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Physical Disabilities & Aging

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Explore unique leadership and up-to-date support strategies in health and human services at the 2023 RCPA Annual Conference A Decade of Unity, as our speakers will be covering topics that touch on hoarding disabilities, handling subpoenas, and even tackling social anxiety with tabletop games! Held at the Hershey Lodge October 10 – 13, participants can earn CEs through these exciting and interactive workshops. Our full brochure is available, and below is a sampling of the many sessions being offered:

  • Hoarding Recovery and Maintenance Program
    • Learn about the Hoarding Recovery and Maintenance Program, which was designed to support individuals dealing with anxiety and stress as they let go of their hoarded possessions.
  • Make Difficult People Disappear: How to Reduce Stress and Eliminate Conflict in the Workplace
    • Obtain tricks and resources to not only managing stressful individuals but making them disappear without worsening the situation.
  • Investigating the Use of Tabletop Role-Playing Games as a Potential Therapeutic Intervention for Individuals With Social Anxiety
    • Discover how tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons can assist adults in dealing with anxiety, particularly social anxiety.
  • A Treatment Outcome Measurement System That Helps to Get & Keep Treatment Funding
    • Develop a simple yet effective treatment outcome measurement system in order to keep funding, including Medicaid funding.
  • Addressing Cultural Barriers to Treatment: How to Be Respectfully Curious When Working With Families
    • Address leadership tactics for being curious yet respectful when interacting with fellow employees in order to avoid causing more harm or enforcing one’s personal beliefs.
  • Subpoenas, Court Orders, and Requests for PHI: Obligations Under HIPAA, the MHPA, and Other Statutes
    • Delve into HIPAA and PA statues in order to learn about the complexities regarding subpoenas and court-related orders when working in health and human services.
  • Enabling Technology: The Why, What, and How Needed to Make it Happen
    • Understand how companies can improve organization capacity in order to provide up-to-date technology to disabled communities.
  • Leadership and Navigating Change
    • Tackle resistance in a team that is going through significant adjustments and learn how to be a leader by focusing on the ‘people side’ of change.
Register today!

In addition to an impressive roster of speakers, our 2023 Conference will have an exciting array of sponsors and exhibitors. We thank those who have signed on thus far! If you are interested in sponsoring or exhibiting, visit here for more details or contact Carol Ferenz, Conference Coordinator, with any questions you may have. Keep up-to-date and register today for #rcpaconf!

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The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) has announced the third annual publication of the Resource Guide for Supporting Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing Individuals. The purpose of this guide is to offer resources in one central location for those who support or care for someone who is Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or DeafBlind and receives supports from ODP. The guide provides some of the most frequently accessed resources to assist in addressing the unique needs of these populations, such as information about American Sign Language (ASL) courses, home modifications, assistive technology, a foundational organizations directory, and so much more!

Development of this guide included input from individuals within the Deaf, DeafBlind, hard of hearing, and hearing communities and will be revised annually by ODP’s Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing Advisory Committee. This guide will also be available in the near future on MyODP under Training > Special Populations > Deaf Services.

For questions, please email ODP Deaf Services.

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Governor Shapiro’s office published a list of regulations being considered by the state agencies in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on July 22, 2023. The document lists regulations being drafted by state agencies that cover a wide variety of activities under oversight of the state government. Under Executive Order 1996-1, all agencies under the jurisdiction of the Governor must submit for publication semi-annually an agenda of regulations under development or consideration. This list is current as of July 15, 2023.

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Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

RCPA has received notification from PA Health & Wellness (PHW) regarding an update to the prior authorization process for Residential and Structured Day Habilitation services. The updates included in the notice are effective starting August 1, 2023.

Questions regarding this update should be directed to PHW’s Provider Services at 844-626-6813 or to Provider Relations via email.

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On July 13, 2023, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule that announces and solicits public comments on proposed policy changes for Medicare payments under the Calendar Year (CY) 2024 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) and other Medicare Part B issues, effective on or after January 1, 2024.

The calendar year (CY) 2024 PFS proposed rule is one of several proposed rules that reflect a broader Administration-wide strategy to create a more equitable health care system that results in better access to care, quality, affordability, and innovation.

The proposed modifications include several pertaining to telehealth policy in the Medicare program for 2024. One of the major takeaways from the proposed 2024 PFS is the clarification that certain telehealth flexibilities that were previously extended until 151 days after the end of the public health emergency (PHE) have now been extended until December 31, 2024, in accordance with amendments made by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. These extensions have been known since the CAA’s passage in December last year and has also been addressed in a series of fact sheets and FAQ documents.

However, there were also some new changes addressed in the 2024 PFS. For example, every year CMS will consider adding new services to their list of codes that are reimbursable via telehealth. While they did not decide to add any new codes on a permanent basis to the list (though many remain on the list temporarily through the end of 2024), they did propose to add a number of codes to Category 3 (CMS’ current temporary list), including certain codes for health and well-being coaching services. Additionally, CMS announced a proposed revision to their telehealth code classification process, moving from a Category 1, 2 and 3 classification system to a binary ‘permanent’ or ‘provisional’ classification in an attempt to simplify the process beginning in CY 2025. In order to make the steps for getting a code accepted for inclusion in either the permanent or provisional telehealth lists transparent, CMS proposes a five-step process that is detailed in the proposed 2024 PFS, which includes consideration of the evidence of clinical benefits.

A few additional changes proposed in the document are listed below:

  • The list of telehealth practitioners is amended to recognize marriage and family therapists and mental health counselors as telehealth practitioners, effective Jan. 1, 2024.
  • CMS will pay for place of service (POS) 10 at the non-facility PFS rate, while 02 will be paid at the facility rate beginning Jan. 1, 2024.
  • Frequency limitation would be removed for subsequent inpatient visits through the duration of CY 2024.
  • Multiple clarifications are provided for billing both remote physiologic monitoring (RPM) and remote therapy monitoring (RTM) codes.
  • Direct supervision is allowed to include real-time audio video interactive telecommunication through Dec. 31, 2024 (including for FQHCs and RHCs). Direct supervision requirements are also addressed for occupational therapists in private practice (OTPP) and physical therapists in private practice (PTPP) for unenrolled physical and occupational therapists when providing remote RTM.

CMS will be accepting comments on their proposals until 5:00 pm EST on September 11, 2023, and RCPA will review the document and work with the National Council for Mental Wellbeing in drafting recommendations. We welcome provider feedback and comments to be included and ask that you contact and share these with your RCPA Policy Director.

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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a revised Medicare Learning Network (MLN) fact sheet on telehealth services. A number of changes have been made due to the end of the public health emergency (PHE), including the following items:

  • Information on the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency as well as CY 2023 and telehealth policies.
  • Status of Ongoing Flexibilities:
    • Through December 31, 2024, all patients can get telehealth wherever they are located. They do not need to be at an originating site, and there are no geographic restrictions.
    • Through December 31, 2024, all providers who are eligible to bill Medicare for professional services can provide distant site telehealth.
    • For behavioral or mental health telehealth, you may use 2-way, interactive, audio-only technology. This is also part of the PA Telehealth Statute under Act 98.
  • Additional Resources Provided:
    • Chapter 12, Section 190 of the Medicare Claims Processing Manual
    • Telehealth Policy Changes After the COVID-19 PHE
    • Tips for Telehealth Success
  • Added information on:
    • New G-codes. Starting January 1, 2023, you may voluntarily report the use of telehealth technology in providing home health (HH) services on HH payment claims. See MLN Matters Article MM12805 for more information.
    • Consent for care management and virtual communication services.

Providers are encouraged to review this document closely and bookmark it for future reference.

As RCPA continues its efforts to expand access via telehealth in Pennsylvania, we will be submitting comments on the new Calendar Year (CY) 2024 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). RCPA will be sending out a communication on this in the coming days.

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Join us at the 2023 RCPA Annual Conference A Decade of Unity for the latest in strategies and innovations within the health and human services sector. Held at the Hershey Lodge October 10 – 13, participants can earn CEs through workshops that will cover a wide variety of topics. Our full brochure is available, and we’ll be rounding out our first day at the lodge with:

  • Driving Pennsylvania’s Health Care Transformation: Integrating Perspectives for Advanced Patient-Centered Care
    • Discuss strategies and methods of health care system integration, including designing a roadmap for practical applications.
  • Purpose and Growth: Engaging and Retaining Your Teams in Challenging Times
    • Learn to retain employees in the face of generational gaps, the effects of the pandemic, and the economy by focusing on what they most want: purpose and growth.
  • Why Your Agency Needs A Specialized Telehealth Solution: Improving Health, Provider Cost Saving, Increased Satisfaction
    • Hear about StationMD and Mainstay Life Services’ telehealth partnership and how having a specialized telehealth solution can improve outcomes while lowering costs.
  • Data Strategies for Impact and System Transformation
    • Do more with your data by learning the stages of organizational development for data-informed decision-making.
  • Value-Based Purchasing: A Survival Guide
    • Review value-based purchasing and how it is a tool to be used to improve quality health care. This discussion will include best practices for utilizing data in real time.
  • Current Steps in Implementing Trauma-informed Care in Children’s MH RTFs
    • Learn about OMHSAS’s TIC Initiative for children’s mental health residential treatment facilities, which serves as part of PA’s commitment to becoming a trauma-informed state.
  • Individual Operations: Owning Your Own Influence
    • Understand what it means to be a leader and implement strategies that will strengthen your team, including utilizing and recognizing scheduling patterns, planning ahead, and knowing when to set and break boundaries.
  • Condition Support: Addressing Escalated Situations in the Health Care Setting
    • Analyze an overview of UPMC’s Conditional Support Process, which addresses patients or visitors who exhibit aggressive or hostile behaviors in order to protect medical professionals.
Register today!

In addition to an impressive roster of speakers, our 2023 Conference will have an exciting array of sponsors and exhibitors. We thank those who have signed on thus far! If you are interested in sponsoring or exhibiting, visit here for more details or contact Carol Ferenz, Conference Coordinator, with any questions you may have. Keep up-to-date and register today for #rcpaconf!

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The Department of Human Services (DHS) recognizes that the corrective action process is a cornerstone of human services licensing. In 2019, the Department released a webinar, Developing a Plan of Correction, to assist providers with the successful development and implementation of acceptable Plans of Correction. Likewise, the Plan of Correction Quick Reference Guide was issued as a tool to assist our providers with this process.

The Department is seeking your feedback on these resources. Please complete this survey by July 26, 2023, in order to assist DHS in determining what additional steps are needed to ensure that our providers are sufficiently educated and supported in the Plan of Correction process.

If you have further questions, please contact your respective RCPA Policy Director for guidance.

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