CDC webinar details training, data and privacy rules for National DPP lifestyle coaches
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Summary
A CDC presenter outlined mandatory training, who may provide training, annual advanced-training requirements, data-submission rules including coach ID and NPI use for MDPP reimbursement, and privacy responsibilities (HIPAA) for lifestyle coaches delivering the National Diabetes Prevention Program.
At a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webinar, a CDC presenter laid out the training, data and privacy requirements for lifestyle coaches who deliver the National Diabetes Prevention Program (National DPP) under the Diabetes Prevention Recognition Program (DPRP) Standards.
The presenter said coaches must receive at least 12 hours of initial training from a training entity that holds a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with CDC; that training can be split over two days. "To be a lifestyle coach, you must receive at least 12 hours of training from an MOU Holding Training Entity," the presenter said. Acceptable trainers include MOU-holding training entities, private organizations with national networks, CDC-recognized virtual organizations and master trainers who completed a master training program with an MOU-holder.
The presenter emphasized continuing education: Lifestyle Coaches must complete at least two hours of Advanced Coach Training each year, delivered by training entities listed on the National DPP Customer Service Center. Those advanced trainings "build on the foundational skills learned during the 12 hour sessions" and focus on practices such as motivational interviewing and health equity. The presenter noted advanced trainings typically carry a fee charged by the MOU-holding entity, though CDC sometimes offers free DPRP-sponsored webinars on specialized topics that may count toward the requirement for CDC-recognized organizations.
On program delivery, the presenter said coaches must follow a CDC-approved curriculum with the intensity and duration specified in the DPRP Standards and use techniques like peer-to-peer learning and problem-solving to support participant goals. Coaches should prepare for sessions by reviewing lesson plans and participants' food and activity trackers, conduct outreach such as session reminders, and arrange makeup sessions so cohorts progress together.
The webinar also covered data obligations. The presenter instructed organizations to assign a coachid variable in their DPRP Data Collection CSV to indicate the coach leading the cohort; that coachid must be unique, maintained by the applicant organization and must not contain any personally identifiable information. "Protecting participants' personally identifiable information, or PII, is a high priority for CDC," the presenter said, and coaches must comply with applicable laws governing participant privacy and data security, including HIPAA.
Regarding Medicare reimbursement, the presenter said organizations seeking reimbursement as Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP) suppliers must obtain a National Provider Identifier (NPI) for their lifestyle coaches and include that NPI as the coach ID in data submissions for MDPP. The presenter advised that when multiple coaches facilitate a cohort, organizations should select a single coach ID to enter in order to reduce data errors, except when a participant attends a makeup session taught by a different coach or when a coach is permanently replaced.
The presenter closed by directing organizations to the National DPP Customer Service Center (nationaldppcsc.cdc.gov) for technical assistance with profile updates and data submission via the DPRP Data Submission Portal.
