BHbusiness: Mastering Essential Business Operations Opens New Courses

Substance use disorder and mental health services providers can now sign up for one of three additional courses as a part of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services (SAMHSA)-funded project, BHbusiness: Mastering Essential Business Operations.

Available today for enrollment are Negotiating Contracts with Third-party Payers, Eligibility and Enrollment, and Meaningful Use of HIT courses. These are learning network-based courses designed to prepare providers for the transformation in healthcare taking place across the country as the Affordable Care Act is implemented and 30 million newly eligible individuals gain unprecedented access to healthcare.

Becky Vaughn, CEO of the State Association of Addiction Services (SAAS) and Project Director for BHbusiness, said she is excited to offer the final three courses in the five-course series that began in February of this year.

“We had an overwhelming response to our first two courses: strategic business planning and billing and compliance,” Vaughn said. “I am confident that with the roll out of these final three courses in our curriculum we will garner as much interest and participation from the community-based providers around the country.  These courses are designed to prepare our providers for reform and to provide them with a solid foundation to successfully position their organizations for the future.”

Providers can go to http://bhbusiness.org to complete the online registration. The registration application will close May 15 or when all available course slots have been filled, whichever comes first. All participation is first come first serve and participants will be notified the week of May 20 if they have been selected to participate in the project. Course work is scheduled to begin the week of May 27.

Several updates have been made to streamline the application process including:

1. All applicants will apply as individual providers; no pre-formed networks will be accepted. Participants will be placed into learning networks based on course selection once their application has  been accepted;
2. Interested applicants will not need to choose from multiple applications, but instead all applicants will complete the same application.

In collaboration with SAMHSA, BHbusiness pools the collective wisdom of its leaders: the State Association of Addiction Services (SAAS), NIATx, the National Council for Behavioral Health (NCBH), and Advocates for Human Potential (AHP). The goal of BHbusiness is to ensure that providers are prepared for full implementation of healthcare reform in 2014. As a result, providers must build their capacity to treat more people and make the shift from relying on grants and state and local contracts to billing commercial payers and participating in provider networks and on provider panels.

Key features of the course design include:

1. Virtual teaching: New ideas and concepts will be presented in Internet based-instruction consisting of pre-recorded lectures and short articles. Participants will be able to access the materials at any time, and anywhere they have access to the Internet.

2. Implementation and testing: During this phase, participants will apply a new idea or concept to make a change in their organizations.

3. Virtual coaching: Expert coaches and facilitators will lead discussions via teleconferences and webinars. Coaches will also be available via phone and e-mail to offer just-in-time assistance when participants need it.

4. Ask an expert: Participants will also have access to nationally recognized experts who can answer specific questions during web-based discussions.

Participants who complete the required coursework will receive a certificate of completion and earn NAADAC CEUs.

For more information on BHbusiness visit http://bhbusiness.org/.