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Children's Services

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra has again issued the renewal of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) due to the continued consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The renewal became effective on October 18, 2021 and will extend the PHE into early 2022. This PHE status enables the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to keep all applicable waivers in place.

As vaccinations and/or testing of employees becomes more of a requirement for many of our members, there will also be a need to develop policies for the implementation of these requirements. Philadelphia providers have already been forced to deal with this situation, and others are preparing, or have already decided to implement, mandatory vaccine protocols for their employees.

We are trying to gather as much information as possible to help all of our members handle this new demand, including determining what testing will be acceptable to meet the mandate in lieu of vaccinations, who the mandates will apply to, and what are acceptable reasons for exemption from a vaccination mandate.

RCPA is requesting that those who have developed polices and who are willing to share those policies send them to RCPA HR Committee staff so that others may learn from your experiences. We will make these available to other members only and will share them in whatever format you choose to send them (with or without your agency name).

Thank you in advance to any members who are willing to share your policies.

Many children who have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have other concerns or disorders. For some children, symptoms that look like ADHD can be better explained by another diagnosis. Recognizing symptoms of ADHD and other disorders and finding ways to help children can be a challenge for families. Read more about how to help children who have ADHD and other disorders.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funds the National Resource Center on ADHD (NRC), a program of CHADD — Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Visit the NRC for more information and resources for children with ADHD and their families. The NRC also operates a call center (866-200-8098) with trained staff to answer questions about ADHD and related disorders.

Effective October 18, 2021, the following regulatory statutes and regulations are reinstated:

If you have any questions or concerns related to this announcement, please contact your local OMHSAS Regional Field Office at the following numbers:

Central Field Office — 717-705-8395
Northeast Field Office — 570-963-4335
Southeast Field Office — 610-313-5844
Southwest Field Office — 412-565-5226

If you have further questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Director(s).