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Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities

Registration is now open for the 2023 RCPA Annual Conference A Decade of Unity: Enhancing Lives and Shaping the Future! We are excited to share our registration brochure, which contains a full listing of workshops, plenary sessions, and Connections Hall offerings, with multiple networking opportunities. We have a well-rounded roster containing workshops on everything critical to the health and human resources fields, including value-based purchasing, the workforce crisis, and artificial intelligence and technology. Register here to claim your seat today!

We would also like to extend our thanks to our sponsors and exhibitors who have already contributed and shown their support! Sponsor and exhibitor spots are filling up quickly, so be sure to complete the sponsor/exhibitor brochure today! As a reminder, sponsors, exhibitors, and advertisers who wish to be listed on the website, the mobile app, and in the conference program must submit all materials by September 8. In order to be considered for booth self-selection, a completed contract with payment must be submitted, and no reservation is considered complete without payment. If questions remain, please contact Carol Ferenz, Conference Coordinator.

ODP Announcement 23-049 shares that the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) has extended the deadline for completing the 2022 National Core Indicators® (NCI) State of the Workforce Survey. The portal will now close on Monday, July 31, 2023.

A national deadline extension has given eligible provider agencies in Pennsylvania an opportunity to complete the NCI State of the Workforce Survey. If your agency has already completed the survey, no additional action is needed.

To obtain a representative sample, HSRI is aiming for a 5% or lower margin of error for each participating state. The lower the margin of error, the more representative and impactful the data will be. Based on current responses, Pennsylvania has a margin of error of 8.4%. The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) is encouraging providers to complete the survey, which will give stakeholders critical information about workforce metrics.

For any questions, please contact Ms. Lee Stephens, ODP Independent Monitoring for Quality (IM4Q)/NCI Statewide Lead.

Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) has shared ODPANN 23-057: Obsoleting Office of Developmental Programs’ (ODP) Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Communication. This notifies stakeholders that COVID-19 communications generated by the Office of Developmental Programs have been obsoleted, with several exceptions. Please review the announcement for additional information and detail.

Image by PIRO4D from Pixabay

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) has shared ODPANN 23-056: COVID-19 Outbreak Identification and Reporting Updates. The purpose of this announcement is to:

  1. Draw attention to the updated guidance from the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PA DOH) describing how to identify and report COVID-19 outbreaks originating within the healthcare facility.
  2. Provide updated guidance to providers of the Office of Developmental Programs’ (ODP) home and community-based services (HCBS) and Private ICF/IDs regarding which facilities may appropriately be considered healthcare settings.

Please review the announcement for additional information.

Individuals with intellectual disabilities and autism (ID/A), their families, and ID/A service providers held a rally on June 28 at the state Capitol to urge lawmakers to increase funding for services and support in the 2023/24 budget. Providers told those assembled in the Capitol rotunda that nearly 60,000 Pennsylvanians are at risk because there are not enough direct support professionals (DSPs) to care for them. Advocates pressed lawmakers to restore the $170 million in funding to invest into fee schedule rates to support DSPs and services.

“Across the state, we are seeing that there is insufficient staff to meet needs or no staff at all,” said Richard S. Edley, PhD, Rehabilitation & Community Providers Association president and CEO. “DSPs are overworked and depleted and have compromised their own health to serve individuals with ID/A. Program closures have eliminated essential services and also affected the health of individuals served. Underfunding a system where individuals and families are already waiting for or losing needed services simply compounds a dire situation. We need to come together to help those in need.”

View news clips and photos of those who advocated at this event for ID/A services funding below.

WENY (Lilly Broadcasting)
VIDEO: “The Collapse Is Here” Intellectual Disability and Autism Care Providers Issue Dire Warning to Pa. Lawmakers

Penn Watch (Featuring RCPA President/CEO Richard S. Edley, PhD)
“The Collapse is Here”

 

IDA Rally 06-28-23 Amy Lutz, Author and Parent, PAAL with Richard Edley, RCPA
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Crowd at Rally 1
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Crowd at Rally 2
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Carol Ferenz, RCPA with Rep Stephen Kinsey and Gloria Satriale, PAAL
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Sherri Landis, ARC of PA
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Karen Beaston Janeen Latin from UCP and Lynda Bowen
IDA Rally 06 28 23 Emmett IDA Child With Mother Elizabeth Tolis
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Signs from Rally Closeup
Sample Sign from IDA Rally 06-28-23
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Rep Patty Kim with Carol Ferenz, RCPA
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Rep Kinsey Signs Letter Supporting IDA Funds
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Amy Lutz, PAAL, Speaking to Supporters
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Karen Beasley, Parent of Child w/IDA, Addresses Those in Attendance
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Carol Ferenz, RCPA with Rep Stephen Kinsey
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Elizabeth Tolis and Child Emmett with IDA
IDA Rally 06-28-23 Signs from Rally
IDA Rally 06-08-23 Woman Addresses Crowd of Supporters
IDA Rally 06-08-23 All Speakers Were Well Received