ODP Announcement 20-099 provides further updated instructions on the use of the Health Risk Screening (HRS) web portal in staff reporting cases of COVID-19 and provides a reminder that timely reporting is essential to ensure system responsiveness to COVID-19 outbreak.
ODP Announcement 22-028 is to notify licensees that trainings in First Aid, Heimlich techniques, and/or CPR provided to staff and caregivers in ODP-licensed settings on or after April 1, 2022, must have an in-person component.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, ODP permitted online-only courses with no in-person component, as many hospitals and health care organizations were not offering in-person classes. Hospitals and health care organizations have since resumed in-person instruction with necessary COVID precautions in place. As such, any training in First Aid, Heimlich techniques, and/or CPR provided to staff and caregivers in ODP-licensed settings on or after April 1, 2022, must have an in-person component.
ODP Announcement 22-027 states that the Temple University Harrisburg Certified Investigator Program and the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) will be facilitating Forums for Certified Investigators (CIs) and others involved in the incident investigation process. It also announces the posting of Q&A documents from past CI Forums on MyODP.
ODP Announcement 22-025 serves to provide the hourly wage and benefits ranges for specific Participant Directed Services (PDS) for participants utilizing the Vendor Fiscal/Employer Agent (VF/EA) FMS model, effective March 1, 2022. The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) updated the data used in establishing rates, which impacted the hourly wage and benefits ranges. The high end of the hourly wage and benefits ranges either increased or remained the same. There were no decreases to the high end of the hourly wage and benefits ranges. These wage and benefit ranges will be used to pay SSPs and to support claims processing in the Provider Reimbursement and Operations Management Information System in electronic format (PROMISe™) by the VF/EA FMS organization. This communication will only be updated when changes occur to the information contained within.
ODP Announcement 22-026 is to announce that the proposed Fee Schedule Rates and Department-Established Fees for Consolidated, Community Living and P/FDS Waiver services, as well as the Community Intellectual Disability Base-funded program were published at 52 Pa.B. 102 (January 1, 2022).
The Department received comments from 134 stakeholders regarding the proposed changes to the Fee Schedule Rates and Department-Established Fees. After reviewing the comments on the proposed rates, the Department determined that an increase to the Fee Schedule Rates for the Agency With Choice Financial Management Services monthly administrative fee from $285.28 to $311.68 was necessary to cover staff wages and the costs of implementing participant directed services in accordance with requirements in the approved Waivers.
No other changes were made to the rates as a result of public comment.
ODP Announcement 22-024 is intended to provide the hourly wage and benefits ranges for specific Participant Directed Services (PDS) provided to participants utilizing the AWC FMS model, effective March 1, 2022.
ODP updated the data used in establishing rates, which impacted the hourly wage and benefits ranges effective March 1, 2022. The high end of the hourly wage and benefits ranges either increased or remained the same.
These wage and benefit ranges will be used to pay SSPs and to support claims processing in the Provider Reimbursement and Operations Management Information System (PROMISe™) in electronic format by the AWC FMS organization. This communication will only be updated when changes occur to the information contained within.
ODP Announcement 22-023 is to remind providers that are required to take the Modified Medication Administration Training Course of upcoming renewal requirements. On February 13, 2020, the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) released ODP Announcement 20-014 titled “New ODP Regulation Update: Clarification Regarding Medication Administration Requirements.”
Among other things, Announcement 20-014 specified that “in accordance with § 6100.468(d), life sharers and service locations that are not licensed by the Department (DHS) will be required to successfully complete a modified medication administration course…staff required to take the course must do so by July 1, 2020, to be compliant with the regulatory requirements,” and that “staff, contractors, and consultants who are required to take the Modified Medication Administration Training Course must also take a renewal course every 2 years that must occur no later than the last day of the 24th month following the previous completion date.”
Based on the above, the Modified Medication Administration Training Course period is now active. To satisfy the renewal requirement, the current Modified Medication Administration Training course must be retaken in its entirety. To allow for ample time to complete the course for renewal, ODP is allowing for those who first took the course in February 2020 to complete the renewal requirement by March 31, 2022.
The Modified Medication Administration Course may be accessed on MyODP. Questions, comments, or requests for technical assistance relating to this announcement may be submitted via email.
ODP Announcement 22-022 is to inform all provider agencies employing Direct Service Providers (DSPs) that the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) will be participating in the 2021 National Core Indicators® (NCI) Staff Stability Survey. ODP is requesting qualified providers participate in the 2021 Staff Stability Survey. This important survey includes questions relating to volume, stability, compensation, and benefits of DSPs serving adults 18 years of age and older.
The data gathered from this voluntary and anonymous survey will help ODP, along with other policy makers and advocates, to:
Within the next few weeks, providers will receive an email from HSRI inviting them to participate in this Staff Stability Survey. Those wishing to participate will be furnished with a unique login that will enable providers to directly enter survey responses into the HSRI database. Results of the survey will only be reported in the aggregate, and organizations will not be identified in any way. It is recommended that Human Resources or the Payroll Office complete surveys, and responses should reflect DSPs who were on agency payroll during any period between January 1 and December 31, 2021.
The deadline to complete data entry is June 30, 2022. A copy of the survey is included to allow for preparation of data prior to completing data entry. It is a proprietary tool of the National Core Indicators® and is to be used for reference only.
ODP Announcement 22-017 is to announce that Residential ISP Staffing training sessions are now available from January through June 30, 2022. Residential ISP Staffing trainings described in ODP Announcement 21-057 have been completed, but additional training can be provided by agency professionals who have volunteered to provide training and have participated in delivering training in the fall of 2021, referred to ODP Designated Trainers.
ODP Announcement 22-014 informs providers that the United States General Services Administration announced a change for the rate of Transportation Mile reimbursement rate, procedure code W7271, beginning January 1, 2022. The new rate is $0.585 per mile.
This communication provides notice of the rate change as well as provides instruction for Supports Coordination Organizations (SCOs) on how to add transportation mileage to the vendor screen. It also instructs direct service providers on how to submit claim adjustments, if applicable.
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