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Children's Services

As vaccinations and/or testing of employees becomes more of a requirement for many of our members, there will also be a need to develop policies for the implementation of these requirements. Philadelphia providers have already been forced to deal with this situation, and others are preparing, or have already decided to implement, mandatory vaccine protocols for their employees.

We are trying to gather as much information as possible to help all of our members handle this new demand, including determining what testing will be acceptable to meet the mandate in lieu of vaccinations, who the mandates will apply to, and what are acceptable reasons for exemption from a vaccination mandate.

RCPA is requesting that those who have developed polices and who are willing to share those policies send them to RCPA HR Committee staff so that others may learn from your experiences. We will make these available to other members only and will share them in whatever format you choose to send them (with or without your agency name).

Thank you in advance to any members who are willing to share your policies.

Many children who have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have other concerns or disorders. For some children, symptoms that look like ADHD can be better explained by another diagnosis. Recognizing symptoms of ADHD and other disorders and finding ways to help children can be a challenge for families. Read more about how to help children who have ADHD and other disorders.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funds the National Resource Center on ADHD (NRC), a program of CHADD — Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Visit the NRC for more information and resources for children with ADHD and their families. The NRC also operates a call center (866-200-8098) with trained staff to answer questions about ADHD and related disorders.

Effective October 18, 2021, the following regulatory statutes and regulations are reinstated:

If you have any questions or concerns related to this announcement, please contact your local OMHSAS Regional Field Office at the following numbers:

Central Field Office — 717-705-8395
Northeast Field Office — 570-963-4335
Southeast Field Office — 610-313-5844
Southwest Field Office — 412-565-5226

If you have further questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Director(s).

RCPA will close the workforce survey at close of business today, Monday, October 18, 2021. The survey, which is open to all Human Service Providers in Pennsylvania, covers workforce issues for a diverse range of programs, including Mental Health, IDD/Autism, Brain Injury, Drug & Alcohol, and Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities (IRF). The survey responses seek to gather data related to hiring, retention, vacancy rates, pay structures, vaccinations, and COVID-19 impacts on programs as well as access to care associated with the pandemic.

We thank you for your time in completing this survey. We will begin the survey analysis of the survey outcomes and will complete a report for distribution to our General Assembly, state stakeholders, members and participants.

Please complete the survey here. If you have any questions, please contact RCPA Director of Children’s Services Jim Sharp.

PENNSYLVANIA DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES COUNCIL (PADDC) REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS

We are pleased to announce that the first Request for Application (RFA) book for 2022–2026 State Plan is now available for you to download, which includes 13 separate grant opportunities. The deadline to submit applications for these grants is December 1, 2021. Visit here to read more and download the RFA book and other application resources.

In addition, PADDC is offering funding on a rolling basis through our Community Grants Program. Get more information about the Community Grants Program here.