August 19, 2020
COVID-19 Updates
Logo for the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy & Financing
Artistic rendition of the Coronavirus
Thank you for serving Health First Colorado (Colorado's Medicaid program) and Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) members.
The Department of Health Care Policy & Financing (the Department) knows providers, case managers, and county and eligibility partners have many questions about the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and its impact on our programs. We are sharing updates on emergency policies, COVID-19 specific billing codes and other important information on our website at colorado.gov/hcpf/covid and through this and other newsletters.

The information in this newsletter provides a weekly summary of COVID-19 guidance for Health First Colorado and CHP+ providers, Regional Accountable Entities, case managers, counties and other eligibility partners. Some audiences may receive audience specific guidance through other Department newsletters; this newsletter is a roundup of all of those communications in one place.

Providers: Please sign up for general updates, including COVID-19 information, on the Provider News webpage.

County and Eligibility Partners: Please sign up for County Connections and the HCPF Memo Series.

Statewide Resource: OnwardCO - One-stop resource for the people of Colorado impacted by job loss during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

For comprehensive public health information about COVID-19 in Colorado, refer to the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE) website. This website includes information for the general public and special resources for health care providers on patient evaluation, testing, personal protective equipment and many more topics.

Provider Leader Resource Center: A Provider Leader Resource Center has been added to the Department COVID-19 website. This page contains content from prior and upcoming webinars for Provider Association Leaders and their members, as well as information for providers about member and provider recruitment. The Department is asking associations partner with us to recruit more health care providers to serve our more than 1.3 million current members and the more than 500,000 new members we expect to enroll by the end of this year. More information can be found on the Here For You, Colorado page.
Message from the Department
The team at the Department wants you to know that we are here for you during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are wearing our masks in public as Governor Jared Polis has asked, and we hope you will join us in helping keep our fellow Coloradans healthy, especially as kids head back to school and more people return to work. You can learn more about the state’s response and regulations for COVID-19 at covid19.colorado.gov.
 
During the COVID-19 public health emergency, the Department is keeping our nearly 1.4 million members covered so they don’t have to worry about the health and well-being of their families. The federal government has extended the public health emergency through at least Oct. 25 and may extend it further. That means our members can rest assured we have them covered until at least then. We have asked for at least two months' notice so we can provide as much notice as possible to members who may be disenrolled and whose benefits may be changing. As we mentioned last month, some new co-pays will go into effect following the public health emergency, but not until we receive federal approval and not before January 2021.

Stay safe and healthy, and thank you for all you do to support our members.
Information for Health First Colorado and CHP+ Providers and Case Managers
Guidance Memos

Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) and Disability Community COVID-19 Webinars


Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Providers and Case Management Agencies



Skilled Nursing Facilities, Intermediate Care Facilities (ICF)

  • See HCBS All Providers for 7/24/20.
Information for County and Eligibility Partners
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Extends Application Deadline for Medicaid Providers and Plans to Reopen Portal to Certain Medicare Providers.
  • HHS issued a press release on July 31 to extend the deadline to Aug. 28, 2020 for Medicaid/ Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)/dental providers.
  • The portal is being reopened as of Aug. 10 for providers that were left out of any of these distributions, including providers that had a change of ownership and providers that are new (started billing Medicare/Medicaid after the prior cutoffs), can also go into the portal as of Aug. 10 to apply for a distribution.
  • Visit the Providers page for Key Facts and steps for how to apply, and see the Medicaid provider FAQs for additional information.

In addition to the Department COVID-19 website, updates will continue to be sent out via existing channels, such as the County Connections e-newsletter and the HCPF Memo Series. Please sign up for these newsletters through the Department website.