Section 71.24.380. Purchase of mental health and chemical dependency treatment services—Managed care contracting—Detailed plan.

(1) The secretary shall purchase mental health and chemical dependency treatment services primarily through managed care contracting, but may continue to purchase behavioral health services directly from tribal clinics and other tribal providers.

(2)(a) The secretary shall request a detailed plan from the entities identified in (b) of this subsection that demonstrates compliance with the contractual elements of RCW 43.20A.894 and federal regulations related to medicaid managed care contracting, including, but not limited to: Having a sufficient network of providers to provide adequate access to mental health and chemical dependency services for residents of the regional service area that meet eligibility criteria for services, ability to maintain and manage adequate reserves, and maintenance of quality assurance processes. Any responding entity that submits a detailed plan that demonstrates that it can meet the requirements of this section must be awarded the contract to serve as the behavioral health organization.

(b)(i) For purposes of responding to the request for a detailed plan under (a) of this subsection, the entities from which a plan will be requested are:

(A) A county in a single county regional service area that currently serves as the regional support network for that area;

(B) In the event that a county has made a decision prior to January 1, 2014, not to contract as a regional support network, any private entity that serves as the regional support network for that area;

(C) All counties within a regional service area that includes more than one county, which shall form a responding entity through the adoption of an interlocal agreement. The interlocal agreement must specify the terms by which the responding entity shall serve as the behavioral health organization within the regional service area.

(ii) In the event that a regional service area is comprised of multiple counties including one that has made a decision prior to January 1, 2014, not to contract as a regional support network the counties shall adopt an interlocal agreement and may respond to the request for a detailed plan under (a) of this subsection and the private entity may also respond to the request for a detailed plan. If both responding entities meet the requirements of this section, the responding entities shall follow the department's procurement process established in subsection (3) of this section.

(3) If an entity that has received a request under this section to submit a detailed plan does not respond to the request, a responding entity under subsection (1) of this section is unable to substantially meet the requirements of the request for a detailed plan, or more than one responding entity substantially meets the requirements for the request for a detailed plan, the department shall use a procurement process in which other entities recognized by the secretary may bid to serve as the behavioral health organization in that regional service area.

(4) Contracts for behavioral health organizations must begin on April 1, 2016.

(5) Upon request of all of the county authorities in a regional service area, the department and the health care authority may jointly purchase behavioral health services through an integrated medical and behavioral health services contract with a behavioral health organization or a managed health care system as defined in RCW 74.09.522, pursuant to standards to be developed jointly by the secretary and the health care authority. Any contract for such a purchase must comply with all federal medicaid and state law requirements related to managed health care contracting.

(6) As an incentive to county authorities to become early adopters of fully integrated purchasing of medical and behavioral health services, the standards adopted by the secretary and the health care authority under subsection (5) of this section shall provide for an incentive payment to counties which elect to move to full integration by January 1, 2016. Subject to federal approval, the incentive payment shall be targeted at ten percent of savings realized by the state within the regional service area in which the fully integrated purchasing takes place. Savings shall be calculated in alignment with the outcome and performance measures established in RCW 43.20A.895, 70.320.020, and 71.36.025, and incentive payments for early adopter counties shall be made available for up to a six-year period, or until full integration of medical and behavioral health services is accomplished statewide, whichever comes sooner, according to rules to be developed by the secretary and health care authority.

[ 2014 c 225 § 5.]

2014 c 225 § 5.