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Medical Rehab

House Resolution 268 of 2019 called upon the Joint State Government Commission to conduct, in consultation with an advisory committee, a study of “the impact of this Commonwealth’s current behavioral health needs and behavioral health care system capacity on hospital emergency rooms and patient health.” The advisory committee was composed of representatives of state, county, and local agencies, mental health and substance use disorder providers, consumers of mental health and substance use disorder services, and emergency medical service providers. Recommendations fall into three categories, and are more fully explained in the Summary of Recommendations section of the report. The full Joint State Government Commissions report can be found here. If you have questions or feedback, please contact your RCPA Policy Director.

The Association for People Supporting Employment First (APSE) presented a webinar addressing Strategies for Providing Remote Employment Services. The presentation was recorded and is available for viewing.

An additional training webinar is available on Wednesday, August 5: Rethinking Employment Services and Supports in the COVID-19 Era.

Register for the webinar on Wednesday, August 5, at 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm ET

While the COVID-19 pandemic poses many challenges, it is also an opportunity to reimagine many aspects of home- and community-based services (HCBS). In partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living and Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), Mission Analytics is conducting a three-part webinar series to explore how the pandemic offers opportunities to rethink and redesign HCBS.

The COVID-19 pandemic has required many organizations to serve as innovators and inventors, partners, and problem-solvers. In response to the pandemic, many states and intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD) service providers successfully pivoted implementing 1915(c) waiver Appendix K strategies and innovative approaches to ensure continuity in home and community-based services (HCBS), and overall health and safety.

Each webinar in the series will review the Appendix K approaches implemented in state ID/DD waivers, providers’ strategies to deliver services during shelter-in-place and social distancing requirements, and potential changes to ID/DD payment structures that could give providers greater flexibility while promoting independence and inclusion of people with ID/DD.

The first webinar will focus on Supported Employment Services. Topics to be covered in future additional webinars are Day Services and Transportation.

Speakers for the August 5 webinar on Supported Employment Services:

  • Peggy O’Brien-Strain, President, Mission Analytics Group, Inc.
  • Marian Frattarola-Saulino, Co-Founder/Executive Director, Values into Action
  • Gail Godwin, Executive Director, Shared Support Maryland, Inc.
  • Duane Shumate, Director of Youth Transition/Employment, Missouri Department of Mental Health Division of Developmental Disabilities
  • Arun Natarajan, Senior Policy Analyst, The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. For more information, please send questions via email.

From ACCSES:

The US Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) announced additional guidance to provide information to workers and employers about how the requirements and protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) impact the workplace as America continues to reopen. The new guidance provides plain-language questions and answers addressing critical issues under all three laws.

This guidance adds to a growing list of compliance assistance materials published by WHD, including a Fact Sheet for Employees, a Fact Sheet for Employers, and a Questions and Answers resource about paid sick and expanded family and medical leave under the FFCRA. Available guidance also includes two posters, one for federal workers and one for all other employees, that fulfill notice requirements for employers obligated to inform employees about their rights under the FFCRA. The guidance also includes Questions and Answers about posting requirements and simple Quick Benefits Tips to determine how much paid leave workers may take under the FFCRA.

WHD provides additional information on common issues employers and employees face when responding to COVID-19 and its effects on wages and hours worked under the Fair Labor Standards Act and job-protected leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Medical insurance and Medicaid and stethoscope.

Advocacy organizations ACCSES, ANCOR, APSE, The ARC, Easterseals, United Cerebral Palsy, and Goodwill International joined forces to send a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, to express concerns regarding the difficulties providers are experiencing in applying for funds to assist with COVID related impact on their financial stability.

The Medicaid & CHIP Provider Relief Fund Portal closes on August 3, 2020, and as long as a provider inputs their TIN by the end of the day August 3 and is awaiting confirmation, that provider will still be able to submit the completed application when the TIN is approved. The FAQ document continues to be updated, so it is recommended that providers who have not yet applied review the FAQs again. ACCSES provided highlights of some of the relevant language:

“Patient care” means health care, services and supports, as provided in a medical setting, at home, or in the community to individuals who may currently have or be at risk for COVID-19, whereby HHS broadly views every patient as a possible case of COVID-19.

What is meant by “applicant type” in field 5 on the Enhanced Provider Relief Fund Portal? (Added 7/22/2020)
An Applicant Type Code is a two-character series of letters that generally summarizes an organization’s purpose. Enter the single code that best describes your organization from the following list:

Applicant Type Code Description
AG Agencies (ex. foster care, PACE, developmental disabled services, etc.)
BE Behavioral Health (Outpatient)
CA Case Management
CL Clinic/Center
CO Community-based Social Support Providers
DE Dental Services
EM Emergency
HO Home Health
HS Hospital
NO Non-emergency Medical Transport
NU Nursing Service Providers
OB Obstetrics / Gynecology
OP Other Physician
PE Pediatrics
PP Primary Care Physician
RF Residential Facilities
RB Residential Facilities (Behavioral)
SA Substance Abuse (Rehabilitation)
OT Other

Home- and Community-Based Service (HCBS) provider applicants should categorize personal care services as “Other,” code OT. Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IID) applicants should categorize their services as “Residential Facilities,” code RF.

Are healthcare providers that only bill Medicaid or CHIP through a waiver eligible for the Medicaid, CHIP, and Dental Providers Distribution? (Added 6/30/2020)
Yes. Healthcare providers that bill for services in Medicaid or CHIP that are covered under either a waiver or state plan are eligible for the Medicaid, CHIP, and Dental Providers Distribution if they otherwise meet the other eligibility criteria.

Additionally, ANCOR has developed an Infographic that outlines the process for applying for the grants. We will continue to advocate for clarity for providers to assist in accessing the available resources.

Friday, August 7, 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm

During emergency situations, Appendix K may be utilized to request amendments to any or all of the state-approved Medicaid waivers. The requested amendments are used so that the state may respond to the emergency. Appendix K may also be applied retroactively, if needed. This webinar provides information on the 2nd Appendix K Amendment that was approved on July 23, 2020.

REGISTER

Representative Natalie Mihalek (R-Allegheny/Washington) announced that she has introduced legislation to establish a grant program to support the Commonwealth’s human services system. Referred to as the Nonprofit Economic Emergency Delivery System (NEEDS) Grants Program, the initiative will focus on the more than 8,500 nonprofit organizations that provide critical services for Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable population, while employing a significant percentage of the Commonwealth’s workforce. See press release: Mihalek Introduces Legislation to Establish Grant Program to Support Pennsylvania Nonprofit Organizations.

Mihalek noted that nearly 80% of nonprofit revenue comes from government grants or contracts and fees for service. “Many nonprofit organizations are struggling financially due to COVID-19, with fundraising events being canceled and donor, foundation and government support drying up,” continued Mihalek. “Yet, the need for these organizations to support communities across our Commonwealth is at all-time high. Nonprofit organizations must be able to continue to provide services to the most vulnerable Pennsylvanians, especially those who have suffered due to COVID-19. If these organizations fail, there will not be a way to provide critical services such as food, shelter, medical treatment, child care, workforce training and more.”

Mihalek’s legislation, introduced as House Bill 2740, would establish a statewide competitive grant program for eligible community-based human services nonprofit organizations (i.e., child care centers, domestic violence centers, early intervention service providers, food banks, alternative education providers, organizations serving individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, etc.) that were impacted by the COVID-19 crisis either by closure, increased service delivery, or loss of revenue. Under this proposal, $200 million in the COVID-19 Response Restricted Account would be transferred to the Commonwealth Financing Authority to provide grants to these nonprofit organizations. The maximum grant would be $500,000 per eligible nonprofit organization.

If you have questions or feedback, please contact your RCPA Policy Director.

General and Targeted Distribution Post-Payment Notice of Reporting Requirements

The purpose of this notice is to inform Provider Relief Fund (PRF) recipients that received one or more payments exceeding $10,000 in the aggregate from the PRF of the timing of future reporting requirements. Detailed instructions regarding these reports will be released by August 17, 2020.

The reporting system will become available to recipients for reporting on October 1, 2020.

  • All recipients must report within 45 days of the end of calendar year 2020 on their expenditures through the period ending December 31, 2020.
  • Recipients who have expended funds in full prior to December 31, 2020 may submit a single final report at any time during the window that begins October 1, 2020, but no later than February 15, 2021.
  • Recipients with funds unexpended after December 31, 2020, must submit a second and final report no later than July 31, 2021.
  • Detailed PRF reporting instructions and a data collection template with the necessary data elements will be available through the HRSA website by August 17, 2020.

If you have any questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Director.

Pennsylvania’s DRAFT Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Performance Reporting Policy is posted on the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry website for public review and comment. Public comment is open through Friday, August 14, 2020 at 12:00 pm. Please submit comments via email.

This policy identifies the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, or WIOA, primary indicators of performance, and how they apply to the programs delivered under WIOA titles I and III. This policy establishes procedures for local workforce development boards to negotiate and reach agreement with the commonwealth on LWDA levels of performance for the primary indicators of performance for Title I and Title III. This is a new Pennsylvania workforce system policy.

Should you have any questions or concerns regarding this correspondence, please contact the Bureau of Workforce Development Administration Policy Coordination Unit. Comments received during this period will be addressed before the policy is finalized, published, and placed into effect.