Beginning Dec. 1, 2015, Louisiana Medicaid is changing the way members get behavioral health services (mental illness and substance use treatment). All Medicaid members will get their behavioral health services through a Bayou Health Plan. If they are not already enrolled in Bayou Health, they will be enrolled in a Plan before Dec. 1, 2015 to get medical behavioral health services. DHH's current contract with Magellan will end on Nov. 30, 2015.  

To prepare providers for this change, Louisiana Medicaid and the Office of Behavioral Health will host a series of weekly calls for providers, to listen to comments and concerns that you may have and answer any questions. Beginning Monday, Sept. 21, 2015 and until further notice, the following call schedule will be in place:

• Monday - Local Governing Entities, Federally Qualified Health Centers, Rural Health Centers and Intensive Outpatient Substance Use Providers
• Tuesday - Rehabilitation Providers, Multi-Systemic Therapy Providers, Functional Family Therapy Providers, Homebuilders Providers, Assertive Community Treatment Providers, Psychiatrists and Licensed Mental Health Practitioners
• Wednesday - Inpatient Hospitals, Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities, Therapeutic Group Homes and Residential Substance Use Treatment Facilities

All calls will take place from noon to 1pm. The call-in information is as follows:

• Call-in #: 1-888-636-3807
• Access Code: 1133472

Please note that this call is being hosted by the Department, so specific questions, pertaining to a specific Health Plan may not be answered. Although there will be representatives from the managed care organizations on the line, we ask that you keep all questions Department related.

 We welcome all provider types to participate on any of the days, but DHH's staff will give priority to questions from the designated provider type for that call, and will have staff who work in that provider area on the line to assist.

If any provider is unable to ask a question during the call, we encourage them to submit their questions to integratedhealthcare@la.gov or bayouhealth@la.gov. The Bayou Health Provider Relations unit has released some "Talking Points" for behavioral health providers. That document can be accessed by clicking here. Informational Bulletins, Frequently Asked Questions and other pertinent information can be accessed at any time by visiting www.makingmedicaidbetter.com.

For news specifically pertaining to the integration, you can click on the "Behavioral Health" tab on www.makingmedicaidbetter.com. To automatically receive updates and releases from the Department regarding the integration, click here and subscribe to the "Integrated Health Care" newsletter.