COVID-19 Resources


Carelon/MBHP Resources
MassHealth Resources

Carelon/MBHP Resources


State of the Nation's Mental Health
We’re proud to share insights from our inaugural report on the State of the Nation’s Mental Health, which explores how the pandemic and other stressors in 2020 impacted the rate at which Americans sought treatment for mental health conditions. 

Webinar: Telehealth 101: Providing Care Amid COVID-19
April 10, 2020, 2 p.m. ET
Telehealth can be an effective way for members to begin or continue their care from their homes.  This webinar discussed Telehealth best practices, HIPAA-compliant platforms, and helpful resources.  If you were unable to attend the live session, you can view the video here.  This webinar was co-presented by the Telehealth Resource Center.

download icon PowerPoint: Telehealth 101: Providing Care Amid COVID-19

Carelon Behavioral Health Resources for Members, providers, and clients

Coronavirus and Your Mental Health >

COVID-19 Response: To help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, MBHP is committed to enabling Members to remain in their homes and receive services to the extent possible.  To that end, and for as long as the Massachusetts state of emergency remains in effect, MBHP has expanded the number of services that may be delivered via Telehealth, and has added six new telephonic services.  For billing requirements for these services, please refer to the COVID-19 Benefit Grid below (this is in addition to the services that already allow for the use of Telehealth, such as outpatient therapy and medication management, listed in the Current MBHP Benefit Service Grid.)

download iconCOVID-19 Benefit Service Grid

Alert 181: Adverse Incidents and Quality of Care Record Requests during State of Emergency
03/19/2020
Currently, providers send records related to adverse incidents and potential quality of care concerns to MBHP via UPS and Federal Express.  However, due to the governor’s state of emergency regarding COVID-19, as an interim measure, MBHP is instating a new process for these records.

download icon Download Alert 181

Beacon/MBHP Broadcast 10: Billing for Covered Services Delivered via Telahealth
03/16/2020
To mitigate the spread of COVID-19, Beacon/MBHP is committed to enabling Members to remain in their homes to reduce exposure and transmission, to the extent possible, and to preserve health system capacity for the duration of this public health emergency.  To that end, and for as long as the Massachusetts state of emergency remains in effect as stated in Governor Baker’s executive order of March 10, 2020, Beacon/MBHP will permit qualified Beacon/MBHP providers to deliver clinically appropriate, medically necessary MassHealth-covered services to Carelon/MBHP Members via Telehealth (including telephone and live video) in accordance with the standards set forth in Appendix A to the MassHealth All Provider Bulletin 289 and notwithstanding any regulation to the contrary, including the physical presence requirement at 130 CMR 433.403(A)(2).

download icon Download Broadcast 10
download icon Download Governor Baker's Executive Order Expanding Access to Telehealth Services and to Protect Health Care Workers


Beacon Bulletin: Telehealth Expanded to Include Additional Services
04/05/2019
The purpose of this Bulletin is to inform in-network Massachusetts providers of the revisions of the Beacon Health Plan (BMCHP, Fallon Health, Senior Whole Health, and UniCare State Indemnity Plan) access to behavioral health services using Telehealth options for all lines of business.

download iconDownload Beacon Bulletin

Alert 177: Effective January 1, 2019, Telehealth Expanded to Include Additional Services
02/01/2019; Updated 09/19/2019
Telehealth is a medium that delivers services from a distant site equipped with a secure, two-way, real-time interactive telecommunications system to a Member in an originating site.  Telehealth ensures access when there are needs/preferences that prevent Members from seeking/accessing office-based outpatient treatment services.  All Telehealth transmissions must be Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliant and employ acceptable authentication and identification procedures by both the distant site and the originating site.  Please note this Alert supersedes all previous Alerts about Telehealth.  In addition to Outpatient Psychotherapy, allowable Telehealth services are being expanded to include  certain behavioral health (BH) covered services for both children and adults (unless otherwise specified).

download iconDownload Updated Alert 177

MassHealth Resources


download iconMassHealth Frequently Asked Questions: COVID-19 and Behavioral Health Providers, 4/16/20
download iconMassHealth Frequently Asked Questions: COVID-19 and Behavioral Health Providers, 3/27/20
download iconMassHealth Frequently Asked Questions: COVID-19 and Behavioral Health Providers, 3/19/20


Massachusetts Executive Orders and State Agency Memorandums

Order Expanding Access to Telehealth Services and to Protect Health Care Providers >
download iconMemorandum: BSAS licensee waiver from certain regulatory requirements (4/7/2020)

MassHealth Provider Bulletins

Bulletins and guidance are based on what is currently known about the transmission and severity of COVID-19 and will be updated as needed and as additional information is available. Please regularly check mass.gov/2019coronavirus for general updated information and mass.gov/coronavirus-disease-covid-19-and-masshealth for MassHealth-related information.

Managed Care Entity Bulletin 24: Temporary Rate Increases Due to COVID-19 National Emergency>

All Provider Bulletin 291: MassHealth Coverage and Reimburesment Policy for Services Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) >

All Provider Bulletin 289: MassHealth Coverage and Reimbursement Policy for Services Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) >

Managed Care Entity Bulletin 20: Coverage and Reimbursement for Services Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) >

All Provider Bulletin 288: Coverage Provided via Hospital-Determined Presumptive Eligibility >

Pharmacy Facts: Updates Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Effective March 14, 2020 >

Community Day Program Settings (e.g., Adult Day Health, Day Habilitation, Councils on Aging, etc.) 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance >

Non-Agency Based In-Home Caregivers (e.g., PCAs, Independent Nurses, etc.) 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance >
                                                 
Agency-Based In-Home Caregivers and Workers (e.g., Home Health Agencies, Personal Care Management Agencies, Home Care Agencies, Adult Foster Care, etc.) 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance >