Planning and Implementing Immunization Billing Programs at State and Local Health Departments: Barriers and Possible Solutions.

Context: Before participating in a project funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most state and local health departments (LHDs) were not seeking reimbursement or being fully reimbursed by insurance plans for the cost of immunization services (including vaccine costs and administration fees) they provided to insured patients. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Billables Project was designed to enable state and LHDs to bill public and private insurance plans for immunization services provided to insured patients.

Objective: Identify and describe key barriers state and LHDs may encounter while planning and implementing a billing program, as well as possible solutions for overcoming those barriers.

Design: This study used reports from Billables Project participants to explore barriers they encountered when planning and implementing a billing program and steps taken to address those barriers.

Setting And Participants: Thirty-eight state immunization programs.

Results: Based on project participants' reports, barriers were noted in 7 categories: (1) funding and costs, (2) staff, (3) health department characteristics, (4) third-party payers and insurance plans, (5) software, (6) patient insurance status, and (7) other barriers. Possible solutions for overcoming those barriers included hiring or seeking external help, creating billing guides and training modules, streamlining workflows, and modifying existing software systems.

Conclusion: Overcoming barriers during planning and implementation of a billing program can be challenging for state and LHDs, but the experiences and suggestions of past Billables Project participants can help guide future billing program efforts.