CMS Digital Health Literacy Requirements Deadline January 2024. Are you Ready?
A new CMS regulation, §422.100 includes requirements for Medicare Advantage plans to “establish procedures to identify and offer digital health education to enrollees with low digital health literacy.” MA plans “must make information about its digital health literacy screening and digital health education programs available to CMS upon request.”
What does this mean?
For MA plans, these new requirements mean having to implement new programs by January 2024. Many are scrambling to put programs into place with limited staff and budgets.
If you are a Medicare Advantage plan worried about being compliant by January, 2024, here are some important tips.
Five questions to ask when assessing digital health literacy among older adults:
Do you have a smart phone, tablet or computer?
Do you use email?
Do you communicate with family and friends using email or text?
Have you ever used technology to communicate with your healthcare provider?
How confident are you using technology?
Once you have established answers to these key questions, you can begin to assess if users have low, moderate or high digital health literacy and put specific programs in place.
As you develop programs to meet the requirements, here are four important things to think about:
Make sure your training and support uses non-technical jargon.
Address any accessibility issues to improve access to technology.
Meet members where they are. Not everyone learns in the same way or at the same pace. Some users prefer one-on-one sessions, some enjoy the camaraderie and convenience of online group lessons and some like to “self-drive” with on demand how to guides & videos. Many will access a combination of all three.
Prioritize goals: do members need to learn the basics of their smart phones, tablets and computers? Do they need help setting up and learning how to use email, getting onto telehealth visits and communicating with their healthcare providers? Do you want to ensure that all members know how to use your app or portal?
Help is here!
If you have questions about meeting the requirements by January, 2024, Candoo Tech can help. We are working with health plans and hospital systems nationwide and provide a turnkey solution that can get you up and running by the deadline. Learn more about our work and impact here.
About Candoo Tech
Candoo Tech is a leading provider of digital literacy training and support specifically designed for older adults to help them use technology to stay healthier, more independent and connected. Candoo’s services include remote 1:1 training and support, online group lessons and on-demand content. Services are provided remotely, nationwide by U.S. based Tech Concierges who are specially trained to work with older adults. The company was founded by entrepreneur Liz Hamburg in 2019 and has been working with older adults and their families directly as well as with senior living communities, health plans, hospital systems and social service agencies. Candoo is a member of AARP’s AgeTech CollaborativeTM and is a certified women-owned business.
Candoo has seen that with the proper training and support, older adults realize that they ‘candoo it’.” For more information go to www.candootech.com.