Guidance on PCCM COVID 19 Childhood Vaccination Program Payment
Background
Pediatric well-child care has suffered significant setbacks due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This
proposal will address significant gaps caused by COVID-19 in child and adolescent vaccine
compliance by providing reimbursements from the Arkansas Coronavirus Relief Fund for
enhanced immunization initiatives at primary care practices that serve children. Practitioners
will be allowed to request reimbursement for expenditures related to vaccinations efforts
conducted from March 1, 2020, through October 1, 2020. The goal is to ensure all children
receive vaccinations prior to the October 1 deadline for school attendance. The deadline for
providers to submit their requests for reimbursement and proof of costs of allowable expenses is
by close of business October 15, 2020.
These reimbursements will support infrastructure that is critical to child health and well-being
following significant COVID-19-related downturns in pediatric preventive care and
immunizations prior to the start of the 2020-21 school year. By targeting reimbursements
equitably to private entities that participate in the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program, this
proposal will provide an efficient and effective path for children to receive missed vaccines from
trusted primary care physicians.
Submitting the PCCM COVID 19 Childhood Vaccination Program Payment Request Form
Please submit a completed form to: [email protected], subject: “PCCM Vaccination
Program.” You can find the form by clicking here:
https://humanservices.arkansas.gov/resources/response-covid-19.
Eligible Service Providers
The payments will be available to independent physicians and clinics who are participating in
both the Primary Care Case Management (PCCM) and Vaccines for Children (VFC) programs as
of March 2020.
Minimum Qualifications
1. Must participate in the Vaccines for Children program;
2. Not owned or operated by the State of Arkansas;
3. Enrolled in the Arkansas Medicaid program as a PCCM; and
4. Serving and accepting Arkansas Medicaid pediatric beneficiaries as patients.
Funding
Payment will be made based on proof of costs submitted to DHS with a completed PCCM
COVID 19 Vaccination Program Payment report form. Providers are eligible for reimbursement
of covered expenses between March 1, 2020, and October 1, 2020, allowable up to a maximum
of $30 who is covered by either Medicaid ARKids A or B based on the total ARkids attribution as of
March 2020 ($30 x total attribution as of March 2020).
Allowable Expenses
Reimbursements are available to PCPs to enhance and increase current vaccination efforts
statewide including, but not limited to:
• Vaccine outreach initiatives to encourage parents to get their children vaccinated
o Staff time spent on vaccine-related care coordination, scheduling, and outreach
o Vaccine counseling conducted outside of billable service delivery
o Additional staff or supplies needed to meet the demand of increased childhood
vaccine administration
• School- or childcare-linked childhood immunization delivery to ensure schools and
childcare centers meet the October deadline for students to be fully immunized
o Staff time spent developing new types of vaccine delivery
o Additional vaccine-related supplies that were not previously budgeted, including
needles, syringes, remote record-keeping for WebIZ (the shared portal for
immunization records kept by the Arkansas Department of Health) such as a
laptop and Wi-fi hotspot, vaccine transportation coolers that meet safety
standards, touchless thermometers, and ice packs
• Patient and visitor safety procedures to ensure families who want to make an office visit
feel safe doing so
o Additional staff and supplies to conduct health checks at clinic entrances
o Technology systems that facilitate online screening and form completion to
minimize time in office waiting rooms
o Technology systems that allow online check-in or car check-in
o Signage or communication expenses detailing universal mask requirements, social
distancing, and other public health-related strategies
• Enhanced vaccine program efforts
o Additional supplies for VFC immunization delivery and above-average purchases
of private vaccines
o Additional staff for vaccine program management to oversee increased vaccine
inventory, tracking, documentation, and supply chain
• Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems optimization to improve vaccine compliance
o New or upgraded EHR vaccine reminder and recall systems
o Enhanced EHR report development to facilitate targeted outreach
o Staff training on new EHR capabilities
• Mass flu vaccination or parking lot immunization events to prevent multiple
simultaneous disease outbreaks
o Staff time for mass flu clinics or childhood immunization events
o Additional vaccine-related supplies including needles, syringes, remote record-
keeping for WebIZ such as a laptop and wi-fi hotspot, vaccine transportation
coolers that meet safety standards, touchless thermometers, ice packs, rental
expenses for tents/tables/fans/air conditioning or heater to keep staff and patients
comfortable, and extra PPE that was not budgeted
Restricted Expenses
These funds cannot be used to:
• Duplicate or supplant funding from any other federal or state program. Payments or other
reimbursement for direct patient care is not included as funding from a federal or state
program.
• Offset loss of revenue
• Provide “retention” or retainer payments
• Pay bonuses
• Pay any increase in management fees to administrative personnel.
Auditing PCCM COVID 19 Childhood Vaccination Program Payments
DMS will coordinate with the DHS Office of Payment Integrity and Audit (OPIA) and Office of
the Medicaid Inspector General (OMIG) to conduct audits of PCCM COVID 19 Childhood
Vaccination Program payments. Please keep all records of payments, including itemized receipts,
paid invoices, and staffing records. The enrolled Medicaid provider agrees to all terms laid out in
this guidance document.
Deadline for Filing
All documents, including proof of costs must be submitted to [email protected] by
Close of Business on October 15, 2020.
