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Hereditary Cancer and Resources for Families
Join our March 19 webinar from 12:10 to 1 p.m. to learn more about hereditary cancer and resources for families, featuring Barb Kunz, MS, LCGC.
Learn about the ways hereditary cancer genetic testing can guide cancer prevention and screening decision-making and treatment choices for those with cancer, features to look for in someone’s personal and family history that are indications for the option of genetic testing for hereditary cancer, as well as local and national resources available for patients and families.
Join us online for our quarterly office hours
Join our Office Hours on April 23 from 12:10 to 1 p.m. for a brief Sage Program overview and Q&A time. Office Hours will be informal with a focus on Sage Program eligibility criteria, covered services, form completion, follow-up, and billing. Sage Office Hours are intended for new clinic staff or clinic staff who need a refresher on the Sage Program.
Office Hours objectives:
- Program eligibility criteria is defined and reviewed.
- Sage covered services (both screening and diagnostic) are reviewed and explained.
- The required forms are reviewed.
- The process for following up on an abnormal screening result is explained.
- Billing information is provided.
Melanie Peterson-Hickey has retired
Dr. Melanie Peterson-Hickey, an honorable Ojibwe woman from the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, retired on Feb. 12 after dedicating the past 30 years to advancing public health through her work with the Minnesota Department of Health, Department of Human Services, and the University of Minnesota.
Most recently, Melanie has been a pivotal leader in the Sage and Cancer Programs Section where her passion, expertise, and unwavering commitment to health equity have made a lasting impact. Beyond her professional accomplishments, Melanie has been a valued colleague and mentor, known for her grace, wisdom, humility, and humor.
Melanie will be remembered for her many achievements, but most importantly as a tireless advocate for health equity. She has worked every day to improve health disparities in Minnesota by:
- Leading the Center for Health Equity
- Advocating for the creation of the Tribal Liaison position and elevating the position to the Executive Office within MDH, which ensures MDH tribal policy is followed and facilitates the involvement and input of Minnesota’s tribal nations with MDH.
- Serving as a co-lead and main author of the groundbreaking 2014 Advancing Health Equity report which was instrumental in bringing the role of institutional racism in promoting structural inequities to the forefront.
- Championing efforts to improve data quality and access, especially for American Indians and underserved populations.
- Serving many years on the I-Health Council, the MDH internal health equity team that supports equity efforts throughout the department.
- Serving as a founding member of the Minnesota Public Health Association’s Health Equity Committee.
- Supporting voter registration services for employees and the public through efforts to incorporate Minnesota Statute 201.162 DUTIES OF STATE AGENCIES in all MDH grants and contracts.
- Being awarded the 2016 Paul & Sheila Wellstone Public Health Achievement Award, honoring “a person who has distinguished him/herself in public health through an outstanding contribution, which exemplifies MPHA’s mission to promote and protect the health of individuals, families and the community …(and) leadership as demonstrated by the impact on other’s careers or having made a contribution that reflects innovation, creativity or a courageous pioneering effort consistent with professional excellence and public service.”
As she embarks on this well-deserved next chapter, we extend our deepest gratitude for her years of service and dedication to public health and wish her all the best in a fulfilling and enjoyable retirement!
Now available on the Sage website
Please review the new 2025 guides below to ensure you have the most up to date information for your patients.
2025 Reimbursement Rate Sheet: Sage Breast and Cervical Cancer Reimbursement Rates 2025 (PDF)
Eligibility and Income Guidelines: Sage Eligibility 2025 (PDF)
Please ensure form is complete before sending
We have recently noticed a large increase in incomplete Enrollment and Visit Summary forms being sent to us. The Visit Summary is the fourth page of the Enrollment Form that the provider, nurse, or clinician completes during a Sage office visit.
Please review the entire Enrollment Form and Visit Summary page before emailing or faxing them to Sage. Also, please check that you are faxing/scanning four pages per Enrollment Form submitted. We are receiving several Enrollments that have missing pages and therefore we cannot enter the Enrollment Form into our billing system to adjudicate your claims.
A completed Enrollment Form will ensure we can pay for services on time and don’t have to reach out to your clinic or the patient for additional information. Thank you!
Please complete survey below
Sage is in the process of updating clinic contact information. Our internal database includes five different roles. It’s important for us to have a contact person for each role at a site (the same person can fill more than one role; descriptions of the roles are below).
Please fill out this form so we can make sure we have the correct contacts in our system for timely communication with your clinic. https://forms.office.com/g/pqivKhHbnP
Please share this email with other staff at your clinic who fulfill any of the Sage Program roles so they can enter their contact information using the form above.
Park Nicollet Mammo a-go-go
The Sage Program has partnered with the Park Nicollet Mammo a-go-go mobile mammography unit to provide breast cancer screening services to communities across the metro area for more than a decade. The Mammo a-go-go provides screening services at clinics without on-site radiology and partners with various organizations at community events. Throughout 2024, Sage partnered with the Park Nicollet Mammo a-go-go for over 70 events and screened more than 860 individuals. Over 640 of those individuals received free services through the Sage Program.
A special thank you to Angela Nelson, Jessica Lane, and Gail Mier of Park Nicollet’s Jane Brattain Breast Center for coordinating these opportunities for Minnesotans in need of breast screenings!
Sage will spotlight additional mobile mammography unit providers and their efforts in future editions of the newsletter.
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New Sage staff and positions update
Welcome to new staff members joining the Sage Program team, as well as staff starting in new positions.
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Hser Say, Sage Data Entry Student Worker
Hello. I’m a student worker at Metropolitan State University and I’m majoring in accounting. I love playing badminton, volleyball and pickleball during my free time. I also love to travel and hike, if the view if beautiful.
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Madison Baysinger, Student Worker Clerical
Hello! I am Madison Baysinger, one of the student workers for Sage. I am a junior at the University of Minnesota, studying Health and Wellbeing Sciences, with an emphasis on maternal and child health. I am excited to continue my journey in public health with our wonderful Sage program!
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Jennifer Johnson, Community Engagement Specialist
Jen joined MDH in November 2024. She is a U of M – Twin Cities graduate and completed her Community Health Worker certificate program in 2021. Jen has worked with people with disabilities and older adults from a diverse range of backgrounds to navigate service systems and facilitate resource connections. Jen served as a Care Coordinator in primary care clinics and did home visits for high-risk patients as a part of a Community Paramedic program. Jen speaks Spanish and lives in South Minneapolis with her husband and two children.
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Carlie Koberstine, Sage Program Coordinator
Carlie Koberstine is the new Sage Program Coordinator. In this role, she helps manage grant deliverables, serves as a resource for clinics navigating the Sage Programs and provides technical assistance regarding quality improvement, recruitment, and other needs to increase clinics’ success with the program. Carlie joined Sage in February 2023 as the Clinical Services Consultant. In her free time, Carlie enjoys being outside, reading and spoiling her dog.
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Christina Nelson, Sage and Cancer Programs Manager
Christina (Tina) Nelson began her role as the Manager of Sage and Cancer Programs on February 5, 2025. Tina brings with her 27 years of experience at the Minnesota Department of Health, including 22 years working within Sage Programs. In her tenure, she has held roles including the Director of Recruitment and Evaluation and, more recently, Assistant Manager for Sage and Cancer Programs. Prior to her work with Sage, Tina contributed to areas in the department including Occupational Health, the Minnesota Cancer Reporting System, and the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care. Tina is committed to collaborating with partners and Minnesota Department of Health staff to implement evidence-based interventions that address cancer disparities and health inequities across the state. A resident of Minneapolis, Tina enjoys spending time with her family and friends, especially her two children and two dogs.
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SagePlus: We Got the RED Out for Women and Heart Disease
MDH Cancer Programs, which includes the SagePlus Heart Health Program, along with clinics, churches, and community organizations wore red for Women Go RED Day and Heart Health Month to create awareness about women and heart disease.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the United States and can affect women at any age. Women can lower their risk for heart disease by managing their cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar. Some ways to achieve this might include eating healthy, staying active, not smoking, reducing alcohol, getting enough sleep, and managing stress.
SagePlus provides heart health screening, risk reduction counseling, a connection to health behavior support programs (e.g. nutrition and exercise programs) and community-based resources that reduce patient barriers to a healthy lifestyle (e.g. housing and transportation). SagePlus is available to Sage eligible women at a limited number of clinics within the Sage provider network.
For more information about SagePlus visit www.mnsage.com or call 1-888-6HEALTH.
Every Heart Matters.
 From the left: Go RED for Heart Health Month at Aslan Clinic, MDH Cancer Programs, Odam Medical Group
Billing Department: Reminders
Transitioning to Faster, Paperless Communication: To enhance efficiency and reduce paper usage, Sage is transitioning to more streamlined methods for submission of forms or results. We previously relied on USPS mail but now encourage the use of fax, email, or the Sage portal, which are all quicker and more environmentally friendly. Please use the following preferred methods:
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Fax: 1-877-495-7545
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Email: Sagebilling@state.mn.us
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Sage Portal: Please contact the Sage Billing Team at 651-201-5630 to get set up for portal login.
Update on Claims Processing for Dates of Service Starting 9/1/2024 : You may have noticed that claims with dates of service starting 9/1/2024 have not yet been adjudicated. This delay is due to staffing constraints, and we are working diligently to enter forms and reports for patients from 9/1/2024 to the present. If you have already submitted a form or result and would like to confirm that it’s in the queue for processing, please contact the Sage Billing team via email (Sagebilling@state.mn.us) or phone at 651-201-5630. We kindly ask that you do not resubmit paperwork if it has already been submitted, as this will create a larger backlog and further delay data entry. As a reminder, Sage has a timely filing limit of 120 days from the date of service. Rest assured, the date on which forms are received is noted and considered, so the current data entry delay will not impact your timely filing requirements.
Understanding Your Sage Remittance Advice: The Sage remittance advice may look a bit different from what you’re used to. On the paper remittance advice provided by Sage, you will find claims categorized into four distinct sections to help you navigate and understand your Sage remittance advice more clearly:
1. Wait Status P1: Action Needed
- Claims in this section are at risk for denial if the error description provided is not addressed. These claims have already had data entry completed, but we do not have the supporting information required to adjudicate the claim.
2. Wait Status P2: Forms Not Entered Yet
- Claims listed here are currently pending. No action may be needed from you, but please review for any billing errors. The claims are awaiting data entry, and once entered, we’ll move forward with adjudication.
3. Denied
- Any claims that have been denied will appear in this section, along with a Sage-related error description explaining the reason for the denial.
4. Paid
- For each group of paid claims (sometimes there will be two subsections), you’ll find the following details at the bottom:
- Invoice ID#
- Voucher ID
- Total amount of the ACH payment made by Sage
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Reference # (check number)
- Method of payment
Cancer Screening Quality Improvement (CSQI): March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
For more information, statistics, and social media content, check out these resources:
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