Dear Parents and Guardians,
With new MaineCare regulations taking effect this past April, I felt it was important to reach out directly to our families. Some of these changes include requirements for both Wings as your provider and for families receiving Behavioral Health Home services. I want to make sure you understand what is required, why these requirements matter, and how we can work together to ensure your child continues to receive meaningful and effective care coordination. Most importantly, I want there to be clear communication between Wings and the families we are privileged to serve.
Monthly In-Person Meetings
MaineCare requires a monthly face-to-face, in-person contact with the member and/or parent or guardian. Telehealth can no longer routinely be used to meet this monthly requirement. In addition, when a child or youth lives at home, Wings is required to see the child/youth in their home at least once every six months, when able and appropriate.
These requirements apply both to Wings as the provider and to families receiving the service. We ask that you work with your Case Manager to schedule and participate in these required visits.
Telehealth can still be used for other meetings and contacts when appropriate. There are also limited exceptions to the in-person requirement for unforeseeable circumstances, such as an unexpected illness involving the child, parent, or guardian. Please talk with your Case Manager if one of these situations occurs.
Medical Necessity for Care Coordination
Being eligible for BHH services does not automatically mean that a child will continue to need the service indefinitely. MaineCare also requires an ongoing medical necessity for care coordination.
Care coordination is much more than completing a monthly visit. Your Case Manager should be actively helping your family with needs such as:
- Referrals and connections to needed services and resources
- Coordinating and monitoring services
- Following up on referrals and waitlists
- Developing and reviewing the Plan of Care and its goals
- Identifying new needs or barriers
- Navigating behavioral health, healthcare, education, child welfare, juvenile justice/Department of Corrections, and other systems
- Connecting families with resources related to housing, food, transportation, financial needs, and other social determinants of health
Over the next several months, our Case Managers and Clinical Supervisors will be reviewing these needs with families. If a child no longer has an active need for care coordination, we may need to discuss whether BHH services continue to meet MaineCare’s medical-necessity requirements. If services are closed because they are no longer needed, families can always return to Wings in the future if circumstances change and care coordination is needed again.
Why Our Meetings Matter
The required face-to-face meeting should be more than simply “checking a box.” It is an opportunity for us to review your child’s Plan of Care, discuss progress toward goals, identify new concerns, monitor services and waitlists, and determine what additional resources or support your family may need.
When we are unable to meet regularly with families, it can become difficult for us to provide meaningful care coordination and meet the requirements of the service.
A Reminder About Texting
Texting is helpful for scheduling appointments, cancellations, and sharing brief information. However, Case Managers are not able to manage lengthy concerns or crisis situations through text messages.
If you need to discuss something more involved, please call Wings at 207-941-2988. You may enter your Case Manager’s extension, search for them by name, or leave a message that will be forwarded to them.
The most important things to remember are:
- Monthly required face-to-face contacts must be in person, not routinely by telehealth.
- Telehealth may still be used for other appropriate meetings and contacts.
- Children living at home must be seen in their home at least once every six months, when able and appropriate.
- BHH services require an ongoing medical need for active care coordination, not simply a monthly visit.
- Texting should be used for brief communication—not lengthy concerns or crisis situations.
Our goal is to make sure families who need care coordination receive meaningful, active support that makes a difference for their child and family.
Please work closely with your Wings Case Manager and reach out with any questions or concerns. Thank you for your continued partnership and for allowing Wings to be part of your child’s team.
On a personal note, my hope is that you and your child truly feel that you are receiving the very best service we can provide. I know you have choices about who you invite into your lives and who you trust to support your family, and I never take your choice of Wings for granted. We strive to be the best at what we do—not just by meeting requirements, but by listening, responding, showing up, and being there when families need us.
If we are doing something well, I hope you will tell us, and if we are falling short, I want to know that too. You and your child deserve excellent care coordination, and we are grateful for the trust you place in us and for the opportunity to walk alongside your family.
Please check our website occasionally. I will be posting updates, messages, resources, etc. there frequently. www.wingsinc.org
Warmly,
Trish Niedorowski
Executive Director