PHR for LTSS Demo - March 2016 Update

Minnesota Department of Human Services
PHR for LTSS Demo

PHR for LTSS Demo past updates

March, 2016


PHR Community Collaborative Going Strong

Members of the Otter Tail PHR Community Collaborative are working closely with DHS to move the PHR for LTSS Demonstration forward:

The Collaborative has been meeting monthly with DHS staff and contractors since November, 2015 to further define the functions of an electronic Personal Health Record for Medical Assistance (MA) Waiver beneficiaries, and to participate in the first of two rounds of pilot testing to help define an electronic Long-Term Services and Supports (eLTSS) Standard.

Wave Three Progress Update

We've divided the four year PHR for LTSS Demo Project timeline into Seven Waves. We are currently nearing the end of Wave Three (11/1/2015 - 3/31/2016). Here's the latest: 

  Personal Health Record for LTSS Waiver beneficiaries:

  • The Collaborative has finalized a contract with RelayHealth to provide PHR technology for use by beneficiaries/legal representatives. Governance and data sharing agreements are being executed among the members of the Collaborative.
  • A project manager from Stratis Health is working with Otter Tail County Case Managers to identify beneficiaries who are willing to help test the PHR when it becomes available in the fall of 2016.
  • MN.IT @ DHS staff are preparing to send data to one Integrated Health Partnership (IHP) provider by the end of March, 2016, with more to follow after the process has been fully tested. They are also working on the Aggregator that will be used to transport data to the PHR. That process will be finalized and tested during the spring and summer, in preparation for the launch of Release One of the PHR by September 30, 2016.

   e-LTSS Standard:

  • DHS staff and contractors are working closely with members of the Collaborative on Round One testing of an eLTSS Standard, which is being developed in cooperation with the Office of the National Coordinator's (ONC) Standards & Interoperability (S&I) Framework. 10 organizations and 18 settings are contributing enthusiastically to a "data-driven" approach to the process, which is scheduled to conclude by the end of April, 2016.

  Beneficiary Experience Survey:

  • Minnesota completed Round One testing of the "Experience of Care" survey in 2014-2015. We will participate in Round Two testing during the final year of the TEFT Grant (beginning in April of 2017).

  Functional Assessment Standard Items (FASI):

  • The FASI Assessment instrument is nearing completion by a CMS contractor. The DHS Institutional Review Board (IRB) will review and approve the instrument before it is used in Minnesota.
  • A process for pulling a sample of MA beneficiaries is under way. A contracted vendor will conduct Round One of FASI testing in the summer of 2016 with a limited number of MA beneficiaries.

What are the PHR for LTSS Demo's goals?

  1. Demonstrate use of an untethered Personal Health Record (PHR) system with beneficiaries of LTSS;
  2. Identify, evaluate and test an electronic Long Term Services and Supports (e-LTSS) standard with the Office of the National Coordinator's (ONC) Standards and Interoperability (S&I) Framework process;
  3. Field test a Beneficiary Experience Survey within multiple CB-LTSS programs for validity and reliability; and
  4. Field test a modified set of Continuity Assessment Record and Evaluation (CARE) Functional Assessment measures for use with beneficiaries of CB-LTSS programs.

Where can I learn more?

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