NASHVILLE — A new report shows continued improvement in the overall quality of health care provided to TennCare members through their managed care organizations. 
 
The report, 2010 HEDIS/CAHPS Report: A Comparative Analysis of Audited Results from TennCare Managed Care Organizations (MCOs), shows an increase in all child health measures, including childhood immunization status, lead screening in children, appropriate treatment for children with upper respiratory infection, and well-child and adolescent visits. 

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville today released the findings from its study, “The Impact of TennCare: A Survey of Recipients 2010.” The results show TennCare continues to earn high marks from those who receive its services – with enrollees reporting the highest satisfaction scores to date.

Program Allows More Tenneseeans to Receive Long-Term Care Services in the Home

NASHVILLE — TennCare officials announced today the launch of the TennCare CHOICES in Long-Term Care program in East and West Tennessee, completing the statewide restructuring of long-term care service delivery within TennCare. The CHOICES program offers more home-based options for meeting the long-term care needs of the state’s elderly and adults with physical disabilities, reducing reliance on more costly nursing facility care. It also offers a simpler process for accessing these more economical services.

Contract Saves State in Administrative Costs

NASHVILLE — State officials announced today that Delta Dental was awarded the contract to serve as TennCare’s dental benefits manager (DBM).   The new contract will save the state an estimated $3.5 million in administrative costs over the three-year contract period.

NASHVILLE - TennCare announced today that federal officials have approved Tennessee’s proposal to draw federal matching dollars in association with a new hospital assessment fee. As a result, TennCare will avoid benefit changes for enrollees and reductions in provider reimbursement rates that would have otherwise been required this year.  The assessment fee was approved by the General Assembly in May.

 NASHVILLE – TennCare Director and Deputy Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration, Darin Gordon, was selected to participate as a Fellow in the 2011 class of the Medicaid Leadership Institute, a national initiative managed by the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS). Gordon is one of six Medicaid directors chosen to be part of this initiative designed to enhance the leadership capacity of Medicaid directors to help their programs serve as national models for high-quality, cost-effective care. 

NASHVILLE - The Tennessee Association of Mental Health Organizations (TAMHO) recently presented TennCare staff with the President’s Award, which is given at the discretion of the TAMHO President, during the TAMHO 2009 Annual Awards and Recognition Ceremony in Nashville, Tenn.

NASHVILLE — The Bureau of TennCare announced today that BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee (BCBST) will take over behavioral health care for enrollees receiving services through TennCare Select. This transition to using a single managed care entity to provide all of the care an enrollee needs, including physical and behavioral health coverage, marks TennCare’s completion of the shift to a fully-integrated service delivery model.