NASUAD, Sandata and Tellus join NEVVA in mission to create standards and best practices for visit and payment methodologies that insure fiscally responsible care

Deerfield Beach, FL -- (ReleaseWire) -- 08/28/2018 --The National EVV Association (NEVVA), launched in May as the industry resource for Electronic Visit Verification, continues to gain traction as states, managed care organizations and home and community-based health care providers plan their implementation of EVV in advance of the Medicaid federal mandate, now set for January 1, 2020. Today, NEVVA announced that Sandata has signed on as a charter member, joining founding member Tellus, LLC. The professional organization also announced that it is working closely with the National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) to help its member states conform with the new regulations.

With two leading EVV vendors onboard, and the leading association of state aging, disability, and long-term services and supports directors, NEVVA can begin the process of defining and establishing best practices, standards and protocols to guide the development and implementation of the technology. Both vendor firms offer EVV solutions that assist providers and payers better manage personal and home health care services. Their memberships bring added expertise and quality to NEVVA.

Mark Dillon, NEVVA Executive Director said, "Having two industry leading EVV vendors like Tellus and Sandata join NEVVA, I'm confident that we will be able to establish standards and best practices that are meaningful and valuable to everyone."

NEVVA also announced a partnership with NASUAD. NASUAD's mission to design, improve, and sustain state systems that provide home and community-based services and supports aligns with NEVVA's mission to establish best practices for home and community-based services. This partnership will help bring effective assistance to states as they work towards EVV implementation.

NASUAD Executive Director Martha Roherty will hold a seat on the NEVVA Board of Directors alongside Mark Dillon, NEVVA Executive Director, Brad Levine, Tellus CEO, and Tom Underwood, Sandata CEO, among others still to be appointed. A meeting is scheduled for October 16, 2018, in Atlanta, Ga., to further define structure and committee leadership of the organization.

"We are excited about this unique opportunity to work together with NEVVA, the first and only industry trade group for EVV," said Roherty. "Facing the 2020 deadline to implement personal care services, states across the nation can now harness critical information from one source and unite with managed care plans, providers, and the industry to advance a common goal — optimizing the technology to support improved delivery of long-term services and supports."

NEVVA will focus solely on EVV and will serve as the industry voice and resource for all news, information, expertise and advocacy related to EVV. It will work to expand the conversation surrounding EVV and to bridge the gap between key constituencies.

NEVVA's core purpose is to establish industry standards and facilitate best practices to achieve a standard delivery of EVV data for services delivered to individuals in their homes and communities. By establishing best practices for EVV services, NEVVA will help pave the way to better, more fiscally responsible care.

EVV became a national requirement for Medicaid-reimbursed personal care services and home health care through the 21st Century Cures Act, enacted in December 2016, intended to accelerate health care innovation. Funding for the Cures Act initiatives rely, in part, on savings generated through reductions in fraud, waste and abuse from EVV. Recently, Congress approved a bill, H.R. 6042, that delays the reductions in federal matching assistance percentage for Medicaid personal care services delivered without EVV until January 1, 2020. On July 30, the President signed this legislation into law, solidifying the delay and effectively allowing more time for states to engage stakeholders and procure a solution that meets the needs of their constituents.

NEVVA will serve as a resource to help members not only implement but also smoothly integrate and continuously innovate EVV well past those initial deadlines.

About NEVVA
The National Electronic Visit Verification Association (NEVVA) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to serving as the single source for Electronic Visit Verification industry-related information for states, managed care organizations and providers. NEVVA provides expertise, news and information, advocacy and support to all of these constituents, enabling them to continuously deliver the highest quality of care possible to those who depend on it.

About Tellus
Tellus is a leading provider of mobile care delivery, Electronic Visit Verification (eVV) and claims processing technology designed especially for the Home Health and Long-Term Care markets. Tellus is proud to be the provider of choice among a variety of states, managed care organizations and provider agencies. The company's comprehensive, cloud-based solutions work to simplify, streamline and quickly and easily verify care delivery tasks and process claim data right at the point of care. That means agencies, caregivers and patients can focus their time and attention on what matters most — improved patient care with better outcomes, greater efficiency and cost reduction.

Tellus is a privately owned company headquartered in Deerfield Beach, Florida. For more information about Tellus, visit https://4tellus.com/, or call 954-719-0004, ext. 2014.

About Sandata
Sandata Technologies is a leading U.S. provider of home care solutions that enable government agencies, Managed Care Organizations, and home care providers to manage and optimize the delivery of services. Sandata's suite of products includes Sandata Electronic Visit Verification™ (EVV™), a market leading time and attendance product; Santrax® Agency Management and Santrax® Payer Management, web-based software solutions with features including a jurisdictional solution for states and other payers, Santrax® Member Management, an ADA Section 508 compliant member portal for self-directed participants. Sandata has over 3,500 agency clients nationwide with its products supporting 1.8 million caregivers and nearly 400,000 EVV transactions on a daily basis. Sandata is the only vendor that has experience with all four models currently deployed for EVV compliance with the 21st Century Cures Act: Provider Choice, MCO Choice, State Choice, and Open Vendor.

About NASUAD
The National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) was founded in 1964 under the name National Association of State Units on Aging (NASUA). In 2010, the organization changed its name to NASUAD in an effort to formally recognize the work that the state agencies were undertaking in the field of disability policy and advocacy. Today, NASUAD represents the nation's 56 state and territorial agencies on aging and disabilities and supports visionary state leadership, the advancement of state systems innovation and the development of national policies that support home and community-based services for older adults and individuals with disabilities.