MHSA Reimbursement for ASP and Maintenance Fees

You should be aware that in March LACDMH announced a new MHSA Maintenance Project Proposal Process for those of you requesting funding for maintenance projects, forms are here: http://dmh.lacounty.gov/hipaa/EDI_MHSA_IT_Project.htm

So, if you have already implemented your EHR-S or have incurred the lions share of your project costs already, you can submit a "Maintenance Only" project using these forms.

Another question came to mind when I was helping my customers with their MHSA applications.... can you submit a lump sum invoice annually, if you pay your ASP / maintenance  fees in advance? No, must be submitted as services are rendered and actual cost is incurred.... monthly.

Some vendors charge these fees annually, or quarterly as standard practice and may charge a premium if you 'pay as you go', for obvious reasons. However, you should still consider it if your vendor will offer a good discount to pay in advance.

We just received a ruling on this from the LACDMH Financial Services Bureau,  see here:

"DMH will reimburse ASP fees on a monthly basis only. This does not preclude Contractors from arranging alternate payment terms with the vendor for yearly or quarterly billing. If Contractors choose alternate payment terms, they will submit invoices to DMH on a monthly basis and attach the ASP vendor invoice each month as documentation that the Contractor paid in advance for the specified period. For example, if the Contractor chooses a once yearly payment plan with an ASP vendor, they will submit monthly invoices (in-arrears) to DMH for 1/12 of the total annual ASP fee and attach the ASP vendor invoice for the full annual fee as documentation of payment. The ASP vendor invoice will be resubmitted each month as documentation to support each monthly Contractor invoice. Contractor will note on the documentation that they are requesting reimbursement for 1/12 of the annual ASP costs and note the corresponding dollar amount representing one-twelfth of the annual cost.
The only option available for advance payment is in situations in which the Contractor requested Start-up funds to offset all or some of the quarterly/annual ASP costs for the first year. In most cases, Start-up will not likely cover all costs for a full period."