Money Follows the Person

The Money Follows the Person (MFP) Rebalancing Demonstration Grant helps states rebalance their Medicaid long-term care systems. Over 63,300 people with chronic conditions and disabilities have transitioned from institutions back into the community through MFP programs as of December 2015. The Affordable Care Act of 2010 strengthened and expanded the MFP program allowing more states to apply. There are currently forty-three states and the District of Columbia participating in the demonstration.

MFP Program Goals

Increase the use of home and community-based services (HCBS) and reduce the use of institutionally-based services
Eliminate barriers in State law, State Medicaid plans, and State budgets that restrict the use of Medicaid funds to let people get long-term care in the settings of their choice
Strengthen the ability of Medicaid programs to provide HCBS to people who choose to transition out of institutions
Put procedures in place to provide quality assurance and improvement of HCBS

States participating in MFP are: AL, AR, CA CO, CT, DE, GA, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV and the District of Columbia.

The Affordable Care Act Extends & Expands MFP

The Affordable Care Act of 2010 strengthens and expands the "Money Follows the Person" Program to more States:

Extends the MFP Program through September 30, 2016, and appropriates an additional $2.25 billion ($450 million for each FY 2012-2016). Any funds remaining at the end of each fiscal year carry over to the next fiscal year, and can be used to make grant awards to current and new grantees through FY 2016.
Grant awards are available to States for the fiscal year they receive the award, and four additional fiscal years after. Any unused grant funds awarded in 2016 can be used through FY 2020.
Expands the definition of who is eligible for the MFP Program to include people that live in an institution for more than 90 consecutive days. (Exception: days that a person was living in the institution for the sole purpose of receiving short-term rehabilitation services reimbursed by Medicare don't count toward this 90-day period).

MFP Technical Assistance for States

National contractors with subject matter expertise are available to support CMS, MFP grantees and others with technical assistance on program implementation, promote best practices and provide guidance on MFP quality improvement strategies to enhance system performance and individual consumer outcomes.

More information on MFP Technical Assistance

The CMS Money Follows the Person Tribal Initiative

In 2013, CMS awarded funding for the Money Follows the Person (MFP) Tribal Initiative (TI) to five state grantees: Minnesota, Oklahoma, North Dakota, Washington and Wisconsin. The MFP TI offers existing MFP state grantees and tribal partners the resources to build sustainable community-based long- term services and supports (CB-LTSS) specifically for Indian country. CB-LTSS are those types of assistance with daily activities that generally helps older adults and people with disabilities to remain in their homes. This initiative will make available these services to people with functional limitations or cognitive impairments that need assistance with activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, eating or other basic activities when they have been in an institutional setting for over 90 days. These services will help them move back into the community. In addition, the TI may be used to advance the development of an infrastructure required to implement CB-LTSS for American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) using a single, or a variety of applicable Medicaid authorities. Funding is intended to support the planning and development of:

An in-state Medicaid program CB-LTSS (as an alternative to institutional care) tailored for AI/ANs who are presently receiving services in an institution; and
A service delivery structure that includes a set of administrative functions delegated by the state Medicaid agency to Tribes or Tribal organizations (T/TOs), such as enabling tribe(s) to design an effective program or package of Medicaid community-based LTSS, and operating day to day functions pertaining to the LTSS program(s).

The TI may be used to cover costs necessary to plan and implement activities consistent with the objectives of this funding and within Federal grant regulations. The funds are subject to all the terms and conditions of the MFP Program.

The TI funding announcement contains more detailed information about the MFP TI initiative. While the solicitation is now closed, it is available for review.