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Open Your Eyes! Watch it Now!
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NYSACRA Calendar
Executive Positions
Action Center
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Greetings NYSACRA Members!
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· SUPREME COURT JUSTICE RULES ON SENATE SUIT - STALEMATE CONTINUES IN UPPER HOUSE
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On June 16, an acting State Supreme Court Justice dismissed Senate Democrats complaints over the leadership of the State Senate. Senate Republicans waged a coup in the Senate Chamber early last week and each faction claims they are in power. The Judge ruled that it would be improper for the Judicial Branch of government to render a decision that would have "sweeping implications" for the Legislative Branch. The Senate remains split at 31-31. The Senate Democrats late yesterday offered a "Bipartisan Operating Agreement" where the parties would agree to rotate Presiding Officers of the Senate, alternating each day, one of which to be designated by the Democratic Majority and one of which by the Republican Majority. The Senate Republicans rejected the agreement.
Meanwhile, with three days left to the scheduled end of the 2009 Legislative Session and the Senate unable to pass legislation, the State Assembly is very much on schedule. Assembly members are swiftly passing legislation through committee and on the Assembly Floor. If the Senate does not come to consensus any time soon, the Assembly is prepared to adjourn, as scheduled, on Monday, June 22nd. |
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· WILL NATIONAL HEALTH CARE REFORM HELP INDIVIDUALS WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES?
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President Obama's June 15, 2009 address before the American Medical Association kicked off what promises to be a week of Congressional hearings, media reports, and editorial comments, followed by a summer of water cooler, Boardroom, and living room conversations on the topic of health care reform.
One largely unexplored issue amid the intensifying discussions on health care reform is its impact on individuals with developmental disabilities.
Robert M. Gettings, former long-standing director of the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services, examines the issue in a paper aptly titled, Will National Health Reform Help Individuals with Developmental Disabilities?, published by the National Leadership Consortium on Developmental Disabilities.
Available on the Consortium's website, www.nlcdd.org, the paper discusses factors influencing the national health care reform movement - factors, perhaps making reform more possible today than ever before, including the country's current economic crisis and the need to cut a spiraling federal deficit and rein in entitlement spending, e.g., Medicare and Medicaid.
While most discussions of health reform focus on financing and delivering preventive, primary, and acute care services, less attention is paid to restructuring long-term services, although many experts recognize the need for such. Long-term services account for nearly 1/3 of Medicaid outlays and non-elderly individuals with developmental and other disabilities account for a disproportionate share of total Medicaid spending.
In his paper, Mr. Gettings posits that it would be foolish, given today's environment, to assume that legislation intended to streamline Medicare and Medicaid will have no or little impact on future funding of long-term services for individuals with developmental disabilities. He then examines some of the basic long-term care options under consideration to offer a better sense of their impact.
The paper is a must read for developmental disabilities services' stakeholders. We can't afford to sit passively on the sidelines assuming long-established spending and service delivery patterns will resume once the economy recovers.
A companion paper from NLCDD will be forthcoming. NYSACRA will alert you to its availability. |
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· RIVERVIEW IRA FIRE UPDATE
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As previously reported, on June 10, the Department of State's Office of Fire Prevention and Control (OFPC) released a report of its review of the March 21, 2009 fatal fire at the Wells, New York Riverview IRA. Conducted at the request of OMRDD, the OFPC's fire safety and codes review identified code compliance issues and provided a prospective review of fire safety in community residences. The report will be used by a panel of statewide and national experts convened by OMRDD to assess current fire safety policies and practices and to offer recommendations for system-wide changes to enhance fire protection and detection in places where individuals with developmental disabilities receive services. The panel's recommendations are expected by September 30, 2009.
In the interim, OMRDD has released the following fire safety suggestions for agencies' action. |
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· FIRE SAFETY ACTIONS TO TAKE NOW
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Updated: June 15, 2009
1. Review all fire evacuation plans.
2. Ensure that all employees are up to date on fire safety training.
3. Review fire drill documentation for potential patterns of irregularities.
4. Conduct unannounced supervised fire drills starting with the places and times where consumers are most vulnerable.
5. Ensure that problems resulting from drills are addressed immediately and re-drills occur.
6. Review Life Safety Code rating classification for accuracy and that building features conform with the rating classification.
7. Ensure that all building fire safety features are fully functional and that testing is up to date.
8. Instruct central monitoring services to cease practice of verification before notifying fire departments.
9. Make sure that all exit pathways are free from obstructions.
10. Invite fire departments to become familiar with homes and occupants, if not already.
11. Plan on attending the June 22, 2009 fire safety webcast.
A second Department of State (DOS) report concerning the Riverview tragedy, a Fire Origin and Cause Report, was transmitted to the New York State Police and the Hamilton County District Attorney which are continuing their investigation. |
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· MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR DIRECT SUPPORT PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION WEEK - 2009
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Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska has agreed to again introduce the Direct Support Professional Recognition Week Resolution for 2009.
Last year, Senator Nelson was joined by 10 of his colleagues to co-sponsor and unanimously pass Senate Resolution 613, designating the week of September 8, 2008 as National Direct Support Professionals Week.
This year, Senator Nelson has been asked to designate the week of September 14 as Direct Support Professional Recognition Week. NYSACRA will work in New York to get this week designated in New York as Direct Support Professional week. We will keep you posted. |
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· PANDEMIC FLU, MEDICAID SERVICES, AND ASSISTING AGENCIES SUPPORTING INDIVIDUALS WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES
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Both ANCOR and the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NADDDS) have entered into a dialogue with CMS concerning the provision of Medicaid reimbursable services to individuals with developmental disabilities in view of the H1N1 Influenza A virus. Containing the spread of the disease requires isolating and treating individuals in place, avoiding groups and public facilities. Both ANCOR and NASDDS have indicated that such steps would require increased in-home direct support, reduced attendance at day programs, and the possibility of increased hospitalizations, thus necessitating consideration and appropriate adjustments of Medicaid requirements. In its May 1, letter to CMS, ANCOR outlined issues of concern including:
· Reimbursement rates during hospital stays.
· The prohibition against reimbursement for provider direct support staff/personal assistance for hospitalized individuals.
· The financial burden to providers when multiple people supported by the same agency are hospitalized.
· The possibility that individuals from ICFs/MR that are considered to be 24-hour health care facilities may be prohibited from being admitted to the hospital during a pandemic.
· The need for greater in-home supports as community activities are suspended.
In its June 5, letter, NADDDS recommended that CMS:
· Create mechanisms to rapidly approve waiver amendments, or provide retroactive approval, to permit states to add new waiver services or change existing service definitions to effectively address beneficiaries' medical needs and their ability to be supported in non-institutional community programs.
· Assist states in providing timely response to individuals' needs by approving temporary increases in the number of individuals served under the state's comprehensive waiver program.
· Develop the means to permit states to focus available resources on meeting the needs of individuals receiving waiver services by having the flexibility to, among other things, increase the number of hours of support that people need during periods of quarantine; waive existing individual to staff ratio requirements that limit the ability to distribute staff responsibilities and supervision; adjust caseload limits for support coordinators/case managers to enable them to address the needs of additional individuals during periods of staff shortages; and waive or postpone non-essential administrative activities during the outbreak period.
· Provide guidance to states in the application of Medicaid rules that permit states to make provider payments in order to hold residential and day program/supports while a beneficiary is hospitalized or away from his or her home in the community.
NYSACRA will keep you posted on developments on this front. |
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