';
CLOSE
Authors Posts by Melissa Dehoff

Melissa Dehoff

463 POSTS 0 COMMENTS
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.

0 2299

The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) has issued an update on the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Reporting Portal.

The OLTL ARPA Funding portal was launched September 30, 2022 for providers to submit costs associated with ARPA of 2021 funding in order to comply with the Department of Human Services’ (DHS’) reporting requirements. The reporting due dates were previously communicated and are outlined in the chart below. OLTL continues to work through portal access requests and data discrepancy issues. Due to these ongoing challenges, please be advised there will NOT be a penalty assessed for initial reports submitted after the 2/28/2023 due date.

Report Period  Due Dates 
07/01/2021–12/31/2021
01/01/2022–06/30/2022
07/01/2022–12/31/2022		 2/28/2023
01/01/2023–6/30/2023 8/30/2023
07/01/2023–12/31/2023 2/28/2024

As a reminder, the reporting portal is only accepting ARPA cost reports for funding allocated by the General Assembly in 2021. This includes allocations for:

  • Act 24 payments to nursing facilities (NF), personal care homes (PCH), and assisted living residences (ALR) for COVID-19 related costs not otherwise reimbursed by federal, state, or other sources of funding;
  • Strengthening the workforce funding for eligible Personal Assistance Services (PAS), Community Integration (CI), and Residential Habilitation (Res Hab) providers to assist with recruitment and retention of direct care workers; and
  • Funding to adult day providers to strengthen adult day services.

Additional detailed information about the distribution of the 2021 ARPA funding can be found on the DHS Long-Term Care Providers page.

Portal Training & Support
The DHS ARPA Reporting Portal User Guide is an additional resource to help navigate the reporting portal. For portal access requests or questions, please contact the OLTL Provider Helpline at 800-932-0939, Option 2 or via email for assistance.

0 1730

Wednesday, March 15, 2023
6:00 pm ET
Register here

Pennsylvania’s ABLE program provides individuals with qualifying disabilities a way to save and invest without affecting their benefits. What is new with ABLE? Join PATF and find out!

A lot has happened in the last few months, and more is to come. Diana Fishlock of the Pennsylvania Treasury Department will discuss the details of Pennsylvania’s ABLE program. Susan Tachau and Karen Hassett, Pennsylvania Assistive Technology Foundation (PATF), along with the following partners will provide a brief introduction:

  • Melissa Hawkins, Director, Pennsylvania Office of Deaf and Hard of Hearing;
  • Amy Nieves, Executive Director, Mayor’s Commission for People with Disabilities; and
  • Amy Levine, Director of Institutional Advancement, Pennsylvania School for the Deaf.

ASL, CART, and Spanish interpretation will be provided for the webinar. If you require additional accommodations, please let PATF know if you require additional accommodations when you register for the webinar no later than March 1, 2023.

PLEASE NOTE: PATF will host an in-person workshop with ASL and tactile interpreters in late Spring 2023.

This webinar will be recorded, and the recording will be sent out after the event via email to all who register. If you have any questions or need assistance with registering, please contact Karen Hassett at 484-675-0506 or via email.

0 1582

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.

0 2070

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.

0 3206

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.

0 2619

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.

0 2060

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.

0 1351

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.

Prev1...293031...47Next Page 30 of 47
© 2021 - Rehabilitation & Community Providers Association