3 Ways to Start Preparing for This Year’s ANOCs and EOCs Now
For Medicare Advantage (MA) and Prescription Drug Plans (PDPs) it is never too early to start thinking about preparing for the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) – especially drafting and distributing the Annual Notification of Changes (ANOC) and Evidence of Coverage (EOC) materials.
Even for the most prepared plans, this can be a time-consuming, labor-intensive process that is wrought with compliance errors. But it doesn’t have to be. Below are three ways that health plans can start preparing now for next year’s ANOCs and EOCs:
- Establish a clear timeline
For health plans, there is often little time to collect information and create documents after CMS releases its ANOC and EOC model documents in May. With that in mind, developing a comprehensive timeline well in advance is key to staying on schedule and distributing materials on time.
When developing this timeline, careful consideration should be given to any defining actions that can be completed prior to the model document release. This includes proactively collecting information that is used to support the development of ANOC and EOC materials.
- Identify key players
To ensure that all documents are accurate, on schedule and in compliance, health plans should establish a team of experts to oversee the creation and distribution of ANOCs and EOCs well in advance of the project launch. This should include subject matter experts from all relevant areas of the organization who can provide timely review of content and ensure accuracy of information, as well as a team leader who has authority over the entire team.
- Consider software tools
Software tools that help to organize and manage the materials creation process can provide a number of benefits to health plans, such as reducing the risk of document errors that can lead to costly errata mailings and late project completion – not to mention dramatically decreasing the stress levels of project participants that results in turnover and decreased knowledge base.
Our CodySoft® Collateral Management Module® helps manage all aspects of ANOC and EOC project management and trafficking, simplified document composition and editing while greatly reducing errors, and compliance tracking. When integrated with our other CodySoft® module, the Regulatory Analyzer®, users can also integrate CMS regulations, Medicaid contract terms and SLAs – as well as generate reports that present relevant rules and regulations – to collateral material development.