Comprehensive Systems Reform

WISCONSIN

Grant Information


Name of Grantee

Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services

Title of Grant

Comprehensive Systems Reform Effort

Type of Grant

Comprehensive Systems Reform

Amount of Grant

$5,500,000

Year Original Funding Received

2004

Contact Information


Kathleen Luedtke, Project Director
Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services
1 West Wilson, Room 850
PO Box 7851

Madison, WI 53707-7851
608-267-4896
luedtka@dhfs.state.wi.us

Subcontractor(s)

Amie Goldman
APS Healthcare, Inc.
608-258-3350
agoldman@apshealthcare.com

Mark A. Sager, M.D.
Wisconsin Alzheimer's Institute
608-829-3300
masager@wisc.edu

Mary Britnall-Peterson, Ph.D.
University of Wisconsin-Cooperative Extension
608-262-8083
mary.britnall-peterson@uwex.edu

Target Population(s)


Older adults and persons with disabilities who are Medicaid eligible.

Goals


  • Develop and implement a comprehensive plan for statewide expansion of long-term care (LTC) reform by applying managed care strategies in new and expanded programs facilitated by public/private partnerships to be implemented in at least one-half of the State by 2007.
  • Provide timely information to Wisconsin citizens to facilitate informed decisions about LTC service options as well as information about prevention strategies and financial planning to delay the need for publicly funded LTC services.
  • Improve management of where, when, and how people access the LTC system.
  • Develop systems and processes that will enhance the availability of service options.
  • Develop strategies to improve the quality, consistency, and cost-effectiveness of LTC services in Wisconsin.

Activities


  • Support local partnerships to undertake a 1-year planning process for local reform.
  • Create Web-based content for consumer links to information and other service systems and design an effective multimedia campaign.
  • Create full-service aging and disability resource centers (ADRCs) statewide and pilot a dementia screening process in an ADRC.
  • Improve the functional eligibility screen and develop tools and supports for local use.
  • Establish a pilot program that will allow qualifying facilities to reduce nursing facility beds while developing affordable assisted living.
  • Develop nursing facility reimbursement incentives and facilitate downsizing and development of regional specialty facilities.
  • Develop technical assistance content on consumer direction and develop a Web site with access to consumer direction information.
  • Develop strategies to retain people in the direct care workforce.
  • Develop a training curriculum for options counseling workers and a comprehensive consumer-centered curriculum that can be utilized by nurses and social workers.
  • Implement the outcome tool in all waiver programs and compile and analyze results across programs.
  • Pilot the encounter reporting tool used in the Family Care program in participating counties and conduct pilot post-implementation analysis.
  • Research and analyze issues related to expanding access in the encounter reporting data.

Abstract


The Comprehensive Systems Reform Effort project will plan for, design, and begin to implement reform activities during the 3-year grant period. The Department of Health and Family Services and its partners will develop a strategic implementation plan to utilize the learning and key principles from Family Care and Partnership managed care programs statewide and address key barriers to statewide reform. In the reformed system, (1) LTC funding will be available without a bias in favor of institutional care, (2) community resources and LTC options will be developed to respond to consumer choices and managed for cost-effectiveness, and (3) system management tools that have been developed in Family Care and Partnership pilots will be put into use in regionally and locally developed implementation plans.

Major products and outcomes include

  • a preadmission assessment and consultation process to prevent unnecessary institutional admissions;
  • local collaborative reform models that build on Wisconsin's existing reform efforts and build on local energy and capacity;
  • a "virtual resource center" providing comprehensive information on aging and disability topics, including long-term care;
  • enhanced tools to provide an infrastructure for comprehensive statewide reform;
  • a comprehensive strategic plan to achieve reform statewide in 6 to 10 years; and
  • process and outcome evaluations that will guide the State in future implementation activities.

Note: This Compendium form was not reviewed by the Grantee prior to publication.