CMS Announces Emergency Psychiatric Demonstration Project

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced that 11 states and the District of Columbia will participate in the Medicaid Emergency Psychiatric Demonstration, established under the Affordable Care Act, to test whether Medicaid beneficiaries who are experiencing a psychiatric emergency get more immediate, appropriate care when institutions for mental diseases receive Medicaid reimbursement. “This new demonstration will help ensure patients receive appropriate, high quality care when they need it most and save states money,” said CMS Acting Administrator Marilyn Tavenner.

This project will provide up to $75 million in federal Medicaid matching funds over three years to 11 states—Alabama, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Washington, and West Virginia—and the District of Columbia to enable private psychiatric hospitals to receive Medicaid reimbursement for emergency care provided to Medicaid enrollees aged 21 to 64 who have an acute need for treatment.

For coverage of the health care reform law see Psychiatric News here and here. More information about the law can be found in the APA publication, Health Care Reform: A Primer for Psychiatrists.

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