Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) announced in Mayopens in new window (PDF, 322KB) that it will reimburse prelicensed behavioral health interns and fellows for covered services.
According to the policy, these trainees must be working toward licensure and be under the direct supervision of an in-network BCBSIL provider.
The new policy “vastly expands opportunities for trainees in Illinois, especially in underserved areas,” said Patricia Farrell, PhD, chair of the Health Care Reimbursement committee at the Illinois Psychological Association (IPA). The new policy will likely apply to all BCBSIL’s product lines, including their Medicaid program.
The move is the outcome of a yearlong collaboration between IPA and BCBSIL, with support from a cross-departmental team of APA and Practice Organization staff.
Farrell said that she credits much of their success to the relationships that she and her IPA colleagues (including Lynda Behrendt, PsyD, RN; Neil Pliskin, PhD, ABPP; Theresa Schultz, PhD; and Jeremy Bidwell, PhD) cultivated with BCBSIL staff over the course of nearly a decade.
“IPA’s leadership on the issue of trainee reimbursement has been unparalleled,” said Caroline Bergner, JD, an attorney at APA who assisted in the effort.
The APA and Practice Organization staff were, in turn, a “dream team,” said Farrell. “The turnaround time was super, their input was precise, and they were able to pivot off their expertise and experience. It would have been impossible to execute this project without them.”
As a result of this success with BCBSIL, IPA has begun to explore pursuing similar policies with other payers, particularly with Illinois’ seven Medicaid managed care companies. Farrell said.
The new policy makes Illinois the second state (after Minnesota) in which supervised trainees can be reimbursed by a private insurer, according to Bergner.