CMS’s Plan Benefit Package (PBP) Software—Technical Redesign Coming to HPMS

CMS is modernizing its Plan Benefit Package (PBP) bid submission module for Contract Year (CY) 2024 Going live on April 7, 2023—the new web-based Plan Benefit Package (PBP) Software Technical Redesign will live within the Health Plan Management System (HPMS) and include updates to the user interface and data entry workflow. In previous years, users…

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How to Ensure a Successful Triennial Network Adequacy Review

CMS monitors compliance with Network Adequacy Standards on a triennial basis. Every three years CMS requires a plan to upload its full-contract-level network into the Network Management Module (NMM) in Health Plan Management System (HPMS). When selecting contracts for the triennial review period, CMS pulls from the list of active contracts—primarily based on when the…

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An Inside Look at Plan Benefit Package (PBP) Software

Health plans have a variety of uses for plan benefit information: CMS bid review and approval, Medicare Plan Finder, member materials (such as ANOCs, EOCs, and SBs), customer service, sales, appeals and grievances, claims, and more. However, this information is typically housed in multiple locations and managed independently with “no centralized source of truth”, making…

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An Advance Look at Medicare Advantage Benefits Changes for CY2022

Every year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) updates its Plan Benefit Package (PBP) Software that Medicare Advantage (MA) and Part D plans use as part of their bid submissions. The PBP Beta Software is released in late January to allow plans to test and provide feedback before the full version is available…

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Six Reasons Why Consolidating Software Applications Makes Sense

In today’s rapidly changing environment, health plans operating in silos or with dated legacy systems are struggling to keep up. As competition increases and technology evolves, companies are searching for answers—should they purchase software applications individually or buy a suite or bundle? IT purchasing managers face difficult challenges as business needs grow, software solutions change,…

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Can Artificial Intelligence (AI) Change the Future of Healthcare Operations?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) will become a larger factor in all facets of life soon… …in everything from self-driving cars to industrial manufacturing to the way we entertain ourselves. These changes will impact every part of healthcare also, from diagnosis through treatment and even into administrative and operational functions. CMS has started two initiatives directly related…

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CMS Skips Another Year on the MCMG

Health plans are wondering “where are my updated Medicare Communications and Marketing Guidelines (MCMG)?” For the second consecutive year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) stated that there will be no updated MCMG for CY2021. Instead, plans are instructed to use the existing MCMG and related memos from CY2020. How will changes be…

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Are you Prepared for an Audit of your HPMS Memos?

If the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reviewed your procedures around Health Plan Management System (HPMS) memos tomorrow – would you be happy with the outcome? Unfortunately for many health plans, the answer is, “No.” With anywhere from 10 to 20 HPMS memos distributed each week, there’s a heavy burden on compliance departments…

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