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ALR

On August 31, 2022, the Department of Human Services (DHS) Bureau of Human Services Licensing issued written guidance on the use of voice controlled electronic devices in personal care homes (PCH) and assisted living residences (ALR).

A webinar has been scheduled for October 7, 2022, at 11:00 am that will address the implementation of this written guidance, the responsibilities of PCH and ALR in implementing policies and procedures to ensure regulatory compliance, and the procedures that will be utilized by DHS staff while conducting licensing inspections. The webinar will be conducted by Jeanne Parisi, Bureau Director; Sheila Page, Operations Director; and Joshua Hoover, Training and Professional Development. To participate in this webinar, registration is required.

Northampton Community College is offering free online training programs in the fall 2022 for personal care homes (PCHs) and Assisted Living Residences (ALRs). There are a variety of training topics being offered, including Verbal De-escalation Redirection Techniques, Dementia Care in PCH, and Safe Medication Practices.

In the announcement, you can select the linked course titles to register. You may also visit the College’s website. If you have any questions about registering, please contact Northampton Community College via email or at (610) 332-6585.

Participation is limited for each course. If you register and later discover you are unavailable to participate, please cancel your registration to allow other individuals the opportunity to register.

If you need information about additional available training for administrators, please contact the Operator Support Hotline at (866) 503-3926 or electronically.

The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) issued the following notice regarding the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) one-time payments for personal care homes (PCH) and Assisted Living Residences (ALR):

Background Info:

Governor Wolf signed Act 54 of 2022, which allocates $26.767 million of federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) for payments to nursing facilities (NF), personal care homes (PCH), and assisted living residences (ALR). To qualify for the one-time payment, a facility must be in operation as of July 1, 2022.

These one-time ARPA funds must be used for COVID-19 related costs not otherwise reimbursed by federal, state, or other sources of funding. OLTL will send a letter with details about the payments, including information about the approved use of and reporting on these funds. An Act 54 Facility Acceptance Form must be completed by September 2, 2022.

Additional information on Act 54, payment amounts and approved use of this funding will be available at the DHS Long-Term Care Providers page.

PCH/ALR Payments:

  • ARPA PCH/ALR Payment #1 — Licensed Occupancy
    • The total funds available for a one-time ARPA payment to PCHs and ALRs pursuant to Act 54 (ARPA PCH/ALR Payment #1) is $24,090,000. Each PCH/ALR Payment #1 is calculated by the dividing the census of the PCH or ALR, as determined by the most recent DHS inspection on or before July 1, 2022, by the total census of all PCHs and ALRs, including those with a special care designation, as determined by the most recent DHS inspection on or before July 1, 2022, to obtain a facility-specific quotient for each PCH and ALR. Each facility’s quotient is multiplied by $24,090,000 to determine its payment amount.
  • ARPA PCH/ALR Payment #2 — Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Residents Served
    • The total funds available for a one-time ARPA payment to PCHs and ALRs pursuant to Act 54 (ARPA PCH/ALR Payment #2) is $2,677,000. Each ARPA PCH/ALR Payment #2 is calculated by dividing the number of individuals for whom the PCH/ALR received a state SSI payment as in March 2022, divided by the total of all PCH’s/ALR’s individuals for whom a state SSI payment was made in March 2022, to obtain a facility-specific quotient. Each PCH’s/ALR’s quotient is multiplied by $2,677,000 to determine its payment amount.

PCHs and ALRs must complete the Facility Acceptance Form by August 26, 2022. Checks will be issued and mailed in the order in which DHS receives the Facility Acceptance Forms.

Act 54 of 2022 requires the ARPA funding to be obligated by December 31, 2024, and spent by December 31, 2026, or returned to the commonwealth. Additionally, these funds must be used for COVID-19 related expenses. Providers must keep documentation to prove that these funds were used for their response to the COVID-19 pandemic in case of an audit. Any person or entity accepting an ARPA payment agrees to provide documentation to DHS, upon request, for purposes of determining compliance with Act 24 requirements. Instructions on expenditure reporting will be provided at a later date.

The Department of Human Services (DHS) recommends that providers consult their accountants or attorneys for further clarification on acceptable uses of ARPA funding. DHS encourages providers to review guidance for eligible expenditures on the U.S. Department of the Treasury website in their Compliance and Reporting Guidance.

Any questions about this information or the Facility Acceptance Form should be sent to PW, OLTL COVID Payments.

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

Message from the Bureau of Human Services Licensing (BHSL) regarding the renewals of assisted living residences (ALR) and personal care homes (PCHs) license renewals:

Due to staffing issues, BHSL Licensing Administration is currently experiencing a delay in processing renewals 130 days in advance of expiration. In most cases, Licensing Administration is issuing the license in the month that it expires.

If your license has expired and you have not yet received your renewal, please contact Licensing Administration at 717-705-0383 or via email directly so that your renewal can be expedited. Any Certificates of Compliance that have or will be expired on or before August 31, 2022, have been emailed to the email addresses we have on file. We are currently working on the September expiration dates. To expedite the process, you will be receiving your Certificate of Compliance electronically. It is being sent to the email address(es) as noted on your renewal application. If changes to your email address(es) are needed at any time throughout the year, please send a notification email here and to your regional office.

The Certificate of Compliance may also be printed from the Provider Directory, which is updated when the Certificate of Compliance is issued via email. It can be found by searching the name of your home here. Select the Certificate hyperlink in the License Status & License # column of your directory listing.

Please be reminded that if you have not received your approval letter from BEO, you will need to submit a Civil Rights Attestation electronically. You can find the form here. The Attestation may be submitted via email ONLY if you had previously submitted the CRCQ without receiving a letter of approval from the BEO. It should be emailed here. Any email correspondence sent to Licensing Administration should have this format in the subject line: LICENSE #, NAME OF HOME, DESCRIPTION OF CONTENTS, i.e.: 123450 – ABC Personal Care Home – Attestation.

When submitting the Civil Rights Compliance Attestation with the renewal application and renewal application fee, they must submitted in one mailing via physical mail to:

Via USPS:

DHS/BHSL
Room 623
PO Box 2675
Harrisburg, PA 17105-2675                               

Or via courier:

DHS/BHSL
Health & Welfare Building Rm 623
625 Forster Street
Harrisburg, PA 17120  

Image by Shotkitimages from Pixabay

Temple University Harrisburg recently announced their fall 2022 online training that is approved to meet the personal care home (PCH) and assisted living residence (ALR) annual training requirements.

Information about the online training sessions (including registration links) are provided below:

Those interested in participating only need to register for one session for each topic. Please read the training announcements in full before registering to ensure you are able to meet the participation requirements. Participation is limited for each course. If you register and later discover you are unable to participate, please cancel your registration to create space for other participants.

Questions about the online trainings or assistance with registration should be sent via email. If you would like information about additional trainings available for PCH and ALR administrators, please contact the Bureau of Human Services Licensing Operator Support Hotline.

The Department of Human Services (DHS) has issued updated guidance on COVID-19 for Personal Care Homes (PCHs) and Assisted Living Residences (ALRs). As the Commonwealth, along with the nation, has obtained additional data and expanded their knowledge and understanding of COVID-19, guidance continues to evolve and change. The revisions to the guidance are identified in red text.

Questions on these revisions should be sent electronically or to the regional office.