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Authors Posts by Jim Sharp

Jim Sharp

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The Federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), has announced a new application cycle for $25.5 billion in COVID-19 provider funding. Applicants will be able to apply for both Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Phase 4 and American Rescue Plan (ARP) Rural payments during the application process. PRF Phase 4 is open to a broad range of providers with changes in operating revenues and expenses. ARP Rural is open to providers who serve rural patients covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

The application is open now and will close on October 26, 2021 at 11:59 pm ET. Providers who have previously created an account in the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal and have not logged in for more than 90 days will need to first reset their password before starting a new application. In order to streamline the application process and minimize administrative burdens, providers will apply for both programs in a single application.

Technical Assistance Webinars
HHS recently hosted a briefing session to provide information about these upcoming funding opportunities – view the video. HRSA will be hosting webinar sessions for Phase 4 and ARP Rural applicants, featuring guidance on how to navigate the application portal.

Real time technical assistance is available by calling the Provider Support Line at (866) 569-3522, for TTY dial 711. Hours of operation are 8:00 am–10:00 pm CT, Monday through Friday.

RCPA will continue to monitor this new round of funding and update members on the implementation process. If you have questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Director.

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Source: Spotlight PA, Sept. 29, 2021

HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania legislature unanimously voted Wednesday to extend dozens of regulatory waivers put into place last year to help health-care providers fight COVID-19.

Without action, the waivers would have expired Thursday, potentially exacerbating ongoing staffing crises in hospitals and long-term care institutions, which are again facing rising COVID-19 cases. Health-care workers and their advocates had warned any lapse in the relaxed rules would have renewed administrative burdens and made fighting the ongoing pandemic more difficult.

Wednesday’s action will keep the waivers in place until March 2022 while the legislature considers a number of bills that would make the regulatory suspensions permanent. Gov. Tom Wolf will sign the bill.

“The governor is thankful the legislature engaged the administration and stakeholders and ultimately agreed with most of the administration’s recommendations on extending COVID-19-related waivers that are still in use,” spokesperson Lyndsay Kensinger said.

At the beginning of the pandemic, Wolf approved nearly 100 waivers to ease some of the rules governing health-care workers and ensure as many professionals as possible were on the ground in hospitals, vaccination clinics, and long-term care facilities.

The temporary changes were made under a disaster declaration that later became a target for legislative Republicans unhappy with the administration’s business closures.

Buoyed by two successful constitutional amendments that curtailed the executive’s power, the GOP-controlled General Assembly ended Wolf’s emergency order in June, while allowing the waivers to remain in place until Sept. 30.

Under the bill passed Wednesday, all suspensions under the Department of Health, Department of Human Services, and the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs will remain in place until March unless Wolf and the agencies decide to terminate them sooner.

Among the waivers extended are those allowing out-of-state practitioners to treat patients in Pennsylvania, permitting retired or lapsed professionals to return to medicine, and expanding who can give a vaccine.

The waivers also allow patients to access care via telemedicine, which as of now is neither allowed nor prohibited in Pennsylvania law, creating a gray area for health-care providers and insurance companies.

Lawmakers have introduced bills in both the House and Senate to provide rules and regulations surrounding telemedicine, but past efforts have broken down over partisan disagreements. Wolf vetoed a telemedicine bill last year because it would have prevented health-care providers from prescribing abortion-inducing medicine.

As a number of other bills that would make regulatory suspensions permanent await consideration, two removing administrative barriers for physician assistants passed Wednesday.

The Joint State Government Commission is studying the impact of the waivers and which should stay in place to remove barriers to employment in the state. Glenn Pasewicz, executive director of the committee, said a report should be out by late October.

Separately, lawmakers on Wednesday directed various state agencies to post a report listing which waivers were and were not extended by Nov. 1.

RCPA will continue its efforts with DHS to determine the status of any waivers that may not fall under this regulatory extension. Please contact your RCPA Policy Director if you have any questions.

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As your teams begin working on completing the RCPA Work Force Survey, we received a request to have a master list of questions that can be referenced. The Master List of survey questions includes all service line areas, questions on the program operations, and vaccinations.

Again, we thank you for your efforts to complete the survey. Please contact RCPA Children’s Division Director Jim Sharp if you have any questions or concerns.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has created existential challenges for agencies that provide supports and services to individuals who have disabilities and/or health issues. Staffing has been an area that has been significantly affected. Legislative and State Stakeholders have requested RCPA to quantify the impact of the pandemic on our workforce so that we might effectively lobby for the welfare of the agencies that support and serve individuals with disabilities and health issues.

The work force survey will examine work force topics for a diverse range of programs, including Mental Health, IDD/Autism, Brain Injury, Drug & Alcohol, Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities (IRF), and others. 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.

RCPA is making the survey available to providers across Pennsylvania, not just RCPA members. Please be assured that response data will be de-identified and aggregated for reporting by an independent research entity, and your individual data will be shared with no one. A copy of the results of this survey will be available to all participants at the conclusion of the study. Please follow the link to the survey.

We thank you in advance for your time in completing this survey and would ask that you share this information with your colleagues, fellow leaders, and Human Resources teams. The more information collected, the more we will be able to provide to stakeholders, which will affect not only RCPA members but all providers within the Commonwealth.

If you have any questions, please contact Director of Children’s Services Jim Sharp or your RCPA Policy Director.

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The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry has announced several grants geared to workforce development. Throughout the commonwealth and the nation, there are numerous grants and financial aid resources available that can assist individuals and organizations in meeting their goals.

PAsmart Apprenticeship Grants

Throughout the commonwealth and the nation, numerous grants and financial aid resources available can assist individuals and organizations in meeting their goals. The grants and financial aid information below is provided with the intent to help you begin the search, not an all-inclusive link to resources that may be available. Learn more about L&I’s other grants and related programs.

PAsmart grant funds are used to support the growth of Registered Apprenticeship and Pre-Apprenticeship Programs, creating opportunities in new industries and occupations for Pennsylvania workers to advance along career pathways. This grant program will support schools, students, workers, and businesses across the Commonwealth and reach underrepresented populations, including women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, veterans, socio-economic disadvantaged individuals, individuals who speak English as a second language, individuals who were previously incarcerated, or individuals experiencing multiple barriers to employment. Ultimately, PAsmart will help Pennsylvanians develop the skills they need for the job they want, and in turn, support businesses by creating a skilled workforce to hire. Learn more about PAsmart Apprenticeship Grants.

Applications must be submitted by 5:00 pm on Wednesday, October 13, 2021.

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In an effort to assist Infant/Toddler Programs and their contracted EI service providers to clear suspended claims from the PROMISe™ system, the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) has released guidance on the procedures for Early Intervention claim filing. Correct billing practices require adherence to correct filing procedures and time limits. All relevant information and instructions can be found in the PA PROMISe™ Provider Handbook for the 837 Professional/CMS-1500 Claim Form.

Time Limits for Claim Submission

DPW must receive claim forms for submissions, resubmissions, and adjustment of claim forms within specified time frames; otherwise, the claim will reject on timely filing related edits and will not be processed for payment.

Service providers (including service coordination entities) are required to submit original claims within 180 calendar days of the initial date of service. Claims which are received within 180-days of the date of service and subsequently denied may be resubmitted up to 365 calendar days from the original date of service.

Suspended Claims/180-Day Exception Request Process

ALL claims that are past the 180- or 365-billing day cycle AND directly associated to a reported PELICAN-EI systems issue are to be billed electronically through the PROMISe system. The claims filed will result in a “suspended” status. These suspended claims will be manually reviewed and approved by a Bureau of Early Intervention services staff member.

Approval of these suspended claims will require additional information submitted by the provider to the BEIS office via email. The email contents must include the following:

  • Provider name
  • MCI for the child
  • PELICAN-EI systems issue description and Help Desk Call Number

If the claim was suspended because it was past the filing limit and unrelated to a PELICAN-EI systems issue, you will need to provide an explanation for the delayed billing. Providing an explanation for the delayed billing will not automatically result in the claim being approved for payment. Each claim will be reviewed individually and considered for approval.

It is the responsibility of the billing entity to follow the requirements for timely billing as outlined in the PROMISe™ manual. Claims which have a suspended status will be denied unless the above procedures have been followed.

If you have any questions, please contact RCPA Children’s Policy Director Jim Sharp.

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