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Mental Health

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OMHSAS is looking to create a productive and cohesive group to collaborate on the development of comprehensive Inpatient Regulations. The regulations will contain four (4) subchapters that will address the provision of: Inpatient, Extended Acute Care, Residential Treatment Facilities for Adults, and Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities for Individuals under age 21.

The invitation to collaborate on this process will be limited to one or two representatives per group. Please consider who from your organization might be your best representative for each event.

For your information and planning purposes, Sarah Eyster, RCPA Mental Health division and Robena Spangler, RCPA Children’s Division have RSVP’d and plan to attend all events when possible. The complete invitation and schedule of events is available here.

We are looking forward to the work ahead and providing you with the updates as the process moves along.

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On March 17, the Pennsylvania Department of the Treasury announced that the official launch of its PA Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Savings Program will occur on Monday, April 3, 2017, at a media and legislative event in the Capitol Rotunda at 12:30 pm. On that date, the PA Treasury ABLE program officially begins accepting accounts for enrollment and opens the door on hope for individuals with disabilities and the families who care for those loved ones. Kathleen F. McGrath, Esq., PA Savings Programs Director, invites stakeholders to join Treasurer Joe Torsella, US Senator Robert Casey, and PA Senator Lisa Baker as ABLE officially opens for business.

Pennsylvanians with eligible disabilities are about to receive the tools they need to build a sound fiscal future. ABLE accounts mean a new, fresh perspective on what living as a financially empowered individual can mean. A PA ABLE account gives individuals with qualified disabilities (Eligible Individuals), and their families and friends, a tax-free way to save for disability-related expenses, while maintaining government benefits. Federal and state law authorized the creation of PA ABLE accounts; additional information is available online.

The Pennsylvania Department of the Treasury welcomes the attendance of all stakeholders. Attendees are asked to RSVP with your name and the number you are bringing with you by March 30, 2017. Additional details will be provided to you once you RSVP your attendance.

Stakeholders are invited to share this information with anyone who has a stake in the successful launch of this new product. While program material will be available at the launch event, PA ABLE asks that requests for bulk material and outreach or speaking opportunities are sent by email. The more people who know about this program and what it means to be ABLE to look to living a secured future, the better.

In addition, PA ABLE invites stakeholders to share stories of those who are going to benefit from the ABLE account by contacting them by March 24, 2017. Ms. McGrath also invites stakeholders to follow the Twitter handle @PATreasury for the latest updates, and help drive the conversation with the hashtag #PAABLE.

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Please join the Office of Long-term Living (OLTL) and the Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) for an informational webinar on Community HealthChoices (CHC) on Friday, March 31, 2017 at 1:00 pm. The webinar will feature a presentation from OLTL’s Chief of Staff, Kevin Hancock. Kevin will provide an update on CHC, describe progress to date, and discuss next steps. There will be an opportunity for questions and answers at the end of the presentation.

Background on CHC
The commonwealth is in the process of implementing CHC. CHC is a mandatory managed care program for eligible individuals, providing physical health services and long-term services and supports, such as attendant care services. CHC is being geographically phased in across the commonwealth beginning in January of 2018 in 14 counties in southwestern Pennsylvania, followed in July 2018 by five counties in the southeastern portion of the commonwealth. The CHC implementation will be completed in January 2019, when the remaining counties are implemented. The move to CHC will assist DHS in continuing to provide quality services.  CHC managed care organizations will be required to coordinate covered services, Medicare, and behavioral health services for enrolled participants.

To register for the webinar, please follow this link. Once you have registered, you will receive a confirmation email containing connection information. Please note, the connection information you receive will be unique to you and should not be shared with others.

Reminder: All CHC-related information can be found here. Comments can be submitted electronically. If you have any questions, please contact the Office of Long-Term Living Bureau of Policy and Regulatory Management at 717-783-8412.

A listserv has been established for ongoing updates on the CHC program, titled OLTL-COMMUNITY-HEALTHCHOICES. If you would like to update or register your email address, please follow this link.

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The Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Special Education is pleased to announce the following training opportunity provided in collaboration with The McDowell Institute for Teacher Excellence in Positive Behavior Support, Bloomsburg University:

Youth Mental Health First Aid
Monday, May 15, 2017
8:00 am – 5:30 pm
Hershey Lodge and Convention Center
Presenters: McDowell Institute, Bloomsburg University
Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) is an 8-hour training designed to teach people methods of assisting a young person who may be in the early stages of developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental crisis. This training is being offered, free of charge, to school and/or agency professionals to ensure ample support is available to youth across Pennsylvania’s schools. Suggested participants in YMHFA training are listed below.

Please note: this training is considered introductory and does not inform advanced skills/strategies.

Target Audience:
This training is open to classroom teachers, administrators, social services staff and volunteers, substance abuse professionals, social workers, school psychologists, guidance counselors, counselors, family members, college/university leaders, nurses, physician assistants, primary care workers, and policymakers.

Registration is available immediately, first-come, first-served. Space is limited. To register, interested participants should contact Charlotte Kemper.

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Please join the Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) on Tuesday, April 4, 2017 at 10:00 am for a webinar on the new Peer Support Services (PSS) bulletin and standards, including information on expanding the service to include youth and young adults. Peer certification will also be discussed.

The webinar will include:

  • An overview of the new standards
  • Information on expansion of services to youth and young adults, including employee clearances, training resources, and other issues
  • Peer Certification

You are welcome to attend in person in the Clothestree Conference Room (Room 12-48, Commonwealth Tower, Harrisburg). If you plan to attend in person, please RSVP to Cristal Leeper by 12:00 pm on Friday, March 31, and you will receive additional information concerning meeting logistics. Please note, you will be responsible for any parking charges.

If you would like to attend via webinar, please register here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing connection information. Please note, the connection information you receive will be unique to you and should not be shared with others. Please send any questions to Cristal Leeper.

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Governor Wolf has announced that several state agencies have been chosen to participate in the federal government’s Commercial Parity Policy Academy, designed to help states better protect consumers through enforcement of federal laws requiring parity between insurance coverage of mental health and substance use disorders and physical health coverage. “The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which has been adopted into Pennsylvania state law, and the Affordable Care Act, both require that mental health and substance use disorder treatments be provided by insurers at parity with physical health coverage, and this requirement is vital for many thousands of Pennsylvanians who need this coverage,” Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller said. The Parity Policy Academy, conducted by the federal Department of Health and Human Services, will provide state officials with assistance in better enforcing these laws to protect consumers. In addition to the Insurance Department, other state agencies taking part in the Parity Policy Academy include the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, the Department of Health, and the Department of Human Services.

Commissioner Miller said her department will be using a $529,000 federal grant under the Health Insurance Enforcement and Consumer Protections Grant Program to enhance parity implementation and enforcement. The Wolf Administration, with the support of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, will continue to coordinate efforts to implement and enforce the laws requiring parity for mental health and substance use disorders. “Substance use disorder services are now being provided for 175,000 Pennsylvanians at parity with physical health services because of the coverage they receive under the Affordable Care Act, and I urge the Trump Administration and Congress to consider these people and how important this coverage is to them, as they debate any changes to this law.”

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On Monday, March 13, the House Health Committee will hold a meeting at 9:30 am in Room 205, Ryan Office Building to vote on HB478, which is sponsored by Rep. Tina Pickett (R – Bradford). The bill aims to assist outpatient psychiatric clinics to meet the growing demand and address the shortage of psychiatric time we are facing in Pennsylvania by changing the number of hours of psychiatric supervision required for each staff member per week. Additionally, the bill will allow licensed prescribing professionals to work within their scope of practice as is the case in the physical health care arena.  RCPA requests members to contact legislators that serve on the House Health Committee, and ask them to vote YES to move the bill out of committee.

The following legislators serve on the House Health Committee:

Republicans
Matt Baker, Chair
Kristen Hill
Aaron Bernstein
Alexander Charlton
Becky Corbin
Eli Evankovich
Frank Farry
Aaron Kaufer
Dawn Keefer
Harry Lewis
Paul Schemul
Todd Stephens
Jesse Topper
Judy Ward
Martina White
David Zimmerman

Democrats
Flo Fabrizio, Chair
Mary Jo Daley
Vanessa Brown
Mike Schlossberg
Kevin Boyle
Jason Dawkins
Pam DeLissio
Ed Gainey
Stephen Kinsey
Gerald Mullery

For your convenience, you can find the above legislators’ contact information here. Questions, contact Jack Phillips, RCPA Director of Government Affairs.

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Again this year the Pennsylvania Youth Suicide Prevention Initiative (PAYSPI) and its partners will be hosting Suicide Prevention Nights at the Ballparks this year. These are the events where the students selected as the winners of the state’s youth suicide poster and public service announcement contest are publicly recognized for their work. The Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Harrisburg Senators have offered discount pricing, with a portion of the ticket sales through the PAYSPI links going toward suicide prevention in Pennsylvania. The Suicide Prevention Night In Philadelphia will be on April 22 (Phillies vs Atlanta Braves). For tickets at a special discount rate, with a contribution going to suicide prevention, visit this web page.

Look for information on similar events in both Pittsburgh and Harrisburg as information becomes available. In years past, provider organizations, managed care organizations, advocacy groups, and community businesses have made Suicide Prevention Nights at the Ballpark group outings for staff, consumers, and families.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has issued updated screening and assessment recommendations for children’s preventive health care. The AAP also continued to emphasize the need for “unfragmented continuity of care” in comprehensive health supervision. Published online in Pediatrics, the 2017 policy statement contains changes to 11 areas of care, relative to the 2016 revision of the Bright Futures Periodicity Schedule, which cover care from birth to age 21. The recommendations note that “developmental, psychosocial, and chronic disease issues for children and adolescents may require frequent counseling and treatment visits separate from preventive care visits,” they caution, adding that unusual family circumstances may necessitate additional visits.

Changes include such care areas as:

  • Depression: Screening for adolescents should begin at age 12 years. In addition, physicians should ask about maternal depression at infants’ 1-, 2-, 4-, and 6-month medical visits.
  • Psychosocial-behavioral: The update underscores that assessment should be family-centered and, in addition to a child’s social and emotional health, may include evaluation of caregivers and social determinants of health.

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Department of Human Services (DHS) Secretary Ted Dallas spoke at the RCPA Board of Directors meeting on February 22 regarding Governor Wolf’s proposal to consolidate four state health and human service agencies. If approved by the legislature, the plan would be launched on July 1, 2017.

Although the Secretary referenced approximately $90 million in savings from this process, he also affirmed that this “cannot be just about saving money.” Dallas remarked that time spent dealing with the bureaucracies as currently constructed takes time away from providing services, and so the goal is to eliminate redundancies.

RCPA members brought up key topics such as population health, licensing, and services for persons with co-existing conditions. When asked how this consolidation will affect addressing the opioid crisis, Secretary Dallas responded that the focus would be shifted to treating the whole person, rather than each individual condition.

The meeting concluded with the Secretary requesting ideas for continued efficiencies and how to ultimately better serve members. On the day of the Governor’s announcement, RCPA issued a statement expressing support for the proposal and committing to working with the administration to implement the plan in a smart and cost-effective manner.

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