Becoming a CCBHC

In order to be eligible to be a CCBHC, SAMHSA requires that agencies or clinics must be one or more of the following:

  • Is a non-profit organization, exempt from tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code;
  • Is part of a local government behavioral health authority;
  • Is operated under the authority of the Indian Health Service, an Indian tribe, or tribal organization pursuant to a contract, grant, cooperative agreement, or compact with the Indian Health Service pursuant to the Indian Self-Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.);
  • Is an urban Indian organization pursuant to a grant or contract with the Indian Health Service under Title V of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.).

Note: A CCBHC is considered part of a local government behavioral health authority when a locality, county, region or state maintains authority to oversee behavioral health services at the local level and utilizes the clinic to provide those services.

There are six program requirement areas developed by SAMHSA in response to Section 223 of the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 (HR 4302) that agencies or clinics must meet in order to be recognized as a CCBHC. The six program requirements include specifics related to:

  1. Staffing,
  2. Availability and accessibility of services,
  3. Care coordination,
  4. Scope of services,
  5. Quality and other reporting,
  6. Organizational authority, governance, and accreditation.

SAMHSA has provided detailed information about each area here (PDF).

Providers selected to participate in the CCBHC certification process will not receive any start-up funding; however, there are allocations in the planning grant to provide sites technical assistance and training related to CCBHC requirements. If North Carolina is selected as a one of the eight states to move forward in the two-year demonstration program, participating CCBHCs will receive payment for CCBHC services through a cost-based prospective payment system.  

Letter of Intent/Organizational Readiness Assessment

In order to determine the level of interest, as well as the readiness of potential entities to become a CCBHC, DMH/DD/SAS and DMA have created a Letter of Intent/Organizational Readiness Survey.  Interested applicants must submit a non-binding letter of intent in addition to completing the readiness assessment. At a minimum, your letter of intent must address:

  • The reason for your interest in becoming a CCBHC;
  • Background information of your organization, including the year in which your agency was established, current level of staffing and number of locations across the state;
  • National accreditation(s);
  • Populations served by your agency; i.e., Medicaid, private pay, state-funded, children, adults, disability groups, etc.;
  • Approximate total number of individuals served in a typical year by payor source; i.e., Medicaid, private pay, state-funded;
  • Array and/or type of services provided by your agency;
  • Relationship with the LME-MCO of the proposed catchment area;
  • Relationships/collaborations/agreements with providers of services not provided by your agency;
  • Geographic location of the proposed CCBHC site, as well as locations of satellite offices that may also provide services for the CCBHC.

Submission Guidelines

DMH/DD/SAS and DMA are aware of the complexities of this initiative and welcome your questions. All questions and responses will be posted in a FAQ document on this website.
Questions may be submitted to: CCBHC.info@dhhs.nc.gov Subject: CCBHC Letter of Intent Questions
Deadline for questions is March 3, 2016. No questions related to the CCBHC Letter of Intent/Organizational Readiness Survey will be accepted after that time.
Sites interested in becoming a CCBHC are required to submit their letter of intent with their organizational readiness survey electronically by Friday, March 18, 2016 at 5:00 pm to: CCBHC.info@dhhs.nc.gov Subject: CCBHC Letter of Intent Submission

Paper or hard copies will not be accepted.  Submissions received after 5:00 pm on March 18, 2016 will not be reviewed.  The division reserves the right to not review incomplete submissions.

Sites that are selected to continue in the certification process will be notified by April 18, 2016. Sites selected to continue in the certification process will receive additional guidance about the certification requirements and the prospective payment system methodology. Sites may be asked for additional documentation to support their readiness assessments and/or participate in interviews and site visits.

Sites will receive technical assistance and training as needed in June and July, prior to final selection of at least two CCBHCs in early September 2016.

It is important to note that SAMHSA is still developing guidance, clarification documents and responding to questions from planning grant states; therefore, information in the readiness assessment is subject to change and may not represent all criteria that will be required for successful certification as a CCBHC.