NYS Behavioral Health Value Based Payment Readiness Program Notification of Interest

OMH and OASAS will make a significant amount of money available for BH providers to enter into alliances with one another.  It is called the BH Value Based Payment Readiness Program.

The application process involves two-steps:

1. Send in a notification of interest.
2. Send in an application.

The announcement and materials that you need to create your notification of interest can be found HERE. (The attachment is 5 pages.)

The deadline for the notification if interest is June 5, 2017.

By then you need to have a few things in place:

  • A lead agency that is a Medicaid provider with an MCO contract that can act as the manager of the money. An existing IPA can be the lead.
  • A list of network providers and affiliated providers that comprises, or will comprise, the BHCC. Include agency name, identification number(s), services provided, counties served, and an estimated number of MMC enrollees served (if known).
    • Network Providers: These agencies must provide OMH or OASAS Medicaid services, but may or may not currently have a contract with a Medicaid Managed Care Organization (MMCO). They will be held to quality standards as defined by the BHCC.
    • Affiliated providers include hospitals, physical health providers, non-Medicaid providers, State operated providers, and organizations addressing the social determinants of health. These providers will be important in creating a comprehensive BHCC but cannot receive funds under this program.
  • Letters of Intent signed by the CEO/Executive Director of each network provider that has been identified at the time that the Notification of Interest is sent in.  Letters must be on agency letterhead, and communicate an intent to participate in the Behavioral Health Value Based Payment Readiness Program.

You can submit questions related to the program to:


Dear Behavioral Health Provider,

The New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) and Office for Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) announce the launch of the NYS Behavioral Health (BH) Value Based Payment (VBP) Readiness Program. The NYS BH VBP Readiness Program represents a unique opportunity to strengthen community-based behavioral health providers throughout New York State, and prepare them to be successful in NYS’ transformation of the health care delivery system.

OMH and OASAS are accepting “Notifications of Interest” from BH providers intending to apply for the program. Responses will help inform the State of provider interest, and will assist in finalizing the specifications of the NYS BH VBP Readiness Program.

The program will fund BH providers to collaborate to form Behavioral Health Care Collaboratives (BHCC), including Independent Practice Associations (IPAs), in an effort to position them to succeed in the VBP environment. There will be funds available for planning, and a larger funding opportunity for implementing a BHCC. Funding will support the development of shared infrastructure for the BHCC, such as clinical quality standards, data collection, analytics, and reporting. The expectation is that BHCCs will leverage their shared expertise to better position themselves to enter into VBP contracts. Proposed BHCCs intending to apply must submit a Notification of Interest no later than June 5, 2017.

This program will make funding available through Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MMCOs) to achieve program goals. Please refer to the policy paper (located in the attachment) for additional information on the NYS BH VBP Readiness Program.

Applications must include, at a minimum, agencies delivering all available Medicaid OMH and OASAS services, including Home and Community Based Services (HCBS), either as a lead agency, or as network providers. To maximize the funds available to build necessary infrastructure, providers should consider creating the most comprehensive network possible. As such, applications will be evaluated based on the number of Medicaid Managed Care (MMC) enrollees served by the proposed BHCC. Strong applications will include non-Medicaid providers, physical health providers, housing providers and other organizations addressing the social determinants of health. Applications addressing specialty populations will also be considered. If multiple applications are approved for the same region, they will receive a share of the funds available in that region.

Behavioral health providers that intend on participating in the NYS BH VBP Readiness Program must submit their notification of interest using the attached form to [email protected] and [email protected].

The notification of interest and the responses therein are not binding, however it must be submitted to have your application considered. Only one notification of interest should be submitted from each proposed BHCC.

Please submit questions related to the program to [email protected] or [email protected].

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