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Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) informs all waiver providers and vendors whose last digit of their Master Provider Index (MPI) number is 3, 4, or 5, as well as any new providers who enrolled in the 2023/24 fiscal year, that they must submit their qualification documentation to their Assigned AE and/or ODP’s Bureau of Supports for Autism and Special Populations (BSASP). Documentation must include a completed DP 1059 form and/or DP 1088 form, Provider Qualification Documentation Record (note: an updated Provider Qualification Documentation Record will be uploaded to MyODP in the coming weeks), as well as any other required supporting documentation.

This documentation is due between February 1, 2025 — March 31, 2025.

Please view the announcement ODPANN 25-008 for additional information and details.

RCPA partnered with The Alliance of Community Service Providers, The Arc of Pennsylvania, MAX Association, PAR, and TPA, in a collaborative workforce study and surveyed our members to collect data on the impact of the Commonwealth’s ID/A investment. We are pleased to share the results of that study, published and released today. This report also includes information on the demographic profile of our workforce, employee benefits provided, and critical data on vacancies and retention for Direct Support Professionals who provide the lifeline for individuals and families served by our community system.

Also available is a one-page infographic highlighting key data points from the compensation report, complemented with additional facts regarding inflation and the waiting list for intellectual disability services. Examined together, these factors illustrate the continued urgency for ongoing investment to meet the needs of our ID/A community and the thousands of people who remain on a waiting list without essential services.

The associations plan to continue our joint advocacy efforts regarding the budget for the coming Pennsylvania fiscal year.

Contact Carol Ferenz, IDD Division Director, with any questions.

Please share these PA Family Network workshops and support groups with your network! Register for upcoming events at PA Family Network’s website.

Support Groups

LifeCourse Workshops

Waiver Workshops

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has made updates to the training schedule for Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) provisions of the Medicaid Access Rule. The new training session dates and tentative topics for each session can be found below. These dates and topics are subject to change.

  • May 14, 2025, 3:00 pm ET: Timely Access, Waiting Lists, Person-Centered Planning Reporting Requirements & Minimum Performance Levels, and Website Requirements
  • June 11, 2025, 3:00 pm ET: Institutional Rule Provisions*

*Nursing Facility and Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities Rate Transparency provisions finalized in CMS-3442-F: Medicare and Medicaid

You can learn more about the training series and register for upcoming sessions on the HCBS Provisions of the Medicaid Access Rule Training Series registration web page.

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) has shared ODPANN 25-007, which states that the 2024 National Core Indicators® Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (NCI®-IDD) State of the Workforce (SoTW) survey portal will open on February 10, 2025.

With the introduction of Performance-Based Contracting (PBC) in 2024, residential providers in the Select and Clinically Enhanced tiers, in accordance with performance measure WF 03.3, are now required to “participate in the NCI®-IDD State of the Workforce Survey and release provider NCI®-IDD data to ODP to validate turnover and other workforce data.” All other eligible providers remain strongly encouraged to participate and contribute to the data used to improve the Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities/Autism service system.

The PBC Residential Data Submission Tools for each tier will be open from February 15, 2025, to March 15, 2025. Providers planning to submit for either Select or Clinically Enhanced tiers are advised to complete the NCI SoTW survey. Providers are encouraged to obtain a copy of the NCI SoTW submission before submitting their data and documents to ODP. A copy of the survey can be found here.

Providers not participating in the PBC process will complete the NCI® SoTW survey by June 30, 2025.

Please review the announcement for additional information and detail. Any questions, please contact Ms. Lee Stephens, ODP IM4Q/NCI®-IDD Statewide Lead, via email.

StationMD is a qualified provider in Pennsylvania of the STAT waiver service in the ID/A waivers. They are excited to share the next chapter of a webinar series with the Pennsylvania I/DD community on seizure management, which will be held on Tuesday, January 28, at 1:00 pm.

The webinar will include:

  • General information about the STAT waiver service in Pennsylvania;
  • A presentation from their co-founder Dr. Matthew Kaufman, titled “Seizure Management in the I/DD Population;” and
  • Additional time for Q&A.

Please visit this link to register, and feel free to share this invite with anyone that can benefit from this information.