Texas LTSS Providers Must Enroll in ACEP to Qualify for Enhanced Rates

The following is a reminder to health care providers in STAR+PLUS and the UnitedHealthcare Connected Medicare-Medicaid Program who want to receive the increased payment rates during the upcoming fiscal year to enroll in the Attendant Compensation Enhancement Program (ACEP) by contracting with long term services and supports (LTSS) providers under the STAR+PLUS and the UnitedHealthcare Connected Medicare-Medicaid Program.

ACEP is provided by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission in order to help provide higher wages to attendants providing the critical LTSS services. To claim the higher rate on claims with a date of September 1, 2025, to August 31, 2026, the provider should enroll in that program by the deadline of July 31, 2025, 5 p.m. CT.

ACEP is not an automatic organization to join. All providers should fill in the enrollment form every year, regardless of their current status, to be eligible. This concerns returning as well as new enrollees.

The form will automatically enroll already existing ACEP participants once the form has been completed and verified. The individuals who do not fill in the form on time risk being excluded from the program as of September 1, 2025.

New participants (those who have not yet participated) will be sent a Participation Agreement by mail once the form has been submitted. The new rate will come into effect starting September 1, 2025, after being signed and processed. They also ask providers to make claims using the new rate once the enrollment is completed.

Those providers will find detailed information regarding ACEP on the Texas HHSC site at 2025 Rate Enhancement Attendant Compensation Information.