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Medical Foster Care (MFC)

The Medical Foster Care (MFC) program enables Medicaid eligible children from birth through age 20 with medically-complex conditions whose parents cannot care for them in their own homes, to live and receive care in foster homes rather than in hospitals or other institutional settings. Children’s Medical Services (CMS) recruits MFC parents and provides training for them to care for the medically necessary needs of these children.

Medical Foster Care (MFC) Provider Qualifications

To be eligible to enroll as a Medicaid MFC provider and to maintain enrollment, an individual must:

  • Be directly enrolled with Florida Medicaid if providing services through a fee-for-service delivery system;
  • To be eligible to enroll as a Medicaid MFC provider and to maintain enrollment, an individual must:
  • Be licensed by the Department of Children and Families (DCF) as a foster home caretaker for children;
  • Have successfully completed the CMS MFC training;
  • Be approved as a MFC parent by the CMS MFC physician;
  • Be supervised by a CMS local service area MFC program staff or the MFC contracted agency; and
  • Be available to provide MFC services 24 hours per day (this would not preclude the use of other medically necessary services if additional medical needs are present).

Handbooks

Florida Medicaid handbooks furnish the Medicaid provider with the policies and procedures needed to receive reimbursement for covered services provided to eligible Florida Medicaid recipients.

The Medicaid Medical Foster Care Coverage and Limitations Handbook explains covered services and policies for the PPEC program.

The Medicaid Provider General Handbook contains requirements of the Florida Medicaid Program that apply to all providers.  Providers must follow the provisions of this handbook in addition to their services specific handbook.

The Provider Reimbursement Handbook, CMS 1500 Handbook contains generic eligibility information, general Medicaid information, and claim instructions.

Florida Medicaid Health Care Alerts

Would you like Florida Medicaid Health Care Alerts sent directly to your email account?  The Florida Medicaid program has an email alert system to supplement the present method of receiving Provider Alerts and to notify registered providers or interested parties of "late-breaking" information.  An email will be delivered to your mailbox when Medicaid policy clarifications or other health care information is available that is appropriate for your selected provider type.