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Remote Supports Requirements: Provider Qualifications, Provider Enrollment, and Revisions to ISPs
ODP Announcement 23-017 provides information regarding Remote Supports as a separate, discrete service in all four of the Office of Developmental Programs’ (ODP) waivers. Remote Supports is no longer covered as a component of the Assistive Technology service in the Consolidated, P/FDS, and Community Living waivers.
Guidance in the announcement includes how to add remote supports to the ISP, necessary provider qualifications, and enrollment process. Please refer to Attachment A for more instructions on how to add Remote Supports services for the P/FDS, Community Living, or Consolidated Waiver. Please refer to Attachment B for more instructions on how to add Remote Support Services for the AAW. Additional information about the qualification of a new specialty is contained in ODP Announcement 22-122 “Provider Qualification Process.”
Existing providers must submit the approved DP 1059 (ID/A) or DP 1088 (AAW) along with the “PROMISe™ Provider Service Location Change Request,” which can be found on the MyODP website, to the ODP provider enrollment inbox and/or AAW provider enrollment inbox in order to add a new Specialty 364 to an EXISTING active service location with the same Provider Type. Providers that do not have a Provider Type 51 service location open in PROMISe will need to submit an application through the Provider Enrollment system.
Questions regarding ISP requirements should be sent to the appropriate ODP Regional Office. Questions regarding provider qualification requirements should be sent to the ODP Provider Qualification inbox and the AAW Provider Enrollment Lead.
Update on Targeted Service Recovery and Expansion Supplemental Payments
ODP Announcement 23-001 has been updated with new information regarding Supports Coordination Organizations’ recovery payments. The performance standard has been changed so that SCOs must be accepting referrals of newly enrolled individuals in the ODP system as of 3/1/2023. Eligible SCOs must increase the number of individuals served between 3/1/2023 and 6/30/2023. An FAQ sheet is available.
All questions and comments related to this announcement can be sent electronically.
DHS Provides Update on the End of the PA PHE, Medicaid, and CHIP
Pennsylvania is preparing for a major change in renewal processes for Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) recipients.
Starting April 1, 2023, Pennsylvania is required by federal law to review Medicaid and CHIP recipients’ eligibility every year, which means that recipients must submit a renewal. While the Department of Human Services (DHS) still sent renewals during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, most people were not disenrolled from Medicaid or CHIP because of a change in eligibility.
DHS encourages everyone to share the following information with Medicaid and CHIP recipients to help them stay informed about renewals.
What Should I Do Right Now?
The best thing that Medicaid and CHIP recipients can do right now to prepare for their renewal is to make sure that their contact information is up-to-date with DHS. By making sure that their information is current, recipients can receive timely updates about their renewal. They also can opt-in to receiving text and email alerts about their benefits.
- Visit COMPASS and log into their My COMPASS Account.
- Use the free myCOMPASS PA mobile app.
- Call 877-395-8930 or 215-560-7226 (Philadelphia), Monday – Friday from 8:00 am – 4:30 pm.
What Else Do I Need to Know?
Completing Medicaid and CHIP Renewals
Renewals should be completed when they are received, even if recipients receive them before April 1, 2023. Recipients will receive a renewal packet in the mail when it is time to renew their coverage. Information about their renewal will start to arrive 90 days before it is due. It is very important that renewal forms are completed and returned even if nothing has changed. Completing a renewal allows DHS to determine eligibility for MA or CHIP coverage. Coverage will continue for recipients who are still eligible.
There are a few ways for recipients to complete a renewal:
- Complete the forms DHS sends and mail them back in the envelope included in the packet.
- Drop completed forms off at the local county assistance office (CAO).
- Complete the renewal online.
- Complete the renewal over the phone by calling 866-550-4355.
What is Continuous Coverage?
Under the continuous coverage requirement, individuals covered by Medicaid and/or CHIP have been able to keep their health coverage even if they would have otherwise become ineligible for the program based on other factors.
Evaluating Eligibility
Once the continuous Medicaid and CHIP coverage requirement ends, recipients will have to complete a renewal to maintain their coverage as long as they are eligible.
Are You Ineligible for Coverage?
DHS will provide instructions on how to re-enroll or share options for coverage if individuals are no longer eligible. Options for free or low-cost health coverage are available online.
DDAP Surveying Providers on Workforce Issues
The Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) is seeking provider input for a brief workforce survey. DDAP is interested in hearing providers’ perspective on which jobs and positions are in short supply or understaffed, the challenges providers face, attempts to address them, and solutions that DDAP should consider. Responses will help inform DDAP’s regulatory reform efforts.
The survey can be taken here.
SAMHSA to Host Webinar on How To Develop a Competitive Grant Application
The Office of Financial Resources at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) will be conducting a webinar on how to develop a competitive grant application. The same webinar will be offered on two dates: February 23, 2023, and March 7, 2023, both at 2:00 pm (ET).
Webinar: How to Develop a Competitive Grant Application
The webinar will address:
- The three registration processes that need to be completed;
- Preparing to apply for a grant;
- Key components of the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO);
- Responding effectively to the evaluation criteria; and
- Resources and technical assistance that are available.
Information on how to access the webinar can be found on the Training Events web page. There is no need to register in advance. If you would like to receive the slides prior to the webinar, you can make a request electronically.
SAMHSA Funding Opportunity for Youth Mental Health Systems of Care
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) will award approximately 26 applicants up to $3,000,000 to provide resources to improve the mental health outcomes for children and youth, birth through age 21, who are at risk of or have serious emotional disturbances (SED) and their families. This grant supports the implementation, expansion, and integration of the System of Care (SOC) approach by creating sustainable infrastructure and services required as part of the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children and their Families Program.
You can find additional information here. The grant closes on March 21, 2025.
If you have further questions, please contact RCPA Policy Director Jim Sharp.
PAS/SCE Strategic Member Meeting — March 1, 2023
RCPA to Host PA Reception at NatCon23
OMHSAS Moves Monthly Stakeholder Meeting to February 24
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