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April 22, 2010 |
Vol 17, Issue 19 |
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Welcome to this week's
edition of the FAHSA Link!
Final Stretch of
2010 Legislative Session -- We're
headed into the final stretch of the 2010
Legislative Session with only a few days to go.
Early this week, there was a lot of talk in the
halls of the Capitol about possible retribution
against Governor Crist for vetoing bills on
merit pay raises for teachers and campaign
financing, but now it looks like the Governor is
in control. He is defending his vetoes as doing
his job and hinted that he may not support the
House Medicaid reform overhaul or a property
insurance bill that would allow for higher
premium increases. Some lawmakers are
speculating that he could veto the budget bill.
Read more of this article in the
Weekly Legislative Update,
posted on FAHSA's website.
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Education News
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Next Leadership Academy Program
Rescheduled for July 26-27 - FAHSA
plans to conduct the 2nd class of the Leadership
Academy beginning on July 26 and 27, 2010, in
conjunction with FAHSA's 47th Annual Convention
and Exposition in Boca Raton. Applicants who
previously applied do not need to re-apply.
Scholarship funds to cover half of the tuition
are available for those who would like to
participate. This training is a valuable
resource to develop leadership skills.
During the three-month course (both onsite and
online), the following leadership topics will be
discussed:
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Understanding the Role of the Emerging
Leader
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Understanding Emotional Intelligence and Its
Impact on Leadership Success
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Leading and Managing for Results
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Teamwork and Team Building
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Giving and Receiving Feedback
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Delegating and Influencing
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Problem Solving
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Managing Conflict
Please consider sending several of your
employees to this course. Registration,
brochures and scholarship forms are available on
FAHSA's website.
The New MDS 3.0 Resident Assessment
Instrument (RAI) Course: A Strategic and
Systematic Approach- Please plan to
attend the MDS 3.0 intensive two-day training
program scheduled on May 4-5. This workshop is
targeted for MDS Coordinators as well as those
who would like to become familiar with the
changes to the RAI process with MDS 3.0.
The new MDS 3.0 is four times the size as the
current assessment tool. Although the process
is similar, there are major differences. Jean M.
Bean, RN, Director of Clinical Services,
Covenant Retirement Communities will be the
presenter for this training. She will provide
participants with the latest information,
straight from CMS. To register, please click on
the hyperlink below.
Join Us for Upcoming Training
Opportunities:
FAHSA Calendar Page |
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General News |
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Nomination of
Candidates to Fill Open Positions on FAHSA Board
of Directors -- The Governance
Committee has identified the following Board and
Region Chair positions that will be open for
candidate consideration. Nominations shall be
made by the Governance Committee with the intent
of achieving equitable representation on the
Board of each type of community that qualifies
for regular membership.
The elections for the available Region chair and
Vice Region positions will be held in each of
the open regions in May. The elections and
installation of officers will be held during the
General Assembly Meeting on Wednesday, July 28,
2010 in conjunction with FAHSA's 47th Annual
Convention & Exposition, Boca Raton Resort.
Open FAHSA Board Positions:
1. One At-Large
Trustee Position - 3-year term --
2010-2013
To qualify as a candidate
for one of the two at-large positions of the
Board of this Association, one must be an
appointed representative of a member community
serving in an administrative capacity. At the
time of election, a candidate shall have been
affiliated with a member community for at least
two years. No at-large trustee shall be elected
to more than two consecutive three-year terms.
2. Three AAHSA House of Delegates
seats - 3-year term - 2010-2013
Any FAHSA member serving
on the American Association of Homes and
Services for the Aging ("AAHSA") Board of
Directors or FAHSA-elected Representative to the
AAHSA House of Delegates shall serve on FAHSA's
Board for the duration of his or her term. The
candidate must be a current member of a
nonprofit FAHSA and AAHSA-member
community/organization; shall have a two-year
affiliation with a FAHSA-member community; and
must be an appointed representative of a member
community/organization serving in an
administrative capacity.
3. Two Region
positions, One Vice Region position -
(The elections will be held in the following
regions in May.)
1. North
Region Chair -- 2 year term -
2010-2012
2. Central Region Chair--
2 year term - 2010-2012
In order to qualify for election as Region
Chair, a candidate shall be a member of the
geographic Region for which the position is
sought, and an appointed representative of a
member community serving in an
administrative capacity. At the time of
election, a candidate shall have been
affiliated with a member community or
community belonging to an out-of-state
association of homes for the aging for at
least two years. Region chairs shall serve
as members of the Board and shall be the
primary liaison between the Regions and the
Board.
3. Southeast Region Membership
Vice Chair-- 2 year term -
2010-2012
The Vice Chairs of a Region may attend FAHSA
Board meetings in the place of the Region
Chair, but may only do so in a non-voting
capacity. The vice chair shall be affiliated
with a member community for at least one
year and will serve up to three consecutive
two-year terms.
A copy of the
qualification form(s) can be downloaded from
FAHSA's website. Please
fill out the form and include a copy of your
resume and return to
Susan Tobin, Director
of Events and Marketing, ( stobin@fahsa.org),
FAHSA, 1812 Riggins Road, Tallahassee, FL 32308
by the deadline of April 30, 2010. For more
information, contact Susan at (850) 702-0315.
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Housing News |
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Batch Income and
Verification Reports Temporarily Unavailable
-- Due to the deployment of EIV Release 9.1 that
took place last week, the summarization job was
not run. Therefore, the batch income reports
and verification reports below will not be
available from April 19, 2010 until April 26,
2010 and will not have data from that time
period:
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Income Reports by
Recertification Month
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Income Discrepancy
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New Hires
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Identity Verification
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Deceased Tenants
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Multiple Subsidy
During this time, access
to individual income reports will still be
available. The batch reports will again be
available beginning April 26, 2010.
HUD Requests Input-- HUD's
Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R)
invites the public's suggestions and ideas for
new research projects to be funded in Fiscal
Year 2011 and beyond. The research undertaken by
PD&R can be grouped into one or more of
12 subject categories,
each briefly described on the
research agenda submission page.
We welcome your suggestions for new research in
Fiscal Year 2011 and beyond, especially in the
following areas: Fair Housing; Housing Finance;
Project-based Assistance; Tenant-based
Assistance; Sustainable Communities; Housing
Tenure; International comparisons; Special
Needs; Sustainable Communities, Homelessness;
Urban Vitality and Technology.
Other Housing News:
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HUD Memo Requests Your
Assistance with EIV
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New Reserve and
Replacement Guidance Issued
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DOEA Updated Summary of
Budget Reforms
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Will Department of
Community Affairs Stay or Go?
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Obama Administration Seeks
Public Input On Reform Of The Housing Finance
System
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Legislative News |
Medicaid Reform Passes
House; No Action in Senate -- HB 7223 and HB
7225 passed the House by a vote of 80 to 34,
with six members not voting. All of the
democrats who serve on the House Select
Policy Council on Strategy and Economic
Planning, the only committee in which the
bills were debated, voted "yes." Democrats
issued a press release immediately
afterwards suggesting that the bills should
have been vetted in more than one committee.
The press release noted that while
republicans were critical of the mandates
included in recently passed federal health
care reform law, HB 7223 and HB 7225 also
included controversial mandates on health
care providers and consumers who rely on
Medicaid.
The Senate still does not have a companion.
The Senate budget, however, anticipates $30
million in savings in Medicaid resulting
from an expansion of Medicaid managed care
to 19 counties. Long-term care has not been
mentioned as part of the Senate expansion.
No committee meetings have been held in the
Senate on HB 7223 and HB 7225 or anything
similar. However, a meeting was held in the
Speaker's conference room on Tuesday where
Rep. Denise Grimsley and Rep. Dean Cannon
and their staff met with Senators Durell
Peaden, Don Gaetz, and Joe Negron about the
bills. The press was in attendance.
Reportedly, the senators asked questions
about how the transition to managed care
would work, whether physicians support the
plan, and how the mandates would affect
hospitals. Senate President Jeff Atwater has
not weighed in other than to say the plan
may be too ambitious to pass this late in
the session.
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Nursing Home News |
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Federal Law Trumps
State in Use of Nursing Home Arbitration
Agreements - The Federal Arbitration
Act (FAA) preempts a provision in the Illinois
Nursing Home Care Act (NHCA) that prohibits the
use of arbitration agreements in cases against
nursing homes, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled
Thursday.
In the case of Carter v.
SSC Odin Operating Co., a state appellate court
ruled in 2008 that the nursing home provider
could not require arbitration because the use of
arbitration agreements violated the anti-waiver
portion of the NHCA. Odin argued that the NHCA
applies to nursing home contracts in a broad and
generalized way, and does not specifically
prohibit arbitration agreements. The court ruled
that it is precisely because the NHCA applies so
generally to nursing home contracts that it can
be used to nullify an arbitration agreement. The
U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the case
in 2009, letting the ruling stand. (McKnight's,
6/4/09)
After the U.S. Supreme
Court declined the case, the Illinois Supreme
Court picked it up for review and focused on the
language found in the federal law. The FAA says
that any arbitration agreement shall be enforced
save upon such grounds as exist at law or in
equity for the revocation of any contract, the
Bureau of National Affairs reported. Since the
NHCA provisions apply only to nursing home
contracts, not any contract, the Illinois
Supreme Court ruled that the FAA preempts the
state law, BNA reported.
This is an interesting
ruling in light of a recent effort in Florida to
pass a bill to change the rules for arbitration
clauses used by nursing homes, hospitals and
licensed health care professionals. If the bill
had passed, it is possible that its
constitutionality could have been challenged.
Source:McKnight's Long
Term Care - 4/20/2010
Other Nursing Home
News:
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Medicare Part B Therapy
Rate Fix Enacted
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GAO Report: Special Focus
Facilities Improving But CMS Could Strengthen
Program
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CMS Issues Survey and
Certification Letter on SFF Notification
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Managed Care for Long-Term
Care Could Save Plenty Says UnitedHealth Group
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Preferred Business Associates News |
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 FAHSA's
Preferred Business Associates Program (PBAs)
-- A list of PBAs can be found by on
the FAHSA website
www.fahsa.org and selecting Preferred
Business Associates from the left side menu bar
or clicking on the FAHSA Preferred Business
Associates Page hyperlink. FAHSA members can
also use the on-line directory to search for
PBAs by specialty.
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Career Center |
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Welcome to the
Florida Association of Homes and Services for
the Aging Career Center!
Your destination for
exciting Aging Services job opportunities and
the best resource for qualified candidates in
the Florida Aging Services Industry. Searching
for a job in Aging Services?
Looking to fill a
position? This job board is custom tailored for
the Aging Services industry, which means we
attract the most qualified professionals in
Florida.Create
an Employer Account,
search resumes and post your Aging Services job
now!
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Copyright 2010 -- Publication of the Florida
Association of Homes and Services for the Aging
(FAHSA).
- FAHSA Chair: Terri Cunliffe
- FAHSA President/CEO: Janegale Boyd
- Managing Editor: Gail Matillo, MPA, COS
Copyright Information: Copies of the articles
and other information in this publication may be
noncommercially reproduced for the purpose of
educational or scientific advancement.
Otherwise, no part of this publication may be
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any
means, mechanical or electronic, including
photocopying, microfilm and recording, or by any
information storage and retrieval system,
without the written permission of the editor.
Correspondence: Should be addressed to: Editor,
1812 Riggins Road, Tallahassee, FL 32308. For
telephone inquiries, call (850) 671-3700. Or
E-mail FAHSA at info@fahsa.org. © 2010 FAHSA.
All rights reserved.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this
correspondence is not intended as a substitute
for legal advice. Please discuss any information
gathered from this or any other FAHSA
publications with your legal counsel in the
context of your particular situation before
implementing any new policies or procedures.
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