Evaluate Your EVV Solution by Asking These Questions

The 21st Century Cures Act mandated electronic visit verification (EVV) for Medicaid-funded personal care services (PCS) in 2020. That requirement was extended to include home and community-based services (HCBS) in 2023. Provider agencies affected by these new rules made significant changes to their business model – which had remained mostly unchanged for decades – and implement regulatory compliance into services that had not been significantly affected by the technology wave to date. The requirement was met with pushback and skepticism from providers and members alike. The challenges of change often overshadow the potential positive impacts that can come from moving the needle in a historically stationary industry.  

However, as usage of EVV technology has become more widespread, agencies providing in-home services and home-based and community services are finding that the data collected through EVV can lead to greater efficiencies in providing care. In other words, the benefits of EVV go beyond regulatory compliance. To be sure you’re optimizing the data and all the advantages EVV offers your organization, be sure your EVV technology partner can align their functionality with your needs.  
 

Can your provider stay ahead of the curve? 

Providers need technology that can efficiently shift with an ever-developing market. The best way to consistently provide quality services to the populations you serve is to invest in innovative technology focused on ease of use that can evolve and grow as your needs change. Welcome or not, technology is going to continue to penetrate home-based care and other community-based service providers. Your technology partner should not only be able to quickly react when changes are introduced but also have the insight and tools to proactively enhance the solution to drive workflow efficiencies and return on investment for your providers.  

Is your EVV solution easy to use?

Workforce retention has been a consistent challenge in the home and community-based services world for decades. Key issues include reimbursement rates, burnout and cumbersome technology. How do you maintain a workforce in an industry with one of the highest turnover rates in the country? With innovative, easy-to-use technology that creates efficiencies in the daily workflow and makes it easy for staff to do their jobs and remain in compliance.  

Make sure your EVV solution standardizes billing practices, simplifies administrative oversight into day-to-day activities, ensures employees are paid correctly and on time and ultimately increases workplace satisfaction. Easing the administrative burden of scheduling, tracking, documentation and communication can help agencies and caregivers provide better quality and consistent care for the populations they serve. The collective goals to keep more members in the comfort of their homes long term and to provide services where they’re needed most are easier to attain when you can retain an experienced and committed staff. 

Does your EVV technology partner support you with up-to-date information and ongoing training?

There are many aspects of EVV compliance that require provider adherence including appropriate technology, program adoption, claims submission and more. The first, crucial step in EVV compliance is an adequately trained and informed team. Providers often experience difficulties keeping their care team “in the know” when changes are made with process enhancements. We have seen that providers with the greatest compliance success tend to have robust communication and training plans.  

Standardizing your training plan for your caregivers can assist with any gaps that may occur with turnover as well. Effective, regular training is the best practice. When choosing an EVV partner, review the training offerings that are available, such as access to user guides, interactive learning opportunities and the ability to train one-on-one when needed. Also take note of how well your EVV partner keeps you apprised of potential changes in requirements.  


At Netsmart, we are working with our partners to leverage EVV as a tool for workflow efficiencies and workforce improvement to drive better quality care and outcomes for the populations our clients serve. Tying EVV to claims processing, leveraging advanced interoperability capabilities and enabling the appropriate real-time collection and sharing of that data are shifting the utility of EVV from compliance to productivity.  

 
For more information on our EVV solution, visit our EVV Resource Center for details.