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Mental Health

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March 13, 2025
1:00 pm EST
Register Here

Greenspace Health, in partnership with Project HEAL, a nonprofit organization in the U.S. focused on equitable treatment access for eating disorders, are co-presenting an educational webinar. This unique session, moderated by Carsen Rhys Beckwith, Program Director at Project HEAL, will bring together a panel of experts in both Measurement-Based Care (MBC) and eating disorder treatment.

Greenspace’s Chief Growth Officer, Jesse Hayman, and Dr. Wendy Oliver Pyatt, Co-founder, CEO and Chief Medical Officer at Within Health and CEO and Co-founder at Galen Hope, will share how MBC fosters meaningful collaboration in eating disorder treatment, supports personalized interventions, and ultimately improves outcomes for people in care.

Don’t miss this opportunity to uncover the impact of MBC in eating disorder treatment, with a focus on driving equity and practical strategies for implementation.

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The Department of Human Services (DHS) Secretary Val Arkoosh met with systems stakeholders to provide an overview of the Governor’s proposed 2025/26 DHS budget. The Secretary began by reviewing the accomplishments of DHS under the administration and highlighted areas around Medicaid, systems enhancements, and the expansion in the delivery of services to Pennsylvanians.

The projected spending across DHS showed an investment of $21.17B, with the following breakdowns:

  • $7.13B for Long-Term Living;
  • $6.4B for Medicaid/healthcare delivery;
  • $3.22B for ID/A;
  • $1.72B for Human Services and County Child Welfare; and
  • $1.04B for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders.

This budget number represents a $1.95B increase over last year’s executive budget. The most significant increases included:

  • $927M for Long-Term Living;
  • $7.23M for Medicaid/healthcare delivery;
  • $1.84M for ID/A;
  • $74M for Child Development; and
  • $32M for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders.

RCPA submitted questions during the webinar in an effort to gain greater clarity on the proposed $2.4B increase in the Health Choices capitation. Several questions remain unanswered, including:

  • Are these dollars allocated towards physical health, behavioral health, or both?
  • What is the spending strategy for the 2024/25 supplemental appropriations? Is that part of the $2.4B?

There was clarification on the proposed $170M increase in the ID/A budget, but Secretary Arkoosh stipulated that this was not new investments but rather funds to sustain last year’s increase.

The remainder of the webinar was spent outlining current DHS initiatives, including the Keystones of Health 1115 Waiver, which was approved in December 2024. This year’s priority will focus on reentry services as well as planning for future implementation. The Secretary concluded her comments supporting the minimum wage increase, reinforcing the workforce infrastructure, and tackling Commonwealth-wide challenges.

The DHS Bluebook is scheduled for release in the coming weeks and will provide line item details of the budget. RCPA will continue to work with DHS and PA legislators on the budget specifics and our ongoing advocacy efforts. You can view the DHS budget webinar here.

RCPA will continue to update members on the budget as information becomes available. If you have further questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Director.

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Join RCPA as we host the 2025 Annual Conference Striving to Thrive from September 9 – 12 at the Hershey Lodge. The event is a highlight for the Pennsylvania behavioral health, brain injury, children’s, intellectual and developmental disabilities, medical rehabilitation, and physical disabilities and aging provider communities. RCPA staff and the Conference Committee are excited to release this year’s Sponsors, Exhibitors, and Advertiser Brochure, which features new opportunities to get in on the action and network with providers. Booth self-selection will also be available for exhibitors and exhibiting sponsors. In order to be considered for self-selection, a completed contract with payment must be submitted.

Network and Compete in Connections Hall
Connections Hall activities take place during the two busiest days of the conference, and many networking opportunities are available throughout the event. You’ll also be able to compete and have a chance to win “Best of Show!”

Exciting New Sponsorship Opportunities
RCPA is privileged to have the backing of the finest organizations in the field for our conference. Through the use of sponsorship circles, RCPA is able to honor all supporting organizations.

Sign Up Now!
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 August 20.

The association looks forward to welcoming you at the conference! Space and opportunities are reserved on a first-come, first-served basis, and no reservation is considered complete without payment. If questions remain, please contact Carol Ferenz, Conference Coordinator.

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Message from ANCOR:

A second federal judge has blocked the freeze on federal spending noticed earlier in the week through a memo from OMB.

The order directs the Trump Administration not to “pause, freeze, impede, block, cancel, or terminate defendants’ compliance with awards and obligations to provide federal financial assistance to the states, and defendants shall not impede the states’ access to such awards and obligations” until further arguments can be heard.

The order does not prevent the review of federal programs, only the freeze on federal spending during the review. The OMB memo was rescinded prior to the issuance of the order, but the judge expressed earlier in the week that he was not persuaded that withdrawing the memo removed the underlying harm.

A hearing is expected Monday on the previous restraining order issued earlier in the week. We’ll keep you posted as we learn more.

Lydia Dawson, JD
ANCOR | Vice President of Government Relations
571-932-5375

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Earlier this month the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for Special Registrations for Telemedicine and Limited State Telemedicine Registrations. DEA is seeking public comment by March 18, 2025.

RCPA is considering whether it will submit comments. If you have comments about the proposed rule that you would like to make part of any RCPA response or if you would like to discuss the proposed rule, please contact RCPA SUD Treatment Services Policy Director Jason Snyder.

The NPRM introduces three types of Special Registrations for Telemedicine:

  1. A Telemedicine Prescribing Registration, authorizing qualified clinician practitioners to prescribe Schedule III-V controlled substances via telemedicine;
  2. An Advanced Telemedicine Prescribing Registration, authorizing qualified, specialized clinician practitioners (i.e., psychiatrists, hospice care physicians, physicians rendering treatment at long-term care facilities, and pediatricians for the prescribing of medications identified as the most addictive and prone to diversion to the illegal drug market) to prescribe Schedule II-V controlled substances via telemedicine; and
  3. A Telemedicine Platform Registration, authorizing covered online telemedicine platforms, in their capacity as platform practitioners, to dispense Schedule II-V controlled substances. To satisfy the statutory requirements, DEA would also require the special registrant to maintain a State Telemedicine Registration for every state in which a patient is treated by the special registrant, unless otherwise exempted. The State Telemedicine Registration would be issued by DEA, not the states, and operate as an ancillary credential, contingent on the Special Registration held by the special registrant.

Public comments are also requested on additional patient protections for the prescribing of Schedule II medications by telemedicine, including:

  • Whether the special registrant should be physically located in the same state as the patient being prescribed Schedule II medications;
  • Whether to limit Schedule II medications by telemedicine to medical practitioners whose practice is limited to less than 50 percent of prescriptions by telemedicine; and
  • The appropriate duration needed for the rules’ provisions to be enacted.

The special registration rule will also require the establishment of a national prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) to help the health industry protect against abuse and the diversion of controlled substances into the illegal drug market. A national PDMP will provide pharmacists and medical practitioners with visibility of a patient’s prescribed medication history.

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The Employment First Cabinet Report has been published.

Employment First is about making sure that every person, who wants to, has the chance to work in a competitive integrated environment, supported and empowered by their employer, their colleagues, and their government.

The Shapiro-Davis Administration is committed to upholding the values and goals laid out in Act 36 to enhance employment outcomes for individuals with a disability. As required by the Act, this annual report contains information about progress made since the last report was issued and provides insight into the strategic direction of the Commonwealth as advised by the Cabinet and EFOC, ensuring individuals with disabilities have opportunities to achieve economic independence through CIE.

This annual report by the Employment First Cabinet has six thematic sections:

  • Service Provision and Benefit Coordination;
  • Accessibility;
  • The Commonwealth as a Model Employer;
  • Other Agency Initiatives;
  • Response to Employment First Oversight Commission (EFOC) Report; and
  • Recommendations and Future Direction.

Read the report here.

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