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(Message from Chuck Ingoglia, President and CEO, National Council for Behavioral Health)**

After much debate and political back and forth, the House and Senate today passed a short-term extension of the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) Medicaid demonstration program.

As was announced last week, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved legislation to extend the original eight CCBHC demonstration states through December 2021. The legislation passed the House by a vote of 371-46. Despite tremendous bipartisan support in the House, efforts to extend the original eight states and expand CCBHCs to two new states stalled in the Senate. To provide themselves more time, House and Senate members agreed to a two-week extension, continuing the program through the 4th of July recess.

While we cannot guarantee a path forward beyond this short-term extension, we have every reason to believe that upon its return Congress will pass another continuation of the program through the end of September 2019. As we have throughout this legislative process, the National Council will keep you informed and do its very best to make you aware of opportunities for action and advocacy at every turn.

Thank you all for your outstanding efforts these last few years. Through your hard work and advocacy you have expanded access to individuals in need, transformed how these services can and should be delivered in your communities and built a strong network of allies who believe in the promise of CCBHCs and have worked with us to support their continuation.

**NOTE: OMHSAS/DHS are in the process of confirming the full extent of this announcement and its impact on PA CCBHCs moving forward.

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(Source: National Council for Behavioral Health, Capitol Connector, June 20, 2019)

On Tuesday, the House voted to pass the “Empowering Beneficiaries, Ensuring Access, and Strengthening Accountability Act of 2019 (HR 3253),” which would extend funding for certain Medicaid programs. Under the provision, funding for the eight-state Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) demonstration program would be extended for another two and a half years until December 21, 2021. There was overwhelming bipartisan support of HR 3253, passing with a vote of 371-46. The bill must now go to the Senate for a vote before the CCBHC demonstration program expires on June 30, 2019. Read more.

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Ted Dallas, most recently Special Advisor to Governor Wolf and former Secretary of the Department of Human Services (DHS), joined RCPA member NHS, a leading provider of community-based, nonprofit education and human services, as Chief Operating Officer (COO) on March 12.

“Having worked with former Secretary Dallas over the years, we are confident that he will make an outstanding addition to the NHS team,” said RCPA President and CEO Richard Edley. “RCPA wishes Ted much success in his new role and we look forward to working with him and NHS to continue improving services to those living with disabilities in the Commonwealth.”

See the NHS press release here.

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RCPA is proud to announce that one of its own will be heading to Pittsburgh to lead one of Pennsylvania’s most respected human service providers for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. COO and IDD Division Director Steve Suroviec will be serving as CEO of ACHIEVA, Inc. starting in January 2018. Suroviec has been with RCPA since August 2016 after serving in multiple leadership positions in state government. RCPA President and CEO Richard Edley said, “We are very sad to see Steve leave RCPA – with the extensive knowledge and expertise he brought from the Offices of Developmental Programs and Vocational Rehabilitation, Steve shepherded our members through many months of reforms proposed by state funding agencies, including major changes to Medicaid waivers, funding regulations, and rates. But it’s a feather in RCPA’s cap that Steve has been asked to lead a strong and prestigious service provider such as ACHIEVA. This is a tremendous opportunity for him; we wish Steve all the best as he enters the next chapter of his career in service to people with disabilities.” Suroviec will continue at RCPA through the end of November to assist in the operations and in a transition. Read ACHIEVA’s press release and see the announcement in the Pittsburgh Business Times.

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The Department of Human Services (DHS) recently issued the following information and resources in preparation for the roll-out of Community HealthChoices (CHC) beginning January 2018 in the Southwest zone of the state.

Coming to the Southwest Zone in January 2018

The Department of Human Services (DHS) is committed to open and frequent communication to educate and inform individuals who will move to Community HealthChoices (CHC). It is critical that they are aware of the upcoming changes and are able to make an informed decision on their plan selection. We are using multiple channels to get the message out, and want to ensure that you are aware of upcoming information that potential participants will receive.

  • INFORMATIONAL FLYER

Participants in the Southwest Zone received this flyer (also available in Spanish) in August 2017 to inform them that CHC was coming to their county in January 2018.

  • CHC Community Meetings for Participants

Participants in the Southwest will receive an invitation to community meetings in late September.

There will be more than 40 events in the Southwest Zone, with at least one in each of the 14 impacted counties. The meetings will give more information about CHC, the LIFE program, and answer questions participants may have.

To register for a community meeting, participants can go to www.healthchoices.pa.gov or call 1-833-735-4416. A copy of the invitation is available here.

  • Notices

DHS will mail notices to potential participants beginning today. The notice will inform participants that they will transition to CHC in January and will need to select a health plan, also called a managed care organization (MCO).

The notice also tells potentially eligible participants that they may be eligible for the LIFE program.

Copies of the notices are be available here.

  • Pre-Enrollment Packets

Beginning on October 2, 2017, pre-enrollment packets will be mailed to participants. This packet will contain information about each of the health plans and the benefits offered by each plan, and tell participants how to enroll in a health plan. There will be a toll-free number and website for participants to use to make their selection. A day after the packets are mailed, automated calls will be made to let participants know that the packets are coming.

If participants do not select a health plan, they will get a follow-up call.

Individuals who do not select a plan by November 13, 2017, will be assigned to a plan. Individuals can change their plan at any time.

  • Social Media

DHS’ Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube accounts make CHC information readily available. If you are not following us yet, please click the provided links to make sure you are receiving all up-to-date information on CHC and all department priorities.

chc-phases-map

(Map, Community HealthChoices Phases)

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The members and staff of RCPA are looking for ways to reach out to the unfortunate victims of Hurricane Harvey. Below are some facts about this devastating event:

(Courtesy of the New York Times)

• The National Weather Service said Tuesday that Harvey has now set a record for total rainfall from a single tropical cyclone in the continental United States, with two weather stations in Texas reporting total rainfall over 48 inches.

  • Local officials said there were 13 deaths in Texas so far that were storm-related or suspected to be storm-related. Officials in Houston confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that Sgt. Steve Perez, 60, died while driving to duty on Sunday.
  • The Houston Police Department has rescued more than 3,500 people from flooding since the storm began, Chief Art Acevedo said on Tuesday, up from about 2,000 a day earlier. The city fire chief, Samuel Peña, said his department had performed more than 400 rescues. The Harris County Sheriff’s Office did not have an updated figure on Tuesday, but said it was considerably higher than the roughly 2,200 rescues it reported on Monday.

• President Trump is visiting Texas, having arrived in Corpus Christi before traveling to Austin, the state capital.

The American Red Cross is encouraging people to donate money on its website or to text 90999 to donate $10. The organization is also asking for volunteers. Other organizations include the Salvation Army, Samaritan’s Purse, and Heart to Heart International.

Please feel free to share this information as widely as possible. Thank you for being a part of these relief efforts.

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