Geisinger Partners with Acadia Healthcare to Expand Behavioral Health Services in Central and Northeastern Pennsylvania
Fady Sahhar
Fady is responsible for policy and regulatory matters related to Physical Disabilities and Aging, with primary focus on personal assistance, employment services, and service coordination. Emphasis is placed on engaging the Office of Long-Term Living and the Community HealthChoices Managed Care Organizations, coordination of care with Behavioral HealthChoices MCOs, and collaborations with other advocacy and provider associations. Fady is also the President / CEO of ProVantaCare, an RCPA-affiliated company focused on contracting with MCOs, and is the President of XtraGlobex, a consulting firm focused on Value-Based Payment contracting. He brings extensive experience in the advocacy and operations of human services providers in physical disabilities and aging, from his role at Liberty Resources, Inc., and his service with a number of nonprofit services providers. He earned an MBA in Marketing from The University of Tennessee and a PhD in Organizational Leadership from Capella University.
EVV Public Meeting April 23, 2021
This is a notice of an upcoming Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) public meeting scheduled for Friday, April 23, 2021, from 1:00 pm–2:30 pm. During the public meeting, the Department of Human Services will provide EVV implementation updates and address some of the frequently asked questions.
To register to attend, please visit the EVV Public Meetings Registration site. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Human Services Secretary, Managed Care Organizations Discuss Ongoing Partnership
Temporary Changes to CHC 1915c, OBRA, and Act 150 Waivers
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved temporary changes to the OBRA, CHC 1915(c), and Act 150 waivers beginning March 6, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Approval of these changes is covered under Appendix K, Emergency Preparedness and Response, which states may use during emergency situations to request amendments to their approved waivers. These changes addressed potential staffing shortages and the need for service provision not included in approved service descriptions to ensure participant health and safety needs could be accommodated for the duration of the COVID-19 statewide emergency. The changes were not intended to apply to all participants nor to be considered across-the-board changes that must be implemented for each participant. These flexibilities were to be evaluated on a case-by-case in coordination with the CHC Managed Care Organizations (CHC-MCOs).
CMS recently approved an amendment to Appendix K which allows some flexibilities to continue until six months after the end date of the federal public health emergency. The federal public health emergency is set to expire on April 21, 2021; however, it’s possible the federal government will decide to extend the emergency beyond April. Please use this public health emergency website link to see the current and future public health emergency declarations related to COVID-19. The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) will issue guidance in the future when the Appendix K flexibilities are closer to expiring.
Attached are the documents that have been updated to reflect the new expiration date for the flexibilities:
- Transition Plan to Phase Out Temporary Changes to the CHC 1915(c) Waiver – Revised March 25, 2021
- Temporary Changes to the CHC 1915(c) Waiver – Revised March 25, 2021
- Transition Plan to Phase Out Temporary Changes to the Act 150 Program – Revised March 25, 2021
- Temporary Changes to the Act 150 Program – Revised March 25, 2021
- Transition Plan to Phase Out Temporary Changes to the OBRA 1915(c) Waiver – Revised March 25, 2021
- Temporary Changes to the OBRA 1915(c) Waiver – Revised March 25, 2021
If you have questions about the information in this Listserv email, please contact the OLTL Provider Helpline at 800-932-0939.
Equitable Vaccination Options Survey
On behalf of the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s (DOH) COVID-19 Health Equity Response Team, the Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) is asking organizations that can be helpful in the effort to ensure equitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines to complete this Equitable Vaccination Options survey as soon as possible. If you yourself are not part of such an organization, but know of an organization that can help, please share the survey with them.
More information on DOH’s work in health equity can be found on the DOH Health Equity web page. Thank you for your help.
Pennsylvania Health & Wellness CEO Appointed CEO of Centene Kentucky Plan
Wolf Administration Highlights Free, Subsidized Public Transit to Vaccine Appointments
The March 10, 2021 press release from Governor Wolf on free and subsidized public transit to vaccine appointments.
Update on Act 24 Reporting
Good afternoon!
I want to inform you that by Friday, March 5, OLTL will email providers that have not submitted their required Act 24 cost report. Deloitte has identified every email associated with an individual who has access to the reporting portal. Initially, credentials were emailed to contacts identified in OLTL’s records. There were also requests to provide credentials to individuals over the last four months. Both groups will receive the attached email message about the need to submit an Act 24 report.
Thanks for your assistance in supporting the Act 24 reporting process.
Daniel Sharar | Director
Bureau of Finance
Department of Human Services | Office of Long-Term Living
Whitepaper: Aunt Bertha’s Vision for a Connected Social Care Sector
One Lens – Sharing our Common Views
Please read a message from the First Lady of Pennsylvania, Frances Wolf, about an opportunity to share your COVID-19 story through photography or audio submissions.
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