National Disability Employment Awareness Month 2022 — “Disability: Part of the Equity Equation”
RCPA Member Community Skills Program Joins Success Rehabilitation’s Continuum of Care
QUAKERTOWN, PA — September 30, 2022: Community Skills Program® — a non-residential rehabilitation program of Counseling and Rehabilitation, Inc., has transferred its program to continue under Success Rehabilitation and will now become a part of Success Rehabilitation’s comprehensive continuum of care.
“We are truly humbled to have the trust of Sally Kneipp, founder of Community Skills Program, and will work with her to continue, under Success Rehabilitation, to build on her legacy and the incredible work of Community Skills Program. We are excited to come together to strengthen our culture of excellence in becoming the model for post-acute brain injury rehabilitation.” Success Rehabilitation CEO Joanne Tangney said in a statement, “This new initiative accelerates our strategic goal of delivering a comprehensive continuum of care to meet the rehabilitation needs of individuals with acquired brain injury or other neurologic impairments wherever they need it the most — from our residential and outpatient programs to their homes and communities.”
When explaining the decision to approach Success Rehabilitation about administering Community Skills Program as part of Success’s comprehensive care options, Sally pointed out that she has respected the brain injury providers with whom Community Skills Program has collaborated over the years, and has enjoyed their collegial relationships. She added, “Given the values and vision of Success Rehabilitation’s team members and the continuity and consistency of their management, it seemed logical for Success to take the reins in expanding Community Skills Program’s non-residential home and community-based services under their leadership.”
Community Skills Program, a private non-residential rehabilitation program of Counseling and Rehabilitation, Inc., has been serving individuals in Pennsylvania since 1981, and then in New Jersey, as well. Community Skills Program was designed to assist individuals with traumatic brain injuries to make the transition from hospital-based programs to inclusive community living focused on their strong interests and personal goals.
Success Rehabilitation is a specialty post-acute brain injury rehabilitation provider with residential and neuro rehabilitation outpatient program locations in Southeastern Pennsylvania. For 34 years, Success Rehabilitation’s CARF Accredited brain injury programs have set the standard for outcomes-focused rehabilitation, including a comprehensive vocational program, improving the lives of individuals who have experienced acquired brain injury.
PA Long-Term Care Learning Network Webinar — October 13, 2022
On behalf of the Pennsylvania Long-Term Care Learning Network, the Jewish Healthcare Foundation invites you to join the next special population webinar on October 13, 2022.
Going Beyond “Great Job!” With Appreciation That Impacts Lives
This webinar will continue to follow this quarter’s education theme, addressing workforce challenges. We all share the same need to feel appreciated for our contributions, yet only 3 in 10 US employees strongly agree that in the last seven days they have received recognition or praise for doing good work (Gallup, 2017). Using an interactive exercise, this session will explore a different way of expressing appreciation that supports connection and wellbeing.
Please invite the following Special Population Team Members:
- Nursing Home Administrators;
- Directors of Nursing;
- Nurse Managers;
- Medical Directors;
- Service Coordinator Supervisors; and
- Human Resource Team Members.
VISIT HERE to register for this Zoom webinar scheduled on Thursday, October 13, at 2:00 pm.
You will need your National Provider Identifier (NPI) to register. (If you do not have one or do not know it, please enter 0 on the registration form)
REMINDER: If you have not already registered for the October 6, 2022, Nursing Facility Webinar: Protecting and Preserving our Workforce by Preventing Common Injuries, VISIT HERE.
The Learning Network is part of the Department of Human Services’ Quality Strategy for Nursing Facilities, offered as a collaboration of the Community HealthChoices Managed Care Organizations.
CMS Releases 2023 Medicare Premiums & Deductibles
On September 27, 2022, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the 2023 premiums, deductibles, and co-insurance amounts for the Medicare Part A and Part B programs, as well as the 2023 Medicare Part D income-related monthly adjustment amounts.
ARPA Funding Reporting Portal Launched
The Department of Human Services (DHS) Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) has announced the launch of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) Funding Reporting portal. The online portal will be available on September 30, 2022, for OLTL providers to submit costs associated with ARPA funding distributed in 2021 in order to comply with DHS reporting requirements.
Background: ARPA Funding Information
In 2021, federal funding from ARPA was allocated by the General Assembly under Act 24 and enacted by Governor Wolf to provide funding to nursing facilities (NF), personal care homes (PCH), and assisted living residences (ALR). These ARPA funds should be used for COVID-19 relief for costs not otherwise reimbursed by federal, state, or other sources of funding.
In addition, ARPA provided a temporary 10 percent increase to the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for certain Medicaid expenditures for home and community-based services (HCBS). The funding must be used to enhance, expand, or strengthen HCBS. OLTL outlined in its plan to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) initiatives to strengthen the workforce and assist Adult Day Services (ADS) providers. The OLTL ARPA plan directed funding to Personal Assistance Service (PAS), Community Integration (CI), and Residential Habilitation (Res Hab) providers to assist with recruitment and retention of direct care workers. The plan also directed additional funding to providers to strengthen ADS.
ARPA funding must be used for things such as sign-on bonuses, retention payments, COVID-19 related leave benefits and paid time off, vaccination incentives, and/or the purchase of personal protective equipment and testing supplies. Additionally, ADS providers can use the funding for retrofitting adult daily living centers, expenses to re-open the centers, and expenses to develop alternative models to provide ADS.
Additional detailed information about the distribution of the 2021 ARPA funding can be found on the DHS Long-Term Care Providers web page.
ARPA Funding Reporting Portal
Effective September 30, 2022, providers can access the portal and begin to report ARPA 2021 costs. Providers can access the portal through the Funding Portal Login web page. The first report due date will be November 30, 2022, and should reflect two reporting periods. Providers are required to submit reports in the portal on a bi-annual basis thereafter according to their exhaustion of the funds. Please reference the chart below.
|
Report Period |
Due Dates |
|
07/01/2021 – 12/31/2021 01/01/2022 – 06/30/2022 |
11/30/2022 |
| 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 |
Providers must keep all documentation related to the costs reported in the final cost report for a minimum of five years.
Upcoming Educational & Professional Development Opportunities From ANCOR
CoBI Webinar to Focus on Recreational Tx: Implications For Life Planning After Brain Injury — November 8
The Council on Brain Injury (CoBI) clinical forum will be presenting a webinar on November 8, 2022, from 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm. This webinar, titled “Recreational Therapy: Implications for Life Care Planning After Brain Injury,” will focus on how recreational therapy (RT) can help to support health promotion, prevention of secondary conditions, and quality of life. RT can also contribute to positive outcomes for individuals with various chronic conditions, such as brain injury. This webinar will consider the steps for integrating RT into the life care plan for individuals with brain injury and will include specific case studies to be described and discussed.
This webinar is intended for a professional audience and is free of charge. To participate, registration is required. Questions should be directed to MJ Schmidt of the Council on Brain Injury.
The Provider Relief Fund Period 3 Reporting Deadline Is Quickly Approaching!
A reminder to providers who received Provider Relief Fund (PRF) payments during the period January 1, 2021, to June 30, 2021. You must use the PRF Reporting Portal to document the use of these funds by this Friday, September 30, 2022.
According to the HRSA website, “Recipients who do not report within the respective reporting time period will be considered out of compliance with payment Terms and Conditions, and funds may be subject to recoupment.”
If you have any questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Director.
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