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NESCSO
New England States Consortium Systems Organization (NESCSO) : An Innovative Approach to Meeting the Needs of the Medicaid Population
(Editor's note : We thought that you would like to hear about another cooperative venture among the New England states. NESCSO is such a group.)
The current crises of state budgets have painted an ominous picture for the future of state Medicaid programs. Individual state Medicaid budgets are under the scrutiny of legislators who see the ever increasing budgets to fund the state programs as a prime target for cost cutting. The New England states are taking an innovative approach to the problem. Two years ago, several key players from the New England states' Medicaid agencies set up a consortium to collaborate on the effects that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) would have on their Medicaid reimbursement systems known as Medicaid Management Information Systems (MMIS). The consortium, known as the New England States Consortium Systems Organization (NESCSO), was created to meet the systems needs of its members through five core functions: a project think tank that would provide planning and strategy sessions for the development of policy positions and project initiatives; an information clearinghouse which would provide a knowledge exchange forum providing the facility to store and distribute information requested by Consortium members; a solution and evaluation demonstration capability to research, assess and test potential system solutions; consulting services which would allow members to access a list of pre-qualified vendors for projects; and a project management function which would assist states in developing and managing strategic New England Regional projects. The organization is governed by a board of directors designated by the Commissioners of the Health and Human Services Agencies of the six New England states and the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
Since its inception, the NESCSO has created a robust website at www.nescso.org as one of the tools for states to innovatively explore Medicaid program ideas and the budgets to fund these programs. The NESCSO staff of four includes a corporate librarian, Nancy Peterson, who provides members with research services and outreach. With a background in health care consulting, Nancy is familiar with the ever changing health care terrain and is able to quickly answer information queries from members. In addition, Nancy and NESCSO staff immediately share the information gathered with member states. The information is posted to the website as well as project bulletin boards where members can post reactions and comments. Nancy also serves on the staff of the Lamar Soutter Library serving as an academic link between NESCSO and the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
The success of early collaboration on HIPAA has led to a broadened focus for NESCSO. Currently, NESCSO is involved in projects ranging from the creation of a web-based project tracking tool to the development of a New England Medicaid data repository for disease management, decision support, and better billing practices. NESCSO's approach is to allow states to manage their budgets by creative planning and tracking. No other region in the country is currently taking this approach to Medicaid policy. NESCSO is working with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) with the hope that this innovative approach will serve as model for future Medicaid collaborative efforts.
For more information about NESCSO, contact Nancy Peterson (508) 856-2370 or e-mail Nancy.Peterson@umassmed.edu
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