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OMHSAS

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The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ (DHS) Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) and the Office of Medical Assistance Programs (OMAP) have jointly issued the Medical Assistance Bulletin Targeted Case Management Services for Eligible Juveniles Enrolled in Medical Assistance Prior to Release From a Carceral Setting, implementing Section 5121 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. Eligible juveniles are individuals under 21 years of age who are determined eligible for MA or an individual 18–25 years of age who was determined eligible for the mandatory eligibility group for former foster care children.

This bulletin advises providers of billing procedures for the physical health (PH) and behavioral health (BH) Targeted Case Management (TCM) services provided to eligible juveniles enrolled in the Medical Assistance (MA) Program within 30 days of release from a carceral setting and for at least 30 days following release. This bulletin also advises providers of a new provider specialty (Spec) for TCM services.

Questions and comments can be sent electronically. You can also contact RCPA Policy Associate Emma Sharp with any questions.

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RCPA, in partnership with its members, has submitted public comments in response to the Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services’ (OMHSAS) proposed Licensure of Crisis Intervention Services regulations. RCPA thanks OMHSAS for their effort in creating licensing standards that align with national best practice standards for the Commonwealth’s crisis intervention system and their receptivity to further recommendations from current crisis providers.

The proposed regulations have been reviewed by members of RCPA’s 988/Crisis Work Group, who are some of the most experienced and knowledgeable leaders in Pennsylvania’s Crisis System. With their expertise, RCPA developed comments and recommendations to guide the State towards meaningful regulations for Crisis Intervention Licensure.

The largest areas of concern in the proposed regulations are in regard to the staffing requirements and fiscal impacts, which led to the following recommendations:

  • Flexibility in the staffing requirements to account for the national behavioral health workforce shortage.
  • A transparent cost analysis of the true cost of implementing the regulations to ensure that the regulations do not become an unfunded mandate.
  • Increased clarity on the role of community outpatient clinics that are not connected to larger hospital systems.
  • The assembly of a stakeholder work group, similar to the forums that OMHSAS convened for their PRTF regulations, to ensure that provider and other stakeholder concerns are addressed before promulgation of the regulations.

Read RCPA’s full public comments here. Contact Emma Sharp with any questions.

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November 19, 2025
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Register Here

Understanding Neuroplasticity and Recent Advancements in Enhancing Supports

The Offices of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) and Developmental Programs (ODP) invite you to register for the 2025 Dual Diagnosis Conference, which is to be hosted virtually on November 19. Join them for this one-day virtual conference to gain a better understanding of neuroplasticity and recent advancements in enhancing supports for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. There is no cost to attend, but registration is required.

This year’s conference speaker will be Dr. Brandi Kelly. Watch the video to hear from her! Dr. Kelly provides an overview of her presentation on the intersection of wellness and mental health needs for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

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A Request for Applications (RFA) regarding Fairweather Lodge Initiative Services (25-RFA-13798) has been issued and is available for review at PA-eMarketplace.

The Department’s Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) is seeking a non-profit (501(c)(3)) registered Pennsylvania-based organization to manage and implement the Fairweather Lodge (FWL) model across the Commonwealth. The FWL model is a structured, community-based program that supports individuals with serious mental illness in their recovery while fostering independence. FWL will expand home- and community-based services by developing two to five new Lodges, which will create permanent housing opportunities for up to eighteen individuals.

If you are interested in this or other RFAs, please sign up for PA State Procurement eAlerts here.

Please submit your questions via email.

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The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) has announced that the proposed Licensure of Crisis Intervention Services regulations will be published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on October 18, 2025. The package is also posted on the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) website and can be found here. OMHSAS’ proposed regulation seeks to codify minimum standards for the issuance of licenses to provide emergency behavioral health crisis intervention services (crisis intervention services) in the Commonwealth in alignment with national best practices for crisis services.

Starting October 18, 2025, and closing November 17, 2025, the public may submit written comments regarding the proposed rulemaking to the Department via email. Please be aware that all public comments must be published verbatim on the IRRC website with the name of the commenter included. OMHSAS fully supports and encourages individuals with lived experience to submit comments on the regulation, but please be sure you are comfortable with the content of your comment being made public with your name.

Comments may also be submitted to the following address:

Department of Human Services
OMHSAS – Bureau of Policy, Planning, and Program Development, Attention: Tara Pride
Commonwealth Tower, 11th Floor
303 Walnut Street
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17105

RCPA will be convening a Crisis Intervention Regulatory Review Team to evaluate the proposed regulations and submit comments. If any member is interested in participating in the review group, please contact Emma Sharp.

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Businessman and team work using a Laptop Computer with Webinar E-business Browsing Connection and cloud online technology webcast concept, business concept

The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) will be holding their October 2025 Stakeholder Webinar on Thursday, October 23, from 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm. Visit here to register. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

For those that want to join via phone:
Call-in Number: (914) 614-3221
Access Code: 562-633-851

Please contact Emma Sharp with any questions.

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November 19, 2025
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Register Here

Understanding Neuroplasticity and Recent Advancements in Enhancing Supports

The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) and the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) invite you to register for the 2025 Dual Diagnosis Conference to be hosted virtually on November 19. Join us for this one-day virtual conference to gain a better understanding of neuroplasticity and recent advancements in enhancing supports for individuals with intellectual disabilities. There is no cost to attend, but registration is required.

Speakers for the day include:

Dr. Ken Martz
Ken Martz, PsyD, MBA, is a licensed psychologist, bestselling author, and expert in emotional development. He has worked in the treatment and management of addiction for the past 30 years across settings including outpatient, residential, and hospital settings. He was formerly the Special Assistant to the Secretary for the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Policy Director in Substance Use Disorders of the Governor’s Policy Office. Dr. Martz will start the day with an overview of neuroplasticity.

Dr. Brandi Kelly
Brandi Kelly, PhD, is the Clinical Director for Louisiana’s OCDD. She received her doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Louisiana State University in 1998 and a post-doctoral master’s degree in clinical psychopharmacology from Alliant University in 2002. She has worked extensively in community- and residential-based programs providing support planning, staff training, and behavioral health services to individuals with developmental disabilities, and she has published research on assessment and treatment of behavioral and mental health concerns of individuals with developmental disabilities. Dr. Kelly’s presentation will provide a clinical focus on how to use neuroplasticity data.

Dr. Calliope Holingue
Calliope Holingue, MPH, PhD, is a research faculty member at the Center for Autism Services, Science, and Innovation at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. A psychiatric epidemiologist by training, she has a joint academic appointment as an assistant professor at the Department of Mental Health at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Holingue will share current research and developments related to neuroplasticity.

The day will conclude with a Q&A session with all three of our speakers.

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