PACE Technical Assistance Centers (TACs)

Successful and efficient development of a PACE® program requires access to in-depth knowledge about PACE program operations, marketing and financing. Prospective PACE Providers can benefit enormously from the expertise of existing organizations that have first-hand experience in the development and implementation of PACE. PACE Technical Assistance Centers (TACs) are available to assist prospective providers in building successful PACE programs, taking into consideration a broad range of general as well as program-specific factors. Across the country, TACs provide support and guidance throughout each phase of the PACE development process..

PACE Development Process

From Organizational Assessment to Decision-Making

Prospective PACE organizations need to consider a number of critical factors that will impact their decision to proceed with developing a PACE program. One of the first steps is an in-depth assessment of whether the community and sponsoring organization will be able to support and benefit from the development of a PACE program. Technical Assistance Centers (TACs) conduct organizational and market assessments and assist in developing a business plan and other materials for presentation to the stakeholders and governing body of an organization.

TACs address a number of key questions during the assessment process:

Is there sufficient number of elderly individuals in the catchment area who meet the eligibility criteria of the organization and are likely to enroll in PACE?
What specific external and internal competitive factors need to be considered?
What service components must be developed and/or adapted, and what are their capital requirements?
What are the key initial staff positions, and what are the processes and criteria used to fill them?
What are the initial start-up costs? Will additional capital be required. If so, are sources of capital available?
At what point is financial break-even anticipated?
What financial rate of return can be anticipated when the program is fully operational?

From Planning and Development to Enrollment

Once an organization has decided to proceed, TACs are available to assist with the initial planning and development of a PACE program, including development of the PACE center, the hiring and training of center staff, start-up, and preparation of the PACE Provider Application. TACs also provide ongoing consultation once an organization is fully operational and has begun providing services to participants. TACs provide support through telephone consultation, on-site visits, intensive trainings and resource materials.

TACs offer a variety of resources and services:

Core Resource Set for PACE (CRSP), which is the set of NPA operating practice resources for developing organizations.
Assistance with preparation of the PACE Provider Application.
Assistance with facility development, such as PACE center design, capacity assumptions and equipment needs.
Assistance with the development of program policies and procedures.
Assistance with the development of an efficient management structure, e.g., key staff roles and job descriptions.
Service integration training: Interdisciplinary team training, service allocation and care planning.
Consultation on marketing and census building.
Consultation on the development of a quality improvement (QI) program and implementation of a QI plan.
Assistance with the establishment of financial reporting and monitoring systems.
Consultation on data collection systems and training.
On-site review of ongoing operations and recommendations regarding potential improvements.

Technical Assistance Centers

NPA does not endorse or recommend any TAC. The TACs listed below are members of NPA. NPA has asked each TAC to complete a questionnaire about the services they provide to developing and operational PACE programs and to provide a reference list. That information is provided below as a courtesy to those organizations researching technical assistance centers. It is not provided as an endorsement.