Vocational Rehabilitation Employment Service billing clarifications

For the original publication, please click here. The following is a text version of the original publication.
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To: Vocational Rehabilitation Staff and Community Rehabilitation Providers (CRP) 
From: Kylee B. Hope, Director, Bureau of Rehabilitation Services (BRS) 
Re: Vocational Rehabilitation Employment Service billing clarifications 
Date: October 20, 2015 

The Indiana Vocational Rehabilitation Services (VR) Manual of Employment Services has been updated to reflect minor modifications based on feedback gathered since the roll-out of the employment service revisions July 1, 2015. The section on billing is one area that has been modified. This memo serves to provide further clarification on billing, and specifically the documentation requirements for billing. ​

Providers must generate an invoice when billing for discovery activities, job readiness training services, and other hourly services (e.g., hourly job search/job development) in accordance with invoice and documentation requirements (e.g., discovery profile) outlined in the Employment Services Manual. The invoice mustprovide a breakdown of total hours billed. If necessary, VR may request additional information such as a comprehensive log of all billable activities during the billing period. 

Please note that the discovery profile document should not be utilized to outline provider activities, as the profile is a consumer document and is intended to outline activities in which the consumer has participated. 

The hourly billing and mileage worksheet is a tool that may be utilized to assist providers with calculating appropriate billable hours, including appropriate rounding of the hours billed; however this is not a mandatory form. This worksheet has been revised in response to feedback and a new version will be available online atwww.vrs.in.gov. If the VR hourly billing and mileage worksheet is not utilized, providers must take extra care to ensure accurate rounding of hours and mileage billed. Due to separate cost codes, each hourly service shall be totaled and rounded separately from other hourly services. The total number of minutes billed shall be added, and any fraction of the total that is 15 minutes or more may be rounded up to the nearest one-half hour total. 

Below is an example:

Minutes  Total # Hours & Minutes  Total # Hours & Minutes (ROUNDED)  Total Units Billed (ROUNDED) Job Shadow   78.00  1:18  1:30  1.50  Situational Assessment  118.00  1:58  2:00  2.00  Other Discovery  20.00  0:20  0:30  0.50

 
Mileage may be reimbursed at the current state mileage rate for all discovery services, monthly level supported employment services, and other hourly services. Mileage will not be reimbursed for activities occurring through the milestone payments. The invoice must provide a breakdown of total miles billed. If necessary, VR may request additional information such as a comprehensive breakdown of miles billed per date and/or activity. As stated above, the hourly billing and mileage worksheet is a tool that may be utilized to assist providers in calculating mileage; however this is not a mandatory form. 

BRS hopes these modifications will help to prevent delays with processing invoicing, reduces some administrative burden, ensures consistent billing practices statewide and clarifies outstanding questions. Please review the updated VR Employment Services Manual, Employment Services FAQ, and Hourly Billing and Mileage Worksheet at www.vrs.in.gov under the link VR Employment Services: July 1, 2015 Revisions. Please continue to submit questions to VRProvider@fssa.in.gov.