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Health and Human Services Agency, Behavioral Health Division, recommending the Board:
1) Approve and authorize the Chair to sign Amendment 3 to Agreement for Services 465-S1211 with Netsmart Technologies, Inc. for the purchase of additional licenses for the Netsmart Avatar database with no change to the term of May 22, 2012 through May 21, 2017 and increasing the total amount to $707,914.76; and
2) Authorize the Chair, or designee, to execute further amendments to Agreement 465-S1211, if any, that do not increase the maximum dollar amount, do not change the term, and contingent upon approval by County Counsel and Risk Management.
FUNDING: Medi-Cal, Mental Health Realignment, Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment, and Mental Health Services Act.
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DEPARTMENT RECOMMENDATION:
HHSA recommends approval of Amendment 3 to Agreement for Services 465-S1211 for the purchase of additional licenses for the mutual benefit of Mental Health providers and Mental Health staff.
DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND:
Staff members from County Information Technologies (IT) and the Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) researched available software systems suitable for Mental Health records and billing that satisfied the requirements of the California Medi-Cal system. It was determined that the Netsmart Avatar system met those requirements. The Board approved Agreement for Services 465-S1211 (Agreement) on May 22, 2012 (File No. 12-0629, Agenda No. 15).
On December 4, 2012, the Board approved Amendment 1 (File No. 12-0629, Agenda No. 13) to the Agreement to purchase license and software support for the electronic signature module for the Netsmart Avatar database, including Exhibit A (Amendment I). At the time Amendment 1 was presented to the Board, Exhibit A was inadvertently not included in the attachment. Amendment 1, including Exhibit A, is therefore attached as 3C to become part of the record for this Agreement.
On April 28, 2015, the Board approved Amendment 2 (File No. 12-0629, Agenda No. 18) to the Agreement to satisfy the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requirement that all health services providers use International Classification of Disease Revision 10 (ICD-10) coding to replace International Classification of Disease Revision 9 (ICD-9). ICD-9 is more than 35 years old and contains outdated, obsolete terms that are inconsistent with current medical practice. The structure of ICD-9 limits the number of new codes that can be created, and many ICD-9 categories are full. ICD-10 provides room for code expansion, so providers can use codes more specific to patient diagnoses. The United States is the last major industrialized nation to make the switch to ICD-10.
Currently, patients treated by outside Mental Health providers are reviewed by County Mental Health staff. The County Mental Health staff person must physically go to the site and review the physical records, note any changes or corrections that need to be made, and must follow up to ensure any such edits are completed. Using Capital Facilities and Technology Needs (CFTN) funding under the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) funding, HHSA wishes to add 30 additional licenses as part of a pilot project to offer Avatar to some of our HHSA mental health providers. By making additional licenses available to HHSA’s Mental Health providers, County Mental Health staff will be able to exchange and edit patient records through the Avatar software. This will make it easier and more efficient to review patient records, improve consistency and accuracy of documentation, and will replace site visits thereby reducing staff travel time and costs.
ALTERNATIVES:
Disapproval of Amendment 3 to Agreement for Services 465-S1211 will result in the continuation of the current Quality Assurance process of on-site visits that are time consuming and ultimately costly.
OTHER DEPARTMENT / AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
County Counsel, Risk Management, and Information Technologies.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that Board approve this item.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
There is no Net County Cost associated with this Agenda item. Sufficient appropriations were included in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2016-17 budget, and will be included in future budgets for the term of the Agreement
CLERK OF THE BOARD FOLLOW UP ACTIONS
1) Clerk of the Board to obtain signature of Chair on two (2) originals of Amendment 3 to Agreement 465-S1211.
2) Clerk of the Board to return one (1) fully executed Amendment 3 to the HHSA Contracts Unit at 3057 Briw Road.
STRATEGIC PLAN COMPONENT:
N/A
CONTACT
Patricia Charles-Heathers, Ph.D., Director