A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to require that all local management entities for Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services implement managed care practices to reduce cost and improve services and efficiencies to clients.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Not later than January 1, 2009, each local management entity for Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services shall submit to the Department of Health and Human Services a completed application for a Section 1915(b) Medicaid waiver, necessary for the LME to operate as a managed‑care model to reduce costs and improve services.  Not later than March 1, 2009, the Department of Health and Human Services shall submit to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) all waiver applications it has received from local management entities as required by this section.  In cases where a Medicaid waiver would not be an effective approach to providing services on a managed care model, the Department of Health and Human Services shall provide immediate and substantive technical assistance to the LME in order for it to achieve maximum efficiencies in administration, services, provider contracts, utilization review, and other management and service‑related functions.  LMEs shall begin operations on a managed care model not later than 60 days from the date the LME receives waiver approval from CMS, or approval of the Department in cases where waivers determined by the Department to not be the most effective approach to achieving costs savings and improving service delivery.
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2008.