• Read more about Maine CDC Offers Tips for Staying Safe While Traveling

AUGUSTA-- The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC) is encouraging Maine residents to stay safe while traveling this spring. Travel and vacations can promote physical and mental well-being. That said, with school and other spring vacations occurring amid ongoing outbreaks of measles in the U.S., and mosquito-borne diseases like dengue in the Caribbean, and in Central and South America, travelers should plan ahead and take steps to stay healthy, whether traveling in the U.S. or abroad.

• Read more about SNAP E&T Rule #8 - Provider Determination

10-144 C.M.R. Chapter 609; Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment and Training (SNAP E&T) Rules

SNAP E&T Rule #8 – Provider Determination

• Read more about SNAP Rule #227A - Noncitizen Language

10-144 C.M.R. Ch. 301; SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE Program (SNAP) RULES

ALPHA INDEX, TABLE OF CONTENTS, SECTIONS 1, 111-2, 222-5, 222-6,

444-1, 444-4, 444-8, 555-3, and 999-1

SNAP RULE #227A – NON CITIZEN LANGUAGE

• Read more about Provider Bulletins by Topic

• Read more about MaineCare Provider Training Opportunities

Health PAS Online Portal Training

Gainwell Technologies continues to offer weekly training through Microsoft Teams on the following Health PAS Online Portal topics:

• Read more about Section 30, Family Planning, Updated Base Rates and Resulting Final Rates - CR 130980

Effective January 1, 2025, MaineCare updated the base rates and resulting final rates for certain Family Planning Services delivered by eligible providers. These new rates were implemented for billing on April 2, 2025.

Only providers engaged primarily in the delivery of sexual and reproductive health care services, as described in 42 United States Code, Section 1396d(a)(4)(c), are eligible to bill add-on rates.

• Read more about Attention MaineCare Providers: Status of Temporary MaineCare Payment Holds – April 3, 2025

On March 5, 2025, the Department shared the plans to temporarily hold certain MaineCare provider payments beginning with the payment cycle that ran on March 12, 2025. 

At this time, the current payment withholding approach will continue unless further emergency action is taken by the legislature to make funds available sooner. The situation remains fluid, and we are closely monitoring projections to inform decisions.

• Read more about Linkages of Care for Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Services Survey

The Office of MaineCare Services (OMS) is partnering with the Substance Use Research & Evaluation (SURE) unit at the Catherine E. Cutler Institute, University of Southern Maine, to conduct a survey. We hope to learn how organizations in Maine support care transitions for people with SUD.

We would like to better understand:

• Read more about Attention Primary Care Plus (PCPlus) Practices: PCPlus Application and Recertification Opening – Required for all PCPlus Practices

We are pleased to announce that the PCPlus application period is now open! The application is open until Friday, May 2, 2025. 

PCPlus is a MaineCare primary care model that gives Primary Care Providers (PCPs) greater flexibility and incentives to meet MaineCare members’ healthcare needs by transitioning away from a volume-based (fee-for-service) payment system toward population-based payments tied to cost and quality-related outcomes. Participation in PCPlus is voluntary for PCPs, and PCPs must apply to participate.    

Two Types of PCPlus Aplications   

• Read more about Certification Standards For Persons Conducting Chemical Analyses For The Detection And Identification Of Seized Drugs; 10-144 CMR c. 266

The Department adopted this routine technical rule change to amend Chapter 266. This rulemaking coincides with the expiration of the emergency rule effective January 2, 2025, ensuring competency requirements and accreditation standards adopted on an emergency basis remain the standard for labs analyzing controlled substances seized by law enforcement and used in Maine's courts procedures. This non-emergency rule incorporates the changes adopted by emergency rule to update the oversight authority and certification standards, including the educational and training requirements.