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MMIS provider announcements _____________________________________________________________ New implementation date for MMIS approved
On August 10, 2007, the MMIS Replacement Project announced that Oregon’s new Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS) is set to “go live” June 30, 2008.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the project’s federal partner, has approved the go-live date, which is an extension of the original schedule. The extension allows the contracted system developer, Electronic Data Systems (EDS), to meet new federal requirements and increase functionality for providers and other system users.
The new date represents a delay in the original project schedule of approximately 12 months – necessary to ensure that the system, when delivered and operational, will meet the department’s long-term needs.
Jim Joyce, MMIS Replacement Project manager, explained that, because these systems are very complex, almost all states use the same approach when it is time to replace them – they transfer a current-generation MMIS from another state and modify it to meet their state’s needs.
“In our case,” he said, “we found that the changes to the transferred system, and the design adjustments needed to accommodate them, were more complex than we anticipated. Additionally, several federal and state regulatory changes were introduced that required functionality to be added the new MMIS. As a result, we made the decision to increase the time for system development.”
Joyce said the delay also would allow for an extended period of system testing – critical for a successful implementation. He also noted that system training for the state’s 50,000 providers would begin next spring.
“The project will communicate the new schedule directly to the state’s providers and managed care plans,” he said. “We expect this schedule change will allow them more time to prepare for the transition and to receive training on the new capabilities of the system.”
FOX Systems and Gartner Consulting Services, the department’s independent quality assurance consultants for the project, stated in a July 2007 report that “Oregon’s MMIS Replacement Project is a complex undertaking and its progress to date has been similar to large programs of comparative scope and magnitude. We continue to believe that DHS and EDS will be successful in the implementation of the new MMIS.”
For past announcements sent about the replacement MMIS, go to the DMAP provider announcements page. These announcements include the MMIS Insider, a periodic newsletter to acquaint providers with the replacement MMIS.
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