The integration imperative

Medicaid programs across the United States are embarking on an exciting, transformative journey – modernizing their Medicaid Enterprise Systems (MES). Most Medicaid modernization efforts are based around the concept of modularity. Modular MES are characterized by multiple interoperable modules that communicate seamlessly through a central hub, known as the Systems Integration Platform (SIP).

To achieve effective future-state planning, orchestration, and operations of the MES, a system integrator is required—allowing states to benefit from the reality of a hybrid, multi-vendor system where business capabilities can be provided by the vendor best suited to meet the requirements of the Medicaid agency.

This new reality requires an environment where modular systems are procured, implemented, and operated in an incremental and agile manner across a distributed infrastructure. The future of the MES requires the ability to coordinate system workloads in a loosely coupled and interchangeable framework, with many systems working in tandem across multiple cloud providers, provided by multiple vendors. As a result, integration becomes the imperative for achieving this vision. This paper explores the benefits that a robust SIP can provide, not normally achieved with monolithic systems, including:

• Medicaid Information Technology Architecture (MITA) and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) alignment
• Speed of implementation
• Flexibility to evolve
• Centralized shared services
• Data as an asset
• Unified program operations