Practice Management Insight

June 2014

A report on events affecting Oklahoma providers

Fireworks Safety Month

National Council on Fireworks Safety

June 1

National Cancer Survivors Day

National Cancer Survivors Day Foundation

June 15

Father’s Day

June 16 - June 19

Case Mgmt Training-TULSA

June 16 - June 17

Tobacco Free Fundamentals and Wellness Training

June 16– June 17

Celebrating Families Program (CFP)

June 17 - June 18

START Training for DHS and OJA: by invite only

June 17

SOC Family Support Provider Training: OKC

June 18

Ethical Dilemmas in Crisis Settings (AM Session)

June 18 - June 19

Tobacco Free Fundamentals & Wellness Training

June 18

Preparing for Court: Writing Reports

June 23 - June 26

Case Mgmt Training-OKC

June 23 - June 25

21st Annual Children's Behavioral Health Conference

June 30– July 2

ADSAC Assessor Training

JUNE is …

Home Safety Month

National Men’s Health Week (9-15)

Oklahoma Health Care Authority board leaders make tough choices over where to cut Medicaid services for some of the poorest residents

Emerging adults most in need of education on anti-anxiety drug misuse

Do a reality check when navigating substance abuse treatment coverage under ACA

In just six years, the number of emergency room visits related to non-medical use of the benzodiazepine drug alprazolam (Xanax, Niravam) doubled. While men and women were treated in roughly equal numbers over the time period, the bigger concern is the three-fold increase in such incidents among those ages 25 to 34.

The number of visits among those in the 25 to 34 age group climbed from less than 13,000 in 2005 to nearly 40,000 in 2011.

Although there is no shortage of excitement surrounding the changes the Affordable Care Act (ACA) brings to addiction treatment, there are some problematic aspects that will become more evident over time.

Private insurance coverage for substance abuse treatment has been substantially improved. For government plans, however, the existence of coverage is not the same thing as a guarantee that providers will be willing to offer treatment.

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The word “difficult” was used throughout Thursday’s board meeting of the state’s Medicaid agency, as leaders discussed millions of dollars in cuts that had to be made to balance the agency’s budget for the coming fiscal year.

During a standing-room only meeting, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority board voted Thursday on several changes, including changes in mental health services and increases in co-payments, that will affect some of Oklahoma’s poorest residents.

Leaders at the Oklahoma Health Care Authority, which administers Medicaid, said the agency faced a $104 million shortfall, in part, because of decreases in federal funding it receives and also because of less money in tobacco tax dollars.

Board chairman Ed McFall, a pharmacist from rural Oklahoma, said he encouraged several meeting attendees to contact their lawmakers and tell them what impact the budget cuts will have on them personally.

“If you don’t let them know these cuts are affecting your communities, next year’s budget decisions will likely be more of the same or even worse, and the solution of this problem is not right here at the Oklahoma Health Care Authority,” McFall said. “The solution of this problem lies at 23rd and Lincoln.”

Along with the budget cuts approved Thursday, the board is expected to meet Tuesday to discuss whether the agency will cut the rate it pays physicians and other medical providers for the services they deliver to Medicaid recipients. The measure was anticipated to be on the agenda Thursday but had to be removed to comply with Oklahoma’s Open Meetings Act.

Thank you to everyone who visited our booth at the 21st Annual Children’s Behavioral Health Conference!

And congratulations to the winner of our drawing for the $25 restaurant gift card, Carla W.!

We hope to see you all again at next year’s conference.

From, your

OrionNet Systems team.

Teaming up with Google to find autism cause

The Affordable Care Act and Parity

The cause of autism is still unknown, but researchers hope harnessing the power of Google will help them solve this neurodevelopmental puzzle.

The research and advocacy group Autism Speaks announced Tuesday they are collaborating with the Google Cloud Platform to build the largest autism genome database to date. The collaboration, known as The Autism Speaks Ten Thousand Genomes Program (AUT10K), will combine extensive DNA databases with cloud storage technology, in hopes of moving mountains in autism research, according to a press release.

The Affordable Care Act is potentially changing how treatment for addiction will be funded or reimbursed. For those of us that have spent decades in the treatment field, we understand that instead of looking at this as yet another change, it is better to embrace the act as an evolution of our field and profession.

The age old saying of, “be careful what you pray for, you may get it,” yet once again is becoming a reality. For me personally, I have prayed for greater understanding and more research about the disease.“