplifying your workflow. Alora can help
Alora is one of the nation’s premier providers of software solutions with integrated EVV for the Home Health Care industry. We operate as a trusted partner to agencies nationwide, improving productivity, profitability, and performance by automating virtually every data capture and management function of day to day operations.
The 21st Century Cures Act mandates the use of EVV systems by home care agencies when billing through Medicaid. Alora helps agencies not just meet, but thrive with the requirements for electronic visit verification for Medicaid patient visit verification.
Since 2005, Alora has been a preferred software for home health agencies that helps agencies improve both patient care and operational efficiency. Our company is founded on a culture that encourages continuous improvement and customer satisfaction, resulting in the tireless commitment of our team of professionals, dedicated to effectively bridging the gap between your needs and the most powerful technology. Alora has been recognized by the Software Advice Reviewer’s Choice awards for outstanding customer service and ease of use.
Schedule a Quick “No Obligation” Demo of Alora:
Or give us a call at 1-800-954-8250 at a time convenient for you.
WHY ALORA SOFTWARE FOR EVV
No other software company has more expertise in EVV than Alora. Here’s why:
Alora was fully integrating EVV into its platform before federal legislation passed; and we’ve tailored our solution to meet the exact requirements and processes of state Medicaid agencies, which vary from state to state.
Alora was the first alternate software solution provider authorized by several states that have implemented EVV.
Alora empowers agencies to not only meet EVV requirements – but all EVV activities and information will be completely tied into scheduling, billing, payroll, and every other aspect of your home care services.
Here’s what the EVV system by Alora looks like for your agency’s workflow:
- Your caregiver opens the Alora app on their mobile device of choice and clicks “Start Visit.”
- Alora immediately begins capturing complete information about the visit, integrating it into your agency workflow data.
- Agency admins can monitor live visits as they occur inside the client’s home.
- Admins see delayed visits and no-shows with up-to-the-minute updates.
- Billing is accelerated because all visit information is immediately reflected in claims and payroll processes.
- Your caregivers and aides are empowered. They can complete their visit notes (Alora generates visit notes based on the client’s POC), check their schedules, look up client information, and communicate with your agency through secure mail (with text notification).
- Nurses are empowered, as Alora’s EVV gives them quick access to SN Note and OASIS, so their workflow at the patient’s home is easy and straightforward.
- Having both GPS based EVV and Telephony options available, with Alora, your caregivers can always capture EVV information.
- Your agency will eliminate the need for paper timesheets and paper visit notes from all caregivers, including aides/PCWs. With Alora, your agency can achieve a paperless operation.
Want to learn more about Alora’s EVV system?