[V]ermont has secured renewal for the federal waiver that allows the state to use Medicaid money for both medical care and investments in population health.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services approved the Global Commitment to Health Medicaid Waiver on Monday, for a period to run from Jan. 1, 2017 to Dec. 31, 2021.
The waiver allows the Agency of Human Services to act as a public managed care organization. If the agency saves money on treating Medicaid patients, it can put that money into other initiatives, including funding state government, as long as they meet certain federal criteria.
The Shumlin administration and the Green Mountain Care Board negotiated the five-year extension to the so-called global commitment waiver in conjunction with the deal to set up the all-payer model, which could be voted on as early as Wednesday.
The Agency of Human Services said in a press release that, through the waiver, Vermont has “advanced person-centered care, developed a service delivery and financial model that meets individual participant needs, and pursued important health care reforms such as performance-based payment approaches.”
The press release said the approval preserves “payment and delivery system reform by ensuring Medicaid participation and alignment with the All-Payer Model.”
Vermont is also planning to apply for an amendment to the global commitment waiver—called a Substance Abuse Disorder Demonstration Waiver—through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The state says it is currently working to align Vermont’s health care system with federal standards. The state says the substance abuse waiver could improve care for 12 percent of current Medicaid patients and allow up to 15 percent of uninsured Vermonters to get Medicaid to treat their addictions.