NC Innovations Waiver Renewal
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CMS approved North Carolina's 1915(c) Innovations Waiver renewal effective July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2029, with updates to service definitions, addition of benefits counseling, Tailored Plans inclusion, and changes to reserved capacity categories.
Remote support was added to the Supported Living and Community Living Supports service definition.
Supported Employment definition was updated to include three phases: Pre-employment, Employment Stabilization, and Long-term Employment.
Behavioral Health and Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities Tailored Plans (Tailored Plans) operation was included in the waiver.
Benefits counseling was added to the service array to support individuals preparing for competitive integrated employment and to assist with problem solving to maintain employment.
Reserved capacity slots for Children with Complex Needs were added.
Reserved capacity for Money Follows the Person category for deinstitutionalization was increased.
Language allowing the State to reassign Military Reserve Capacity to Emergency Capacity if unused by the end of the waiver year was included.
Waiver Coverage Criteria and Updates
inv-01: Waiver coverage updates
The renewal updates coverage elements and service definitions; specific authorization criteria are governed by the waiver's service definitions and Tailored Plans operations.
Service Definitions, Codes, and Effective Period
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Provider Actions and Authorization Impacts
Update authorizations for remote support, employment phases, and reserved capacity
Providers must update authorization and service planning processes to reflect changes in service definitions, delivery modes, and capacity categories introduced by the NC Innovations Waiver renewal effective July 1, 2024. Specifically, providers should incorporate remote support into planning for Supported Living and Community Living Supports, align Supported Employment authorizations with the three defined phases (Pre-employment, Employment Stabilization, Long-term Employment), and account for new or revised reserved capacity categories when requesting or scheduling services.
- Incorporate remote support as an allowable mode for Supported Living and Community Living Supports when requesting authorizations.
- Structure Supported Employment authorizations and service durations according to the three phases: Pre-employment, Employment Stabilization, and Long-term Employment.
- Consider new reserved capacity slots for Children with Complex Needs and increased Money Follows the Person capacity when verifying slot availability.
- Be aware that Military Reserve Capacity may be reassigned to Emergency Capacity if unused by the end of the waiver year, which may affect available authorizations.
Key Definitions and Service Modalities
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