Primary Care Clinician (PCC) Plan

(A) Role of Primary Care Clinician. The PCC is the principal source of care for members who are enrolled in the PCC Plan. All services for which such a member is eligible, except those listed in 130 CMR 450.118(J), are payable only when provided by the member's PCC, or when the PCC has referred the member to another MassHealth provider. (B) Provider Eligibility. Providers who wish to enroll as PCCs must be participating providers in MassHealth, or physician assistants participating pursuant to 130 CMR 433.434; must complete a PCC provider application, which is subject to approval by the MassHealth agency; must meet the requirements of the PCC provider contract; and must operate in a physical location conducive to providing services and care to enrollees in person. The following provider types may apply to the MassHealth agency to become PCCs: (1) individual physicians who: (a) are board eligible or board certified in family practice, pediatrics, internal medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, or obstetrics/gynecology, or meet the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(F)(2). A physician specialist must agree to provide primary care services to PCC Plan enrollees; and (b) have current medical staff privileges in at least one MassHealth-participating acute hospital or meet 130 CMR 450.118(F)(1). (2) independent certified nurse practitioners who specialize in family practice, pediatrics, internal medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, or obstetrics/gynecology and have medical staff hospital affiliation for the purposes of hospital admissions and as needed to satisfy scope of practice requirements. An independent certified nurse practitioner specialist must agree to provide primary care services to PCC Plan enrollees; (3) community health centers (freestanding or hospital-licensed) with at least one physician on staff who meets the criteria of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1); (4) acute hospital outpatient departments with at least one physician on staff who meets the criteria of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1); and (5) group practices with at least one physician or independent certified nurse practitioner who (a) is enrolled and approved by the MassHealth agency as a participating provider in that group in accordance with 130 CMR 450.212(A)(8); (b) meets the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1) or (2); and (c) has signed the PCC contract. (6) physician assistants employed by a group practice, if the group practice also employs at least one physician who supervises the physician assistant and meets the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(5). The supervisory arrangement must comply with 130 CMR 433.434(D) and 263 CMR 5.00: Scope of Practice, Employment of Physician Assistants and Standards of Conduct. 1. Introduction (130 CMR 450.000) (C) Community Health Center Participation. When a community health center participates as a PCC, it must assign each enrolled member to an individual practitioner who meets the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1) or (2), or to a physician assistant who is supervised by a physician who meets the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1). (D) Hospital Outpatient Department Participation. When a hospital outpatient department participates as a PCC, it must assign each enrolled member to an attending physician who meets the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1) or (2). (E) Group Practice Participation. When a group practice participates as a PCC, the group practice (1) may claim an enhanced fee only for services provided by those individual practitioners within the group who meet the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1) or (2); and (2) must assign each enrolled member to an individual practitioner who meets the criteria under 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1), (2), or (6). (F) Waiver of Eligibility Requirements. The MassHealth agency may, if necessary to ensure adequate member access to services, and under the following circumstances, allow an individual physician to enroll as a PCC or as a physician in a group practice PCC notwithstanding the physician's inability to meet certain eligibility requirements set forth in 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1). (1) Upon written request from a physician, the MassHealth agency may waive the requirement that an individual physician or a physician in a group practice have current medical staff privileges in at least one MassHealth-participating acute hospital, if the physician demonstrates to the MassHealth agency’s satisfaction that the physician: (a) practices in an area that is too distant to adequately respond to emergencies at the nearest acute hospital or where lack of current medical staff privileges is common for physicians practicing in that area; (b) admits exclusively to acute hospitals that employ one or more physicians to care for their inpatient census, provided that the hospital’s medical director agrees to admit and care for the physician’s patients through the use of such physicians employed by the hospital; or (c) establishes a collaborative relationship with a physician participating in MassHealth who has current medical staff privileges at the acute hospital closest to the requesting physician's office and who will assume responsibility for admitting the requesting physician's managed care members to that hospital when necessary. (2) Upon written request from a physician, the MassHealth agency may waive the requirement that the individual physician or physician in a group practice is board-eligible or board-certified in family practice, pediatrics, internal medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, or obstetrics/gynecology, if the physician is board-eligible or board-certified in another medical specialty, and otherwise meets the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118. (G) PCC Provider Qualifications Grandfathering Provision. Notwithstanding the generality of the provisions of 130 CMR 450.118, any provider who is continuously enrolled as a PCC before April 1, 2003, is subject to the PCC provider eligibility requirements in effect on and before March 31, 2003. (H) Rate of Payment. The MassHealth agency pays PCCs an enhanced fee for primary care services, in accordance with the terms of the PCC provider contract. 1. Introduction (130 CMR 450.000) (I) Termination. (1) If the MassHealth agency determines that a PCC fails to fulfill any of the obligations stated in the MassHealth agency’s regulations or PCC contract, the MassHealth agency may terminate the PCC contract in accordance with its terms. To the extent required by law, a pretermination hearing will be held in substantial conformity with the procedures set forth in 130 CMR 450.238 through 450.248. (2) If the MassHealth agency determines that an individual practitioner within a PCC group practice fails to fulfill any of the obligations stated in the MassHealth agency’s regulations or the PCC contract, the MassHealth agency may terminate the PCC contract pursuant to 130 CMR 450.118(I)(1), or require the group practice to stop assigning enrolled members to such practitioner and to reassign existing enrolled members to other practitioners in the group who meet the requirements of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1) or (2). (J) Referral for Services. (1) Referral Requirement. All services provided by a clinician or provider other than the PCC Plan member’s PCC require referral from the member’s PCC in order to be payable, unless the service is exempted under 130 CMR 450.118(J)(5). In order to make a referral, PCCs must follow the processes described in the PCC provider contract and must include the individual national provider identifier (NPI) number of an individual practitioner who meets the criteria of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1), (2), or (6). Please refer to 130 CMR 450.231: General Conditions of Payments for additional requirements regarding referrals. (2) Time Frames for Referral. Whenever possible, the PCC should make the referral before the member’s receipt of the service. However, the PCC may issue a referral retroactively if the PCC determines that the service was medically necessary at the time of receipt. (3) Payment for Services Requiring Referral. The MassHealth agency pays a provider other than the member’s PCC for services that require a PCC referral only when a referral has been submitted by the member’s PCC and includes the individual NPI number of an individual practitioner who meets the criteria of 130 CMR 450.118(B)(1), (2), or (6). (4) Services Requiring Referrals. See 130 CMR 450.105 for a list of the services covered for each MassHealth coverage type and applicable program regulations for descriptions of covered services and specific service limitations. Prior-authorization requirements are described in 130 CMR 450.303, 450.144(A)(2), and applicable program regulations and subregulatory publications. Payment for services is subject to all conditions and restrictions of MassHealth, including, but not limited to, the scope of covered services for a member’s coverage type, service limitations, and prior-authorization requirements. (5) Exceptions to Services Requiring Referrals. Notwithstanding 130 CMR 450.118(J)(4), the following services provided by a provider other than the member’s PCC do not require a referral from the member’s PCC in order to be payable (these services may be subject to other referral requirements under their respective program regulations). (a) abortion services; (b) adult day health services; (c) adult foster care / group adult foster care services; (d) annual gynecological exams; (e) clinical laboratory services; (f) day habilitation services; (g) diabetic supplies; (h) doula services; 1. Introduction (130 CMR 450.000) (i) durable medical equipment (items, supplies, and equipment) described in 130 CMR 409.000: Durable Medical Equipment Services; (j) early intervention services; (k) fluoride varnish administered by a physician or other qualified medical professional; (l) personal care services under 130 CMR 422.000: Personal Care Attendant Services, which includes functional skills training provided by a MassHealth personal care management agency as described in 130 CMR 422.421(B): Functional Skills Training, as well as fiscal intermediary functions provided by a fiscal intermediary as described in 130 CMR 422.419(B): The Fiscal Intermediary; (m) HIV pre- and post-test counseling services; (n) HIV testing; (o) homeless medical respite services; (p) hospitalization 1. Elective Admissions. All elective admissions. are exempt from the PCC referral requirement and are subject to the MassHealth agency’s admission screening requirements at 130 CMR 450.208(A). The hospital must notify the member’s PCC within 48 hours following an elective admission; 2. Nonelective Admissions. Nonelective admissions are exempt from the PCC referral requirement. The hospital must notify the member’s PCC within 48 hours following a nonelective admission; (q) obstetric services for pregnant and postpartum members provided up to one year after the end of the pregnancy; (r) oxygen and respiratory therapy equipment; (s) pharmacy services (prescription and over-the-counter drugs); (t) radiology and other imaging services with the exception of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) scans, and positron emission tomography (PET) scans, and imaging services conducted at an independent diagnostic testing facility (IDTF), which do require a referral; (u) services delivered by a behavioral health provider (including inpatient and outpatient psychiatric services); (v) services delivered by a dentist; (w) services delivered by a family planning service provider, for members of child- bearing age; (x) services delivered by a hospice provider; (y) services delivered by a limited service clinic; (z) services delivered in a nursing facility; (aa) services delivered by an orthotic provider described in 130 CMR 442.000: Orthotics Services; (bb) services delivered by a prosthetic provider described in 130 CMR 428.000: Prosthetics Services; (cc) urgent care services; (dd) services delivered by an anesthesiologist or a certified registered nurse anesthetist; (ee) services delivered in an intermediate care facility for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ICF/ID); (ff) services delivered to a homeless member in a location other than the PCC office pursuant to 130 CMR 450.118(K); (gg) services delivered to diagnose and treat sexually transmitted infections; (hh) services delivered to treat an emergency condition; 1. Introduction (130 CMR 450.000) (ii) services provided under a home- and community-based waiver; (jj) sterilization services when performed for family planning services; (kk) surgical pathology services; (ll) tobacco-cessation counseling services; (mm) transportation to covered care; (nn) vaccine administration and injectable material for such vaccines; (oo) vision care in the following categories (see Subchapter 6 of the Vision Care Manual): visual analysis frames, single-vision prescriptions, bifocal prescriptions, and repairs; (pp) medication assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder; (qq) services delivered by home health agencies described in 130 CMR 403.000: Home Health Agency; (rr) services provided by continuous skilled nursing agencies described in 130 CMR 438.000: Continuous Skilled Nursing Agency; (ss) restorative services, including physical, occupational, and speech/language therapy; (tt) rehabilitation center services described in 130 CMR 430.000: Rehabilitation Center Services; (uu) speech and hearing center services described in 130 CMR 413.000: Speech and Hearing Center Services; and (vv) independent nursing services described in 130 CMR 414.000: Independent Nurse. (K) Services to Homeless Members. To provide services to homeless members according to 130 CMR 450.118(J)(5)(ff), the provider must furnish written evidence of demonstrated experience in delivering medical care in a nonmedical setting, and request, in writing, designation from the MassHealth agency that the PCC is approved to provide services to homeless members. The MassHealth agency retains the right to approve or disapprove such a request or revoke an approval of such a request at any time. (L) Recordkeeping and Reporting. (1) PCC Recordkeeping Requirement. The PCC must document all referrals in the member's medical record by recording the following: (a) the date of the referral; (b) the name of the provider to whom the member was referred; (c) the reason for the referral; (d) number of visits authorized; and (e) copies of the reports required by 130 CMR 450.118(L)(2). (2) Reporting Requirements. The PCC who made the referral must obtain from the provider who furnished the service the results of the referred visit by telephone and in writing whenever legally possible. (M) Other Program Requirements. Payment for services provided to members enrolled with a MassHealth managed care provider is subject to all conditions and restrictions of MassHealth, including all applicable prerequisites for payment. (N) PCC Contracts. Providers that are PCCs are bound by and liable for compliance with the terms of the most recent PCC contract issued by the MassHealth agency, including amendments to the contract, as of the effective date specified in the PCC contract or amendment. 1. Introduction (130 CMR 450.000)