CMFHP Community Advocate Newsletter



	August/September 2008 New State of Kansas Permanent Plastic Medical Cards Title 19 recipients in Kansas will begin receiving permanent plastic medical cards from the state. These cards will replace the monthly ID cards currently sent to Title 19 members. Read more ... Walkabout at the Kansas State Fair - Join Us! Fairgoers can walk the fair for a chance to enter a contest sponsored by Kissin’ Country 102.1 FM. Read more ... Hand Washing, Nutrition and Dental Care Presentations for Children CMFHP offers state-approved presentations for children on proper hand washing, nutrition and dental care. We can come to your location and we also provide all the needed supplies. Read more ... Preparing for Back-to-School Time Well-Child check-ups find health problems early. These check-ups and immunizations are a covered benefit for CMFHP members. Read more ... Help with gas prices for provider, pharmacy and WIC appointments Non-emergency medical transportation to health care appointments is available at no cost to CMFHP members. We can also reimburse members for gas if they drive to an appointment. Read more ... CMFHP Helps H.O.R.S.E. The Missouri Junior Paint Horse Club recently held their 2nd Annual Showmanship Clinic and Horse Show. Read more ... Upcoming Events Contact Information Children’s Mercy Family Health Partners (CMFHP) is a not-for-profit safety-net health plan owned by Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics. Through Kansas HealthWave, CMFHP serves 74 counties in the eastern two-thirds of Kansas. Through MO HealthNet Managed Care, CMFHP serves beneficiaries in 13 counties in west central Missouri. Community Advocates like you are on the front lines with our members daily. This newsletter of up-to-date information on improvements, changes and partnerships is an effort to help you as you reach out to the community. Thank you for your partnership as we continue our commitment to ensure the best care for our members. And please don't hesitate to let us know how we can help you. New State of Kansas Permanent Plastic Medical Cards At the end of August, Title 19 recipients in Kansas will begin receiving permanent plastic medical cards from the state. These cards will replace the monthly ID cards that are currently sent to Title 19 members. Only 1-2 cards will come in an envelope, so a family may receive multiple envelopes. The information below will be provided with the paper ID card as a communication insert to Title 19 members (this communication began June 2008). This documentation is in English and Spanish and is now available on the KHPA web site. Say Goodbye to Monthly Paper Medical Cards and Hello to Plastic! The State of Kansas will start issuing permanent plastic medical cards. You will begin using the new plastic medical card in September. Here are a few very important things you need to know: SAVE your NEW plastic medical card. Keep the card even if your medical case closes. Each eligible family member with Kansas Medicaid will get their own plastic medical card. Plastic medical cards will look like a credit card and will fit in your wallet. Keep them with you at all times. Timing – you should get the new plastic medical card in late August 2008. Eligibility dates will not show on the card – only your name, member ID number, and date of birth will be on the new medical card. Members of Children’s Mercy Family Health Partners and UniCare will still get a separate card from the plan. Both the new plastic medical card from the State of Kansas and the card you get from the plan need to be shown to providers at the time of service. Be sure to show your plastic medical card to providers every time you go for care. Eligibility check – providers will be able to use the medical card to check your coverage. A medical card does not prove you are covered. Remember – DO NOT THROW THE PLASTIC MEDICAL CARD AWAY WHEN YOU GET IT! Questions? Call 1-800-766-9012. CMFHP will provide additional information as it becomes available. Contact the Community Relations representative from your area if you have any questions. Please feel free to share this information with any Title 19 HealthWave members you come in contact with. // back to top // Walkabout at the Kansas State Fair - Join Us! Normally the Kansas State Fair is known for celebrating all that is fun about Kansas. It can also be known as an opportunity to sample as many fried, fat-filled foods as possible! For the 2008 Kansas State Fair (September 5 through 14 in Hutchinson, Kansas), Children’s Mercy Family Health Partners hopes to add a healthy element to the mix. In conjunction with Kissin’ Country 102.1 FM (KZSN-FM) in Wichita, we will be promoting participation in the first ever "Kansas State Fair Walkabout." The Walkabout is a chance for Fair attendees to become eligible for a drawing to win a bicycle courtesy of Kissin’ Country. Fairgoers can stop by the CMFHP/Kissin’ Country booth to pick up an entry form that includes a map of the walking trail. The walkers will then stop by each location along the trail to get their card stamped. When finished, they will return to the booth and turn in their card for a chance to win. Kissin’ Country will give away one bike each day! CMFHP will also be providing people with healthy information as well as information on signing up for HealthWave. If you will be at the State Fair in September, stop by and see us for a fun and healthy event! // back to top // Hand Washing, Nutrition and Dental Care Presentations for Children Children’s Mercy Family Health Partners staff have been trained to provide Hand Washing, Dental Care and Nutrition presentations for children. Our Community Relations staff would like to help you by providing one or both of the classes for your organization. There is no cost for the training and we provide all of the supplies. Our presentations have been state approved. Each program takes about thirty minutes depending on the size of the group. We try to make the presentations as interactive as possible. Following is a brief overview of the presentations. Handwashing: We reinforce the message that handwashing is the number one prevention tool in stopping the spread of germs. We discuss how germs are spread using our handwashing black light kit with the help of clear “germ bug lotion”. We will select a few children from the group and provide a small amount of “lotion” to each child and ask them to shake hands with 6-7 other children in the group. Then we will view each child’s hands individually under our black light. The clear “germ bug lotion” shows up under the black light, but not in our normal vision. We review the proper handwashing techniques, the correct amount of time for washing, amount of soap and drying procedure. We review important times during the day when handwashing is important, i.e., after using the restroom, before meals, before meal preparation, after playing outside or with animals, etc. We also provide materials for the children to take home to share with siblings and parents. Dental Care: It is widely accepted that tooth brushing is an important role in the prevention of tooth decay, and to ensure overall quality of health for children. Our staff will show children the proper tooth brushing techniques (brushing all three sides of the teeth as well as the tongue). We discuss the correct amount of time recommended for brushing, amount of toothpaste to use and the most important times to brush. We provide a children’s toothbrush and small tube of toothpaste for each child. We also provide information to take home and share with other family members about good dental care and the best foods to eat to build strong bones and teeth. Nutrition: CMFHP Representatives can educate your students on the importance of starting their day with a healthy breakfast, not drinking sugary drinks, keeping active, and eating their rainbow of fruits and vegetables every day. Please contact your Children’s Mercy Family Health Partners Community Relations Representative to schedule these important presentations for your organization. // back to top // Preparing for Back-to-School Time It’s time to prepare for a new school year. And we want all children - preschoolers, grade school, middle and high school students - to be ready for that first day of school! Children should get a Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT), or "Well-Child" Exam. This is not an office visit for a sick or hurt child. This is a preventive health examination of a well child. A routine health exam can find health problems early and show whether a child is growing and developing normally. Well-child exams (including diagnosis, treatment and prescriptions) are a covered benefit for CMFHP members. The following should be included in the exam: Immunizations according to age Physical exam/medical history Vision, hearing and dental screening Growth and developmental history Lab test according to age Lead screening and testing Education/health counseling Students in sports are required to have a "sports physical". An EPSDT exam will meet this requirement. But a sports physical is not the same as an EPSDT exam. An EPSDT exam checks your child’s health more thoroughly than a sports physical. If you know of a member who needs help making an appointment, please contact your Children’s Mercy Family Health Partners Community Relations Representative. // back to top // Help with gas prices for provider, pharmacy and WIC appointments High gas prices are stretching many budgets to the breaking point. If you know of a member that needs a way to get to a health care or WIC appointment, we can help. Non-emergency medical transportation is one of many benefits we offer to CMFHP members. We provide transportation at no cost to members for: Doctor appointments Dentist appointments Mental health appointments Pharmacy visits to pick up prescriptions WIC appointments We can get members a ride or reimburse members for gas if they drive to an appointment. We can also help with gas if a member has someone else (a friend or neighbor, for example) take them to an appointment. To arrange a ride or request gas reimbursement, members can call us at 1-800-890-6026. When they call, they should have the following information ready: Their Member ID number The provider’s name, address and phone number Date and time of the appointment Special needs (for example – a car seat, a wheelchair, help with walking) We need at least three days’ notice to arrange a ride. Members should call us as soon as they know they need a ride. For example, as soon as they make a provider appointment, tell them to call us to request transportation. The sooner the member calls, the sooner we begin working to get them a ride. If they call less than three days before, we can’t guarantee a ride. But we will do our best. Before they call, make sure the transportation or gas reimbursement request meets the following guidelines: All providers must be in our network or the state’s network. The appointment must be for an approved service. A parent or guardian must always ride with a child to the child’s appointment. If your appointment changes or gets cancelled, they must call to change or cancel. If you have questions about this benefit, please call Customer Service (for Kansas members: 1-877-FHP-9363; for MO members: 1-800-347-9363). // back to top // CMFHP Helps H.O.R.S.E. On June 1, 2008, the Missouri Junior Paint Horse Club co-hosted their 2nd Annual Showmanship Clinic and Horse Show for the children of H.O.R.S.E ("Helping Others Reach Success & Excellence"), a non-profit organization that uses horses in an innovative psychotherapy program with at-risk youth, emotionally disturbed children, autistic children and others. The show was held at the Saddle & Sirloin Club facility in Kansas City, Missouri. CMFHP employees have been involved with the clinic, and the Showmanship Clinicians include family members of CMFHP employees. Youth exhibitors received trophies. Brenda Wright and Stacy Stoltz, co-founders and instructors of H.O.R.S.E. in our area, are extremely thankful to MjPHC in making this a positive and wonderful experience in the lives of each of these children and their families. To contact H.O.R.S.E. or get more information visit their website, www.HORSEhelpspeople.org. // back to top // Upcoming Events August 2, 2008 Back to School Fair Kansas National Guard Armory, Kansas City, Kansas August 2, 2008 Calvary Bible College Concert Series Belton, Missouri August 2, 2008 WCCAA Back-to-School fair Harrisonville, Missouri August 5, 2008 Budd Park Pool Party Swim Night for Families (no cost) Budd Park Neighborhood Pool, Kansas City, Missouri August 12, 2008 Clinton Back To School Fair Clinton, Missouri August 6, 2008 Back to School Fair Richmond, Missouri August 12, 2008 Clinton Back To School Fair Clinton, Missouri August 23, 2008 NEW DATE Kansas City Councilman Terry Riley’s Back to School Rally Swope Park Band Pavilion, Kansas City, Missouri September 5-14, 2008 Kansas State Fair Hutchinson, KS Visit http://www.kzsn.com/main.html to learn about the Kansas State Fair Walkabout sponsored by Children’s Mercy Family Health Partners. November 20, 2008 America on the Move Kick-off The Legends Shopping Center, Kansas City, Kansas Sponsored in conjunction with the YMCA of Kansas City. November 11, 2008 Kid Fest Century II, Wichita October 11, 2008 Pumpkin PaZoola Rolling Hills Wildlife Zoo, Salina November 23, 2008 Parents University Municipal Auditorium, Pittsburg, Kansas Do you have an upcoming health fair, committee meeting or community event? We would love to support your efforts and help serve the community. Send us an email with your contact information, and one of our Community Relations Representatives will get in touch with you! Please call or email your area Community Relations Representative to confirm upcoming events; calendar subject to change without notice. You can also contact Children's Mercy Familly Health Partners Customer Service at 1-877-347-9363 (KS) or 1-800-347-9363 (MO) // back to top // Contact Information Customer Service - Kansas: 1-877-FHP-9363 Customer Service - Missouri: 1-800-347-9363 Chris Beurman Community Relations Manager cbeurman@fhp.org 816-559-9442 Marcie Eckhart-Charay Sr. Community Relations Representative Northeastern Kansas mecharay@fhp.org 785-817-8848 Kathy Gann Sr. Community Relations Representative South Central Kansas kgann@fhp.org 316-573-8383 Nicole Norris Community Relations Representative North Central Kansas nnorris@fhp.org 785-213-9756 Tamara Welty Bilingual Community Relations Representative Mid-Central Kansas twelty@fhp.org 316-841-3441 Sue Etrick Community Relations Representative Eastern and Southeastern Kansas, and South Central Missouri setrick@fhp.org 816-559-9437 Veronica Posey-Fallah Sr. Community Relations Representative Kansas City Metro area, including Johnson/Wyandotte counties in Kansas vposey@fhp.org 816-559-9440 Kelly Goetz Bilingual Community Relations Representative Kansas City Metro area, including Johnson/Wyandotte counties in Kansas kgoetz@fhp.org 816-559-9439 // back to top //
Children's Mercy Family Health Partners, P.O. Box 411806, Kansas City MO 64141-1806 1-877-FHP-9363 KS \| 1-800-FHP-9363 MO \| www.fhp.org To unsubscribe or update your eNewsletter preferences please click here