Time in Nature May Help Older Adults With Improved Health, Purpose in Life
Melissa Dehoff
Melissa Dehoff is responsible for all medical rehabilitation and brain injury service issues. Ms. Dehoff attends multiple state-level meetings to advocate on behalf of members on brain injury and rehabilitation issues and is a member of the Department of Health Traumatic Brain Injury Advisory Board.
EVV Public Meeting Planned for March 24, 2023
The Department of Human Services (DHS) has announced a public meeting that will focus on Electronic Visit Verification (EVV). The meeting is scheduled for March 24, 2023, from 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm and will be held virtually. During this meeting, DHS will provide additional information and updates related to the DHS EVV implementation. Please register to attend this public meeting on the registration page. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
If you have a question that you would like to have read and answered during the meeting, please submit it electronically before March 15, 2023.
March 1 MLTSS Subcommittee Meeting Registration & Agenda
The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) has released the registration information and agenda for the March 1, 2023, Managed Long-Term Services and Supports (MLTSS) Subcommittee meeting. The meeting will be held at the PA Department of Education Building’s Honors Suite, 1st Floor, at 333 Market St. in Harrisburg, or via webinar from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.
To participate in the meeting via webinar, please register here. When registering, please verify that you entered your email address correctly. You will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar if you registered correctly. Note that if you have trouble accessing the webinar registration through Internet Explorer or Safari web browsers, you should try accessing it through a different web browser, such as Chrome or Edge.
Dial In Number: 1 (213) 929-4212
Access Code: 315552949#.
Public comments will be taken after each presentation. Questions can be entered into the chat box during the presentations, and these questions will be asked at the end of each presentation. There will be an additional period at the end of the meeting for any additional public comments.
If you have any questions about alternative methods for submitting questions or comments during a subcommittee meeting, including options when no internet access is available, please submit them electronically.
CMS Approves Community HealthChoices Waiver Renewal
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved the renewal of the Community HealthChoices (CHC) 1915(b) waiver effective January 1, 2023, for a 5-year period. Under the 1915(b) waiver, Pennsylvania operates the CHC managed care program.
As part of the CHC 1915(b) waiver renewal, the Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) was required to obtain an independent evaluation or assessment of its CHC waiver program and submit the findings when renewing the CHC 1915(b) waiver.
The CHC 1915(b) waiver renewal and the Independent Assessment of the 1915(b) waiver are posted to the CHC-Supporting Documents website. Questions about the CHC 1915(b) waiver amendment or Independent Assessment can be submitted electronically.
Mandatory Critical Incident Reporting Training Webinars Announced
The Office of Long-Term Living’s (OLTL) Bureau of Coordinated and Integrated Services (BCIS) has announced the dates and times of the mandatory upcoming Critical Incident Reporting Training webinars. The purpose of the webinar is to provide guidance to Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Direct Service Providers and Service Coordinators regarding timely reporting of critical incidents using the Enterprise Incident Management (EIM) system and to review:
- Who is responsible for reporting critical incidents?
- When should a critical incident be reported in EIM?
- What sections of the EIM Critical Incident Report must be completed?
The webinar dates and times are below. The requirement is to attend one of the sessions.
March 7, 2023: 9:30 am – 11:30 am
Register by March 1, 2023
Registration for March 7, 2023, Morning Session
March 7, 2023: 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm
Register by March 1, 2023
Registration for March 7, 2023, Afternoon Session
March 9, 2023: 9:30 am – 11:30 am
Register by March 3, 2023
Registration for the March 9, 2023, Morning Session
March 15, 2023: 9:30 am – 11:30 am
Register by March 8, 2023
Registration for the March 15, 2023, Morning Session
Within a few days after registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Please email OLTL should you have any questions or concerns.
CMS Issues Proposed National Coverage Determination, Expanding Coverage for Mobility Devices
On February 15, 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed National Coverage Determination (NCD) that power seat elevation equipment on Group 3 power wheelchairs falls within the benefit category for durable medical equipment (DME).
CMS is proposing that the evidence is sufficient to determine that power seat elevation equipment is reasonable and necessary for individuals using power wheelchairs when all of the following conditions are met:
- The individual performs weight bearing transfers to/from the power wheelchair while in the home, using either their upper extremities during a non-level (uneven) sitting transfer and/or their lower extremities during a sit to stand transfer. Transfers may be accomplished with or without caregiver assistance and/or the use of assistive equipment (e.g. sliding board, cane, crutch, walker); and,
- The individual has undergone a specialty evaluation by a practitioner who has specific training and experience in rehabilitation wheelchair evaluations, such as a physical therapist (PT) or occupational therapist (OT), that assesses the individual’s ability to safely use the seat elevation equipment in the home.
The proposed NCD is open for public comment for 30 days. The 30-day comment period will close on March 17, 2023.
Documents From February 14 LTSS Subcommittee Meeting Now Available
The monthly Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Subcommittee convened on February 14, 2023. The meeting handouts included the agenda and a PowerPoint presentation from the Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL). Some of the topics in their presentation included:
- COVID-19 Vaccination Rates From the Community HealthChoices Managed Care Organizations (CHC-MCOs);
- CHC Request for Information (RFI) Update;
- Electronic Visit Verification (EVV);
- Independent Enrollment Broker (IEB) Enrollment Data;
- LIFE Enrollments;
- Medical Assistance (MA) Unwinding;
- Appendix K Waiver; and
- Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Settings Rule.
The next LTSS Subcommittee meeting is scheduled for April 11, 2023.
ARPA/Act 54 Payments Delayed for Personal Care Homes & Assisted Living Residences
The Department of Human Services (DHS) issued a communication regarding a delay in the distribution of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding allocated to Personal Care Homes (PCH) and Assisted Living Residences (ALR) by Act 54 of 2022.
As of 2/6/2023, approximately 50 percent of the Act 54 payments for PCH and ALR had been processed by OLTL, and approximately 25 percent of the total facilities for which form submissions have been received have been fully processed and paid by the Treasury. DHS anticipates that it may take until the end of March 2023 for the remaining 50 percent of payments to be processed and finalized. Providers are asked to please be patient while the remaining payments are processed. If your facility is anticipating serious negative consequences from the delay of your payment, please email.
Visit here for information on the exact breakdown of the $26,767,000 of available Act 54 funding for PCH and ALR.
Please remember that Act 54 of 2022 requires the ARPA funding to be obligated by December 31, 2024, and spent by December 31, 2026, or returned to the Commonwealth. Additionally, these funds must be used for COVID-19 related expenses. Providers must keep documentation to prove that these funds were used for their response to the COVID-19 pandemic in case of an audit. Any person or entity accepting an ARPA payment agrees to provide documentation to the Department of Human Services (DHS) upon request for purposes of determining compliance with Act 54 requirements. Instructions on expenditure reporting will be provided at a later date.
DHS recommends that providers consult their accountants or attorneys for further clarification on acceptable uses of ARPA funding. DHS encourages providers to review guidance for eligible expenditures on the US Department of the Treasury website in their Compliance and Reporting Guidance.
If your facility has not submitted an Act 54 Facility Acceptance Form, you may still do so. Do not submit this form if your facility has previously applied for this funding.
Other questions about this information may be directed via email.
CMS Publishes Resources to Assist With End of the Public Health Emergency
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has published resources to assist healthcare workers prepare for the end of the public health emergency (PHE) on May 11, 2023. Included in these resources are a number of provider-specific fact sheets for information about COVID-19 PHE waivers and flexibilities; two specific documents included are the Long-Term Care Facilities and Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities fact sheets.
OLTL Releases Act 150 Program Sliding Fee Scale Info & Reports for Calendar Year 2023
The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) has released information about the Act 150 Program sliding fee scale for calendar year (CY) 2023. This information includes:
- 2023 Act 150 Sliding Fee Scale;
- Monthly Act 150 Participant Fee Report (Age 60 and Over);
- Monthly Act 150 Participant Fee Report (Under Age 60);
- Monthly Act 150 Participant Fee Reports (Excel Version);
Please note: the bulletin’s effective date is January 1, 2023. Collection of Act 150 participant fees based on the 2023 Fee Scale must begin on the bulletin’s effective date.
The above documents are available in alternate format upon request by calling (717) 857-3280. For future reference, a copy of this bulletin will be posted to the DHS Bulletin Results page for OLTL.
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