MESC 2018 reflections–Portland, Oregon

As we put a bow on another Medicaid Enterprise Systems Conference (MESC), I want to express my thanks to the New England States Consortium Systems Organization (NESCSO), the State of Colorado, and the City of Denver for hosting a fantastic event. Attendance exceeded 2,000 (congrats NESCSO!) and the agenda and venue exceeded all we could have hoped for. In addition, the active participation of our federal partners, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), was evident and greatly appreciated. CMS had a broad and lively presence across the conference. They continue to provide MESC attendees with insight and clarifications of their strategic plans, while also listening and gathering input from us, which influences the future of Medicaid.

Although there was not a published theme in this year’s agenda, David Huffman, NESCSO’s Executive Director, indicated during the opening session that he considered the theme to be "wellness." He asked us to take care of ourselves during the conference, offering yoga and massage sessions, and reminding us to take some time out to enable us to do what we do better. As I participated in MESC2023, I began to think a lot about how “wellness” is exhibited in our day-to-day activities of supporting and implementing Medicaid initiatives in addition to the event itself.

Now into our third conference following the virtual 2020 MESC, we are acknowledging that our industry, the way we work, and our personas have changed as a result of living through the pandemic. Many session topics related to the impacts and lessons we learned from COVID-19:

• We can accelerate our initiatives, work remotely, partner more effectively, and accommodate changes to policy.
• Our Medicaid industry is much more keenly aware of the importance of adapting to change.
• And the focus on “change” is through the lens of wellness. We are not just changing for the sake of changing; it is done so with a sense of urgency and intention to be able to provide a better service and improved outcomes to the Medicaid member.

CMS’s approach to Medicaid enterprise modernization via modularization of the enterprise is driving a lot of the changes in the states and territories (in addition to the ever-changing policy and business needs). In order for systems to be updated to meet the modular and policy requirements, states need to up their game in planning, contract management, enterprise project management, and organization development. There is a significant underlying need for examining the culture and structure of the states’ Medicaid programs to help ensure that they can accommodate the modularization approach while still being compliant with CMS and state policies.

The modular approach seems to be allowing for innovation as it was intended. There is a growing number of vendors entering into the Medicaid space, as is reflected in the sponsors involved in MESC. I am amazed at how many new vendors and services there are in the space, realizing the MESC sponsor list is indicative of all the vendors available to meet the needs of the states.

Included under the umbrella of wellness is gaining awareness of how we treat each other. The keynote speaker, Kathy Buckley, comedian and author of If You Can See What I Hear, shared intimate and touching stories of how our judgments can impact others and ourselves. She reminded us to inventory what we have in our hearts and take care of what’s going on inside us, so we can then give to others. Her stories and thoughts on respect, letting go, and forgiveness left many, including me, in tears. Her message aligns with Medicaid’s efforts to highlight the importance of health equity and address disparities (as I heard Kim Bimestefer, Colorado’s Executive Director of Health Care Policy and Financing, say, "Equality is when everyone gets a pair of shoes and equity is when everyone gets a pair of shoes that fit.") We are learning from our mistakes, turning our “scars into stars” as Kim said in her welcome and overview of Colorado’s Medicaid program. And, we are giving each other and ourselves grace for times when we did not meet expectations.

A final element of wellness that I was reminded of as we explored and discussed the future of the Medicaid enterprise is bringing it all together. The “it” here is the combination of modules, the vendors, the various personnel involved in implementing and running Medicaid programs, the new innovations, policy changes, tools, lessons learned, technology, projects, aspirations, and passion. We need to collaborate in a functional organization, and as Ed Dolly from CMS says, “Focus on the right things.” If we can keep outcomes top of mind and engage with each other using our strengths and passions, we can make a difference. And, in making a difference, we are expanding upon the wellness of our members, our workplace, culture, and society overall. With all that in mind, I’m ready to carry on—my batteries are recharged, I feel connected to the community, and I’m ready to go until we meet again at MESC 2024!

Read this if you are a Medicaid agency or attended MESC 2022.

As I depart Charlotte and fly home and MESC 2022 closes out, I understand why Charlotte is referenced as the Queen City. The people make it so, as we were welcomed with open arms in this beautiful place. Our appreciation and gratitude go out not only to Charlotte, but also to NESCSO for providing us with a place to meet, share ideas, get inspired, and deepen our relationships.

In the coming months, our team can sift through what we learned during our four days at MESC. It will be up to us to transform the ideas spawned from presentations and conversations into tangible action, and grow the new relationships we developed. Here are my key takeaways and themes from the conference that I will continue to ponder:

• The conference is in full swing on the other side of the pandemic. MESC was sold out, as 1,700 people attended.
  • MESC established a new annual award for collaboration. This year the award went to the Public Sector Technology Group's (PSTG) Medicaid Information Technology Architecture (MITA) workgroup. CMS is optimistic that the MITA workgroup's efforts will help improve Medicaid and that the resulting toolkit will be the future of MITA. Thank you to this group, and congratulations on a well-deserved award!
• Modernization efforts:
  • The reality of managing modernization efforts is settling in. States and territories are beginning to get clear on their approach, acknowledging that each has unique needs, and consequently, can customize their approach. It will be a long haul requiring good upfront strategizing, planning and execution.
  • Many states and territories recognize a need to examine and adjust their internal structures to manage multiple procurements and strategies.
  • Data and data governance is foundational to the modularization and modernization effort.
• Unwinding is weighing on everyone's mind, but participants discussed other forward-looking topics. 
• CMS continues to solicit input from states, territories, and vendors
  • This was CMS' first in-person conference since the pandemic's start—it was so great to have their energy and participation.
  • It was fantastic to be in sessions where CMS asked: How can they do better? 
  • Efforts on outcomes, streamlining certification, consistency, and accountability continue to be CMS themes
  • Brent Weaver, CMS' new Data and Systems Group Director, outlined four of CMS' goals at MESC:
    • Strengthen state and territory partnerships
    • Get input from vendors on unwinding
    • Identify ways to improve data quality
    • Find ways that will help CMS become better partners
• Ensuring health equity and leveraging social determinants for health is a priority for states and territories.
• New solution vendors are coming into the Medicaid space, and want to learn about Medicaid and the broader enterprise as they look for ways to adapt their systems.  
• There continues to be mergers and re-shuffling of the more established vendors as they look to adapt to and serve the needs in the Medicaid space.
  • This was BerryDunn's 17th conference. We have broadened our services and maintained our values. I'm grateful that BerryDunn continues to have a stable presence at the conference.  
• Our Medicaid Practice Group mission statement (see below) aligns with the CMS Data and Systems Group Director's reason for being in his role. 

Additional thoughts: Asking "why," change, and education

I also appreciated conversations within our Medicaid community based on the “why": Why are we doing what we do? Why focus on modernization? Health equity? Social determinants of health? 
The "why" drives what we do by providing us with our North Star, helping us with strategy, and giving us our roadmaps for proceeding. By starting with the purpose and outcome we strive for, we can align the changes we need to make.  

Change can be a source of fear, and there is a risk of venturing into the unknown. Medicaid leaders understand that the work they are responsible for is critical to their members, providers, and taxpayers. Lives depend upon our work, and the potential of "change" can have positive or negative consequences. Effective planning can mitigate the risks and help alleviate staff, member, and provider fears about change. 

Education also plays a big part in the mitigation equation. After tying the purpose to the vision, roadmap, and phased plans to modernize our programs, there needs to be an education plan to bring everyone up to speed and build confidence in those who will be impacted.

Conclusion

I am grateful that the BerryDunn Medicaid Practice Group's mission complements the goals of CMS and the direction in which states and territories are moving. We are honored to participate in this vital work and join all in the Medicaid community as we work on the initiatives before us. I leave you with our mission statement and invite you to share your organization's mission with us.

BerryDunn's Medicaid Practice Group helps Medicaid agencies improve the health and lives of individuals by empowering, inspiring, and partnering with our clients—we innovate, share deep expertise, and provide an independent perspective to resolve challenges. We are the success partner for Medicaid agencies, building healthier communities and stronger futures.

I look forward to seeing you all again next time in Denver! Let's make it a great year!

Read this if you are a State Medicaid Director, State Medicaid Chief Information Officer, State Medicaid Project Manager, or State Procurement Officer.

Hurray! The in-person Medicaid Enterprise Systems Conference (MESC) was successfully held! It was a wonderful and true reunion for all those who attended the conference in Boston this year. Hats off to MESC’s sponsoring organization, NESCSO, for holding a hybrid in-person/virtual event. Although there were some minor technological glitches at the start, MESC went very smoothly. The curriculum, good planning, and hard work prevailed and led to a very successful conference.

Before highlighting the session content and conference themes, I must mention what first occurred upon arrival: We were able to greet our colleagues, partners, and vendor teams. How wonderful it was to be together with some colleagues who I had not seen for over two years! We all had stories and pictures that video conferencing just can’t convey, and being able to share them, face-fo-face (and tear-to-tear), was the highlight for me. Who cried when Shivane Pratap and Laura Licata played cello and violin Bach pieces for us? That would be me. 

Our Medicaid Practice Group team was not able to get to our agendas until checking in with each other. The joy of seeing people, hugging people, shaking hands, or bumping elbows or fists underscored the value of being able to utilize all our senses when we meet with people—after all, we are in a people industry, and it was amazing to see the care we have for each other, and it was a reminder that that care is the foundation of what we strive to deliver to the Medicaid population each and every day through our work.

What an amazing 18 months we’ve been through—hearing that the Medicaid population is now over 80 million, and that it exceeds the Medicare population is hard to fathom, and this means that the Medicaid population is 25% of our overall population, and Medicaid and Medicare populations combined are half of our population. I think the growth in Medicaid of 10 million members in just a few years is a reflection of the pandemic and hardships our nation is currently enduring.

In the midst of the loss endured as COVID-19 waves continue to seep through this world, we have accomplished much. I’m not sure if these gains seem bigger because it’s been two years since we last gathered, the appreciation of being able to get anything accomplished other than respond to the pandemic, or maybe we really have hit our goals out of the ballpark (most likely a mixture of all three).

Significant achievements of the past two years

Items of significant accomplishment and change since our last MESC in-person conference include:

• A new administration and CMS Senior Leadership, Deputy Administrator and Director, Daniel Tsai
• System and policy changes to accommodate needs driven by COVID-19, the substance use epidemic, and other hardships
• Continued modular implementations, piloting of Outcomes-Based Certification and a focus on the Medicaid problems we are trying to solve
• Steady progress on Medicaid Enterprise Systems modernization
• Human-centered design focus
• States seem to be striving to be more proactive and set up project management offices to help them be more efficient (great to hear attitudes like Kentucky’s, “If you can measure it, you can improve it.”). Examining the root cause with good planning helps reduce “reacting”
• Agency collaboration and improvements in interoperability as well as collaboration with our federal CMS partners
• Improved tools and monitoring tools (how about Tennessee’s dashboard demo!)

Challenges ahead that were raised in sessions and conversations during MESC include:

• Public health emergency “unwinding” – lots of rule changes, potential re-enrollment for up to 80 million members
• Coverage and access – healthcare is at a tipping point, and the future is a connected healthcare system
• Equity and patient access
• Whole person care innovation, delivery system reform, putting patients at the center
• Managing data and data exchanges
• Focus on Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR)—a progressive change

Inspiration to continue moving forward

Concepts of inspiration that I carry with me from this conference and will help me continue moving forward:

• Many responses to the pandemic began organically with only a few, which grew to hundreds of thousands, showing us that a “few” (i.e., us) can lead to meaningful and impactful solutions.
• Medicaid is about the people it’s serving, not the technology.
• Everyone is born with creativity and the importance of curiosity as a form of listening
• Collaboration is about peer respect—we need to understand what everyone is excellent at so we can count on them (thank you Michael Hendrix!)
• Embrace change as a healthy way of being

We all know there is a lot going on right now and there is more to come—at work, in our lives, in our country, and on this planet. Our state partners need help as they are continually asked to do more (effectively) with less. States’ Medicaid members need help, and our state partners need help. Examining how we are structured, what tools and organizational and project management approaches we can leverage, and how we care for ourselves and our teams so we can be there for our citizens, will take us a long way towards a successful outcome. We are all in this together. Let’s dare to be bold, be creative, be innovative, be intentional—let’s lead the way to fulfil our vision and our mission!

Read this if you are a member of a State Medicaid Agency’s leadership team.

Another National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD) fall conference is in the books. As usual, the sessions were excellent. And this year we had the luxury of being able to attend from the comfort of our homes. For BerryDunn’s consulting group, that enabled us to “send” a broader team to conference. On the flip side, it also meant we were not able to greet and meet our community in person. 

Matt Salo, the NAMD Executive Director, defined the underlying themes to the conference as Flexibility, Innovation, and Resilience. If one were to just look at the full agenda, it would be hard to tell that this was a virtual conference. The session schedule and opening reception looked very much like a traditional NAMD conference, although there were not the usual breaks with the ice cream jubilee and ballroom number assignments. Otherwise, it was business as usual. 

In checking in with State Medicaid Director attendees, Monday’s meetings went well and they appreciated coming together. State leadership across the country is working straight-out right now—seven days a week. It kind of reminds me of when I became a parent: I thought I knew how to handle sleep deprivation, and then I had a newborn, and realized the important work of parenting isn’t on a time clock, which is much like the work Medicaid agencies are dedicated to. The directors and their support staff’s commitment to serving members and tax payers in their respective states is inspiring, and we are privileged to work alongside them. 

I appreciated a subtle but deep reminder from Matt and the NAMD President Beth Kidder for us: remember our “true North.” Why are we here? What is our purpose as leaders and vendors in the Medicaid community? The work we do matters. We can improve lives. We can save lives. The members in Medicaid programs are the center of all we do. Here are some of the other highlights I absorbed during the conference. 

Plenary sessions

In Tuesday’s plenary, panelists shared their primary lessons and reflections on the year, including: 

• Pace―we need a balance because the pandemic does not have a clear beginning or end. Pandemics do not simply blow over like a hurricane; it’s hard to tell the beginning, middle, and end. 
• Steadiness in chaos: velocity and stability―leaders need to make timely decisions while also being an anchor for their teams. 
• Prioritization―not everything needs an immediate response. We need to be deliberate about what we do. 
• Roadmaps―we can still use the tools we created map out where we want to go. 

The panel also shared how telehealth, transparency, teamwork, focus, and reflecting on “whole lives” in policy making assisted them in navigating their teams and providing the best services possible. 

Keynote―health equity 

Dayna Bowen Matthew provided a solid argument on how Medicaid can be key to achieving true health equity in America. She discussed the four “Ps” that can make this possible: Population, Position, Payer, and Persuader. She used the COVID-19 pandemic as her example of how it hit the vulnerable population first, and how we could have learned from it. 

Instead, it is being unleashed on the broader population. The work must begin with us, expand to our teams, policies we can control, and then policies that need a collaborative approach to change and implement. If you attended the conference and have access but missed this talk, I highly recommend listening to it as she covered a lot of very pertinent material. 

Member perspectives 

Sprinkled through the entire conference were videos of Medicaid members’ perspectives. I appreciate the tradition of bringing the human element of Medicaid’s impact into the conference, as it reminds us of our purpose. The perspectives also underscore another important theme of Matt’s: “Medicaid is a program about people, not statistics.” Examples of stories we heard include how someone went from 28 years of incarceration due to an armed robbery conviction to graduating from a university and now working with people; a hockey coach’s accident that paralyzed him from the neck down; a homeless mother gaining security and stability; a foster parent with a son having a rare brittle bone disease and a Native American parent with health access issues. 

Economy 

There were a couple of sessions related the economy, and generally, the presenters thought the biggest impact to Medicaid is yet to come. They said that there is typically a lag between events and member enrollments and the surge is still coming. They also agreed there was strong federal support from outside of CMS that kept their enrollment down. Membership growth is likely coming as state budgets are constrained. There are hopes for additional federal assistance within Medicaid, including an extended FMAP, and a similar package from last spring. The lack of certainty in regards to consistent funding is causing the states to spend a lot of energy developing back up plans. 

The panelists think the biggest economic challenges are yet to come is based upon three main reasons: the high chance of a recession, the impending (third wave) virus impact, and the social unrest exacerbated by the pandemic and systemic racism. These are merging perfect storms causing directors to look for stability and relief. I think the best summary I heard of how to proceed was open the book of “good ideas for bad times” that were not well thought of during good times. 

Public health emergency―COVID-19 pandemic 

As would be expected, COVID was a recurring topic in almost every session. There was a very interesting panel discussion on how best to “unwind” the changes made once we arrive in the post-pandemic era. There will be lots of challenges, and it is worth discussing these now, while we are still in the midst of responding to the immediate needs to address the virus. We are aware there will be systemic and program reversals. However, it will not be as simple as just doing a rollback. States will need to develop their strategies for redeterminations of their member populations and the timing will need to be coordinated. CMS will need to prepare guidance on expectations for unwinding. Programs will need to be reviewed and decisions prioritized on what needs to be changed. 

Prior to getting to post-pandemic era, states know they will need to plan for managing vaccine distribution, which will be one tool to help bring the curve down. According to former senior officials from the Trump and Obama administrations, the worst pandemic phase is coming this winter. However, there is “light at the end of the tunnel” because of optimism on a vaccine and other tools. We know more in this upcoming wave than the first wave in March. According to these officials, the sciences cannot get us through without a human element. And the human element can save a lot of lives. 

As Scott Gottlieb, MD, former FDA Commissioner, said, “We just need to stop breathing on each other.” He was implying that we need to socially distance and wear masks, while we wait for the vaccine come around and be distributed. The challenge is, according to Andy Slavitt, Former Acting Administrator for CMS, that the vaccine will not be available to the majority of the population for two to three months, and by then, if humans do not continue to change behavior, the spread could go to 30-40% of the population. They predict the pandemic will be at its worst point when the vaccine is made available. 

Seema Verma, the CMS Administrator, said the PHE has shown that we have the ability to work faster. She wants to ensure we heed the lessons of the pandemic, and in particular the experiences with the spread and deaths in the nursing homes. She feels that the issues in the nursing facilities cannot be fixed at the federal level. She sees CMS’s role is to encourage innovation at the state level, while the federal government hold states accountable to costs and positive outcomes and quality. 

Other concerns panelists raised regarding the pandemic are the long-term and downstream ripple effects of responding to the pandemic. For example: 

• States know their members have delayed, deferred, and simply foregone healthcare over these past several months. This will create a surge in treatment at a later date, causing increased demand to an already fatigued provider community.
• The reduced health of the general population resulting from not receiving the right care now and delaying care will further harm the well-being of the population. 
• Our education system has gone mostly online, adversely impacting students’ ability to learn. 
• The overall mental health of our population is at risk—the pandemic has changed all of us, and we will learn to what extent it is harmed us over the next several years. 

Looking ahead―there is hope

Several of the panels spent time discussing what our future might look like. It was encouraging to hear how there is a vision for long-term care delivery changes, meeting behavioral health needs, emergency and pandemic preparedness approaches, and addressing workforce challenges and healthcare inequalities. When asked to name one or two words that will represent where we are in five years, the panelists said: 

• Lead and Succeed (#leadandsucceed) 
• Survive and Thrive (#surviveandthrive) 
• Even Better Together (#evenbettertogether)

We are in this today, and we are together, keeping the eye on our “true North”. Doing so will help us remain together and make us stronger in the future. The key is that we remain together. The conference showed that even though we could not be together in the same geographic place, our minds, attention, and spirit are aligned. We experienced the spirit of NAMD from our homes. 

We know that the future holds opportunities for us to be physically together in the future. We missed being in DC this year, and are very hopeful we will see you next year. That will be icing on the cake, which we will savor and not take for granted. Until then, I am confident we will maintain our integrity and focus on our purpose. 
 

Read this if you are a member of a State Medicaid Agency’s leadership team.

Monday’s NESCSO-hosted conversation was a breath of fresh air in our COVID-19 work-from-home experience. Seeing familiar faces presenting from their home offices reminded me that, yes, we are truly all in this together—working remotely, and focused on how best to foster an efficient and effective Medicaid program for our state clients and members. Over the past several years I have written a “Reflections” blog, summarizing the week-long MESC event while flying home. Today, I am posting my reflections on the first forum NESCSO sponsored in lieu of their August conference that was cancelled this year due to the global pandemic. Following are my major takeaways.

The main speakers were Karen Shields, Deputy Director from the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services, and Julie Boughn, Director, Data Systems Group also for the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services. There were several other guests that joined in this two-hour forum, some from the Data Systems Group, and some from the states.

Crisis as a learning tool

Karen Shields reinforced that we will be better and stronger as a result of the crisis that faces us, and encourages us to use the current crisis as a learning tool. She stressed the importance of how we are leveraging our creativity and innovation to keep moving forward. She said to start with the end in mind, be a team player, and keep in mind these three important points of focus for CMS:

1. Share what works, share what doesn’t. Prioritize.
2. Systems development needs to be agile. Partnership is critical. States needs to be “elbow deep” with others. Everyone is allowed to speak. 
3. Re-usability is key! Push back on those who say we cannot reuse.

During the Q&A session, Karen discussed how to maintain consistency by turning to action and using lessons learned. Resist the urge to “fall back.” Let’s keep moving forward. She underscored how they will continue the all-state calls as there are lots of topics and conversations needed to explore deficits of need. 

Support systems and policies

Julie Boughn opened by stressing what an important layer of support systems provide policies. She said COVID is not a system issue—the systems supporting the approach to address the virus are working and a big part of contributing to helping alleviate the issues the pandemic presents. She noted an appropriate quip that “Without systems, policies are just interesting ideas on pieces of paper.”

She underscored that healthcare and all that goes with supporting it is never static. The Medicaid arena is in a world of increasing change, requiring the supporting systems to adapt to make payments correctly and facilitate the provision of benefits to the right people. CMS has been focused on, and continues to bring our focus to outcomes, especially in the IT investments being made. Promote sharing and re-use of those investments.

During the Q&A, Julie reinforced the priority on outcomes and spoke to outcomes-based certification (OBC). There was a question on “What happens to modularity in the context of OBC?” She said that they are completely compatible and naturally modular, and to think about how a house can be built but not be completely done. Build the house in chunks of work, and know what you’re achieving with each “chunk”. Outcomes are behind everything we do.

Engage with your federal partners

In the next presentation, CMS modeled a dialogue that demonstrated how states can engage with their federal partners. CMS wants to continue changing the relationship they have with states. They also reminded the audience of what CMS is looking for; as Ed Dolly, the Director for the Division of State Systems within the Data and Systems Group said during the conversation, “Do you understand the problem trying to be solved?” Define your final outcome, and understand that incremental change drives value. In addition to communicating the problem, focus on speed of delivery (timeliness), and engage in back and forth exchange on what best measures can be used, as well as the abilities to capture the measures to report progress. The bottom line?  “When in doubt, reach out!”

The remainder of the forum featured representatives from the State System Technology Advisory Group (S-TAG), Private Sector Technology Group (PSTG), and Human Services Information Technology IT Advisory Group (HSITAG). They discussed a variety of IT topics.

Technology outlook

The S-TAG had representation from an impressive list of states—West Virginia, Washington, Wyoming, Vermont, and Massachusetts. They spoke to how they envision their technology response to changes in policy now and in the next 12-18 months. There was too much to present here, and I recommend reviewing the recording once NESCSO posts it. Initiatives included: Provider enrollment, electronic asset verification, electronic visit verification, integrated eligibility systems, modularity implementations, migration to the cloud, pharmacy systems, system integrator, certification, strategic planning, electronic data interchange upgrades, payment reform, road map activities, case management, care management, T-MSIS, and HITECH.

HSITAG spoke about the view across the health and human services spectrum—Where are we today? Where will we be tomorrow? COVID has tested our IT infrastructure and policy. Is there an ability to quickly scale up? Weaknesses in interoperability became exposed and while it seemed Medicaid was spared in the headlines, the need to modernize is now much more apparent. Modularity showed its value in more timely implementations. There is concern over an upcoming increase in the Medicaid population. Are we equipped for the short term?

For the long-run, where we will be “tomorrow” in the 12-18 month view, there will be a bigger dependency on the interrelations between all programs. Medicaid Enterprise Systems can and should look at whole systems, focusing on social determinants of health. Data and program integrity will be key, as the increased potential of fraud in the midst of challenging state budgets. We will need to respond quickly with limited resources.

Keep relationships strong

PSTG spoke of how when COVID hit, it caused them, like the rest of us, to modify their goals. They spoke about relationships and the importance of maintaining them with clients and colleagues, questions of productivity, what things that we have learned will we carry into the post-pandemic era, will we remain flexible, and how will we “unwind” all the related changes that will not be carried forward. Looking forward, PSTG wants to support the growing of the outcomes-based culture, evolve the state self-assessment (currently an active workgroup), and how to be less prescriptive to allow for more flexibility on “how” vendors get to solutions.

I was grateful to be able to join this event, and hear that we are in this together—we will get through it and we will keep moving forward. I felt this was a good start to what I hope will be the first of many MESC 2020 forums. The session felt like it ended too quickly even though we covered a lot of ground. I am excited about the thought of hearing about new ideas, improving our understanding of upcoming changes CMS is sponsoring, and engaging in the innovative thought that will keep us moving toward a better tomorrow. Thanks to NESCSO for sponsoring this event and bringing us together.

Please contact our Medicaid Consulting team for more information on if you have any questions.

Phew! We did it—The Medicaid Enterprise Systems Conference (MESC) 2019 is one for the books! And, it was a great one. Here is my perspective on objectives and themes that will guide our work for the year.

Monday 

My day started in the fog—I live on an island in Maine, take a boat to get into Portland, and taxi to the airport. Luckily, I got to Portland, and, ultimately Chicago, on time and ready to go. 

Public Sector Technology Group (PSTG) meeting

At the PSTG meetings, we reviewed activities from the previous year and did some planning for the coming year. Areas for consideration included:

• Modernization Schedule
• Module Definitions
• Request for Proposal (RFP) Requirements
• National Association of State Procurement Officers

Julie Boughn, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) Director, Data and Systems Group (DSG) introduced her new boss, Karen Shields, who is the Deputy Director for the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS) within CMS. Karen shared her words of wisdom and encouragement with us, while Julie reminded us that being successful in our work is about the people. CMS also underscored the goal of speeding up delivery of service to the Medicaid program and asking ourselves: “What is the problem we are trying to resolve?” 

CMS’ “You be the State” officer workshop

Kudos to CMS for creating this open environment of knowledge sharing and gathering input.  Areas for discussion and input included:

• APD Processes
• Outcomes-Based Certification
• Increasing and Enhancing Accountability

Tuesday
Opening Plenary

I was very touched by the Girls Inc. video describing the mission of Girls Inc. to inspire girls to be strong, smart, and bold. With organizations like this, and our awareness and action, I am optimistic for the future. Thank you to NESCSO for including this in their opening program.

John Doerr, author of Measure What Matters: OKRs: The Simple Idea that Drives 10x Growth and famed investor, shared his thoughts on how to create focus and efficiency in what we do. Julie’s interview with him was excellent, and I appreciated how John’s Objectives and Key Results (OKR) process prompted Julie to create objectives for what we are trying to do. The objectives Julie shared with us:

• Improve the quality of our services for users and other stakeholders 
• Ensure high-quality data is available to manage the program and improve policy making 
• Improve procurement and delivery of Medicaid technology projects

Sessions

The sessions were well attended and although I can't detail each specific session I attended, I will note that I did enjoy using the app to guide me through the conference. NESCSO has uploaded the presentations. 

Auxiliary meetings

Whether formal or informal, meetings are one of the big values of the conference—relationships are key to everyone’s success, and meeting with attendees in one-on-one environments was incredibly productive. 

Poster session

The poster sessions were excellent. States are really into this event, and it is a great opportunity for the MESC community to engage with the states and see what is going on in the Medicaid Enterprise space.

Wednesday

Some memorable phrases heard in the sessions:

• Knowledge is power only if you share it
• We are in this together and want the same outcomes, so let’s share more
• Two challenges to partnering projects—the two “P”s—are purchasing and personnel
• Don’t let perfection be the enemy of the good
• Small steps matter
• Sharing data is harder than it needs to be—keep in mind the reason for what you are doing

Our evening social event was another great opportunity to connect with the community at MESC and the view of Chicago was beautiful.

Julie Boughn challenged us to set a goal (objective) in the coming year, and, along with it, to target some key results in connection with that goal. Here are some of her conference reflections:

• Awesome
  • Several State Program and Policy leaders participated at MESC—impressed with Medicaid Director presence and participation
  • Smaller scoped projects are delivering in meeting the desired improved speed of delivery and quality
  • Increased program-technology alignment
• Not so awesome
  • Pending state-vendor divorces
  • Burden of checklists and State Self-Assessments (SS-As)—will have something to report next year
  • There are still some attempts at very large, multi-year replacement projects—there is going to be a lot of scrutiny on gaining outcomes. Cannot wait five years to change something.

OKRs and request for states and vendors

• Objective: Improve the quality of services for our users and other stakeholders
  • Key Result (KR): Through test results and audits, all States and CMS can state with precision, the overall accuracy of Medicaid eligibility systems.
  • KR: 100% of State electronic visit verification (EVV) systems are certified and producing annual performance data.
  • KR: 100% of States have used CMS-required testing guidance to produce testing results and evidence for their eligibility systems.
• Objective: Ensure high-quality data is available to manage the program and improve policy making
  • KR: Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS) data is of sufficient quality that it is used to inform at least one key national Medicaid policy decision that all states have implemented.
  • KR:  Eliminate at least two state reporting requirements because T-MSIS data can be used instead.
  • KR: At least five states have used national or regional T-MSIS data to inform their own program oversite and/or policy-making decisions.
• Objective: Improve how Medicaid technology projects are procured and delivered
  • KR: Draft standard language for outcomes metrics for at least four Medicaid business areas.
  • KR:  Five states make use of the standard NASPO Medicaid procurement.
  • KR:  CMS reviews of RFPs and contracts using NASPO vehicle are completed within 10 business days.
  • KR:  Four states test using small incremental development phases for delivery of services.
• Request: Within 30 days, states/vendors will identify at least one action to take to help us achieve at least one of the KRs within the next two years.

Last thoughts

There is a lot to digest, and I am energized to carry on. There are many follow-up tasks we all have on our list. Before we know it, we’ll be back at next year’s MESC and can check in on how we are doing with the action we have chosen to help meet CMS’s requirements. See you in Boston!

The MESC “B’more for healthcare innovation” is now behind us. This annual Medicaid conference is a great marker of time, and we remember each by location: St. Louis, Des Moines, Denver, Charleston… and now, Baltimore. The conference is not only a way to take stock of where the Medicaid industry stands. It is a time to connect with the state and vendor community, explore challenges and best-practice solutions, and drive innovation with our respective projects.

Having an opportunity to reflect on MESC over the last several years, I’ve discovered that taking stock of how much has changed (or not) is a valuable exercise. 

Changes at CMS

At the federal level, there is the departure of a long time contributor — Jessica Kahn — who is no longer with CMS. Her contributions and absence were marked in both the opening and closing plenary. We are grateful for her dedication and many contributions to the Medicaid space. In this time of change, we look forward to continuing our work with CMS leadership CMS to advance the mission of Medicaid.

Innovation and Collaboration

Many of the sessions this year were updates on modularity, system integration, and certification, and sessions on expanding or maturing innovative approaches to achieving our triple aim. While there did not seem to be any earth-shattering changes, calls for innovation and collaboration continue. This can be difficult to achieve during a time of anticipated change, but necessary, as states strive to realize improvements in their systems and operations.

Data-Driven Decisions

One of the dominating conference themes was a reiteration of the need to access data from broad sources within and outside Medicaid, and to leverage that data for policy and operation-related solutions and decision-making. Key words like “interoperability” and “sustainability” could be heard echoing through the halls. There is no one-size-fits-all solution on how to break out of stove pipes of data, but some new technologies may be viable tools to meet the challenge. 

Strategic Planning for the Future

States remain focused on refining and following their strategic plans and roadmaps in a time of uncertainty — with regard to potential changes coming from the federal level. The closing plenary suggested that states be prepared for “local leadership” opportunities, which further underscores the need for states to continue to prepare themselves and their systems to facilitate changes to their programs.

Maintaining Perspective

As I leave Baltimore to return home and help care for my 88-year-old father, and as I see others who are in clear need of healthcare help, I am reminded that the work we do and the problems we are tackling are important on so many levels. It is a cornerstone of the well-being of our health system and our fellow citizens. Our team will continue to focus our efforts with this perspective in mind, drawing from the lessons, discussions, and best practices shared at this year’s MESC.

Here’s to a year of good health — may you successfully carry out the mission of Medicaid in your state. See you in 2018 in Portland, Oregon!