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Policy Areas

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In 2020, the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) Bureau of Supports for Autism and Special Populations (BSASP) clinical team implemented a triage process to prioritize clinical support for participants and teams with high-risk needs. Currently, those participants deemed high-risk are assigned one clinical rep to consult with teams and ensure continuity of support. All other participant teams reach out to the clinical team as needed, but the clinical rep varies depending on the need at that time. The triage process remains fluid, and as participant’s needs change, risks increase, or new concerns arise, so will the level of clinical support. The triage levels are determined by multiple factors, including the information identified within the Periodic Risk Evaluation (PRE) and incident history. This triage process only applies to the ODP-BSASP Clinical Team and does not change any involvement, operational processes, or responsibilities of the Regional Office and the Regional Office Representatives.

New AAW Clinical Referral Process

In an effort to maximize the clinical team resources and triage team needs efficiently, the clinical team is implementing a new referral process for participant teams in the Adult Autism Waiver (AAW) in need of clinical support effective May 15, 2023. This new process will require Supports Coordinators (SCs) to complete an online form to share information about the type of support requested. View the full announcement here. The referral form is titled Referral for ODP/BSASP Consult for AAW Participants.

If you have any questions about this communication or process, please contact the Provider Support inbox.

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As the Federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) ends on May 11, there are several areas under this declaration, including the suspension of HIPAA enforcement, that will revert to the previous compliance standards.

As the PHE ends, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) is providing a 90-calendar day transition period for covered health care providers to come into compliance with the HIPAA Rules with respect to their provision of telehealth. This transition period will be in effect beginning on May 12, 2023, and will expire at 11:59 pm on August 9, 2023. The Department of Health and Human Services has released this notice.

The RCPA Telehealth Work Group will be meeting June 27, 2023 and is looking to have OMHSAS on the call to provide guidance on processes and auditing functions after the transition dates. If you have any questions, please contact RCPA Policy Director Jim Sharp. As this is a federal notice, questions related to this announcement should be directed to Marissa Gordon-Nguyen at 202-619–0403 or 800-537–7697 (TDD).

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As the end of the Public Health Emergency (PHE) on May 11, 2023 nears, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released a number of resources to help with this transition. Included in these resources are FAQs for all CMS programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and private insurance. Some additional information includes:

Additionally, CMS released the  Quality, Safety, & Oversight Memorandum to provide information about:

  • Expiration of emergency waivers related to minimum health and safety requirements for long-term care and acute and continuing care providers
  • Timelines for certain regulatory requirements issued during the PHE

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The Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee will hold a full committee hearing ‎on May 4, 2023 at 1:00 pm. This hearing, “Preparing for the Next Public Health Emergency: Reauthorizing the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA),” will address the PAHPA set ‎to expire on September 30, 2023. This would be PAHPA’s first reauthorization since the ‎COVID-19 pandemic, and there are significant lessons learned and issues to address from this ‎experience. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Robert Califf, and Assistant ‎Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Dawn O’Connell are a few individuals expected to testify at the ‎hearing.

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The transition from student to adult services is often referred to as a “cliff” where many needed services and service providers “drop off.” For individuals with complex communication needs, this often results in regression or stalled progress in communication, right when it is arguably more important to quality of life than ever. Penn State Health has focused their efforts on addressing this gap, teaching adults with limited functional communication to be able to communicate more with high tech augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). While providing outpatient speech and language therapy and applied behavior analysis services in their clinic, they then noticed another gap in services. The direct support professionals, parents, and other caretakers supporting the patients on a daily basis often had limited experience, knowledge, and confidence using the AAC themselves with the person they were supporting. In response to this concern, Penn State Health has been building resources to help caregivers become confident, competent communication partners using the AAC. They have been developing models of education and training that meet caretakers where they are, acknowledging their time and capacity limits. With these efforts, they hope to hear the voices of many more adults in this population – not just in the clinic, but also in the community.

Tuesday, June 30, 2023
10:00 am – 11:30 am
Register Here

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System For Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities, Autism Will Collapse Without Increased State Aid, Advocates Say
Health, human services organizations ask General Assembly for $430 million increase to stop further termination of programs, closure of facilities

HARRISBURG, Pa. (May 3, 2023) – Advocates for and providers of services for individuals with intellectual disabilities and autism (ID/A) today urged the Pennsylvania General Assembly to increase state aid by $430 million to prevent a full collapse of the system. Prominent health and human services organizations gathered in the Capitol rotunda and said chronic underfunding and staffing shortages are forcing them to end programs and turn away individuals.

The $430 million funding request would generate a federal match that would allow providers to resume service to the 4,029 individuals who lost care in recent years. Without the 15-percent increase, providers say that 60,000 Pennsylvanians with ID/A would be at risk of losing or experiencing a reduction of essential services [read full press release].

 

 

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