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December 10, 2009 |
Vol 17, Issue 2 |
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Welcome to this week's edition of the FAHSA Link.
Legislature Concludes Special Session and
Passes Legislation to Create Rail Transit System in
Florida -- The special session to approve
the creation of a rail transit system concluded late
Tuesday afternoon. The bill that passed, and is
certain to be signed into law, will allow Florida to
draw down $2.5 billion in Federal dollars to help
fund a statewide rail transit system, with initial
service between Orlando and Tampa, and Orlando and
Miami.
Florida Economic Outlook Update --
The Senate Policy and Steering Committee on Ways and
Means heard Amy Baker, Director, Office of Economic
and Demographic Research, present the latest
information on the official revenue estimates and
short-term economic outlook for the state. The
following are the highlights of Ms. Baker's
statement:
- Projections of collections are slightly
higher than previous estimates and FY 2009-2010
will see total general revenue collections $6
million (0.03%) higher than those for FY
2008-09. This reverses a three-year trend of
declining revenues.
- General revenue collections for FY 2011-2012
and FY 2012-2013 are expected to increase 8.1%
and 7.2%, respectively. FY 2012-2013 general
revenues, however, will still not reach FY
2005-2006 levels.
- For the first time the many years, Florida's
populations declined during FY 2008-2009.
Annual increases are expected to average over
200,000 for the period 2010-2015.
- Medicaid caseload is expected to peak at
2.95 million in FY 2010-2011. This number means
that one out of every six Floridians will be
receiving some Medicaid benefits in FY 2010-2011
- Medicaid budget deficits are forecasted at
$1.3 billion for the current fiscal year and
$2.6 billion for FY 2010-11. These deficits
alone will exceed the anticipated general
revenue growth for these years. Clearly, the
2010 Legislative Session will bring drastic cuts
to the health care area of the budget.
Increased caseload and reduced federal match
both contribute significantly to the Medicaid
shortfall.
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District and Membership News |
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Identifying photo from left to right: Mo Funk,
COO, Miami Jewish Health Systems; Nancy Zombek,
Service Coordinator, Douglas Gardens North; Armando
Fana, Director, HUD Miami Field Office; Susan
Gotlieb, Property Manager, Douglas Gardens North;
Carl Shechter, Commissioner District 1, Pembroke
Pines; Mayor Ortis; Fred Katzin, Chmn. Douglas
Gardens North Housing Board; and Randy Holmes,
Director, Douglas Gardens Senior Housing Management.
Douglas Gardens North Receives
Proclamation -- The Mayor of the City of
Pembroke Pines presented representatives from
Douglas Gardens North a
special proclamation to celebrate the 50th year
of the U.S. Department of Urban Development's (HUD)
Section 202 program. HUD's Section 202 program
provides a valuable housing resource for very-low
income elderly households. Although it represents a
small share of all elderly households, very-low
income elderly renters have acute housing
affordability problems because of their limited
income and the need for supportive services. The
Section 202 program, which offers about 260,000
rental units nationwide and ensures that residents
receive rental assistance and access to services
that promote independent living, is the only federal
program devoted exclusively to providing this type
of housing.
Mease Manor Launches New Web site
-- Mease Manor, a retirement community in Dunedin,
has redesigned and enhanced their
Web site, which provides seniors and families
with more detailed information about the services
and amenities offered on the Mease Manor campus.
The new Web site features photos of the Mease Manor
community, resident events and downtown Dunedin as
well as resident testimonials. In addition, those
who wish to experience some of the events and
activities at Mease Manor have the opportunity to
view these events and activities and register to
attend.
"This new enhanced Web site is more user-friendly
and functional," says Jack Norton, Executive
Director. "The Web site allows us to bring to life
the many exciting opportunities Mease Manor provides
to our residents and future residents."
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Education News
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Register Now for FAHSA's 2nd Leadership
Academy - The first two-day onsite meeting
of the 2nd Leadership Academy class will begin on
March 25 and 26 in conjunction with FAHSA's
Legislative Workshop in Tallahassee.
Download a copy of the brochure and register
today. This is a great course - but don't just take
our word - please read the comments below from a few
of the current participants:
Tina Corbett, Care Plan Coordinator, Lodge at
Cypress Cove, commented that the program was
organized, thorough and well-presented; definitely
worthwhile!
Jerome Bivens, Dining Service Director, Westminster
Suncoast, said, "The sessions were awesome and I am
taking away so many things that will help me start
new programs or improve on getting results from
current programs." Jerome believes that he will
become a better leader and improve the success of
all those around him after attending this course.
Lisa Lyons, Controller, St. Joseph's John Knox
Village, noted that the instructor's presentation
style and context was very enlightening and
entertaining. Her personal interjection made the
course most useful and she allowed the participants
to express ideas and gave solid solutions to common
problems.
Upcoming Educational Events:
- January 19, 2010 -- Affirmative Fair
Housing Marketing Plans Webinar - 2:00pm to
3:00pm
- January 20, 2010 -- MDS 3.0 Webinar
- January 26 & 27, 2010 -- FAHSA Board of
Trustees and Public Policy Meeting, Boca
Raton Resort
- February, 16, 2010 -- Detecting Abuse
and the Abuse Hotline Webinar
- February 25, 2010 -- CNA Train the
Trainer, Orlando
- March 16, 2010 -- Medicaid Integrity and
RAC Webinar
- March 23 & 24, 2010 -- Legislative
Workshop, Tallahassee
- March 25 & 26, 2010 -- Leadership
Academy, Tallahassee
FAHSA Calendar of Events |
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General News |
Dec. 15 Deadline for Intergenerational
Excellence Awards -- Apply before the Dec.
15 deadline for the 2010 MetLife
Foundation/Generations United Intergenerational
Shared Site Excellence Awards. These awards champion
best practices of intergenerational shared site
programs while raising their visibility and
encouraging the development of new models. Up to
five shared site programs will be selected as award
winners and receive cash awards of $1,000 each.
Contact lbradley@gu.org for more information. To
download the nomination form and submit an
application online,
click here.
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Home and Community-Based Services |
Medicare Home Health Prospective Payment System
Outlier Policy FAQs -- The Centers for Medicare
& Medicaid Services (CMS) has provided guidance
(clarifying information) regarding the new CY 2010
outlier policy under the Home Health Prospective Payment
System (HH PPS), which was promulgated in the Medicare
Home Health Prospective Payment System Rate Update for
CY 2010 Final Rule (CMS-1560-F). The guidance can be
found in the Questions and Answers available in the
first spotlight on the CMS
Web page
Important Information on Updating IACS User
Accounts and Passwords -- CMS would like to
remind users that the CMS Security policy requires
Individuals Authorized Access to the CMS computer
Service (IACS) passwords to be changed every 60
days. An IACS user who has not changed his or her
password in over 60 days will be prompted to do so
at the next login attempt. An IACS user who has not
changed his or her password in over 120 days will
first be prompted to answer the security questions
established at registration. After successfully
answering security questions, the user will then be
prompted for a password change.
Updating IACS user accounts and passwords is
essential to maintaining this access and
functionality. At the
IACS Web Site, click on "My Profile" to login,
change your password, or use the "Forgot Password?"
option.
New Calculator Available for 2010 Medicare
Home Health Rates with Final Rule Changes
-- As of Dec. 7, 2009, the Medicare home health rate
calculator for 2010 has been updated to reflect the
final rule. Under the prospective payment, Medicare
pays home health agencies (HHAs) a predetermined
base payment. The payment is adjusted for the health
condition and care needs of the beneficiary. The
payment is also adjusted for the geographic
differences in wages for HHAs across the country.
AAHSA's home health calculation tool takes all these
separate components into account to automatically
compute your facility's payment rate for each
separate Home Health Resource Groups (HHRG). Please
click here to review the calculator or contact
Iara Woody, (202) 508-9429 with questions or for
more information.
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Housing News |
FAHSA Meets with Governor's Staff
-- On December 4, Gail Matillo, MPA, COS, FAHSA's
Director of Housing, met with Governor's staff Bob
Sparks, Executive Deputy Chief of Staff and Lisa K.
Saliba, Policy Coordinator, Office of Policy and
Budget and several members of the Sadowski
Coalition. The purpose of the meeting was to
discuss affordable housing, get the Governor's
support for full funding of the Housing Trust Fund,
and to create more opportunities in Florida for
developing affordable housing for low-income seniors
and the disabled. Click here to read a follow-up
letter to Mr. Sparks outlining more information
about the meeting.
Resident's Rights Brochure Published
-- To provide easier access to the Resident's Rights
and Responsibilities brochures, a link to the
English version was placed on the Fair Housing Equal
Opportunity (FHEO) Website along with the other 13
translated editions of the document. Users can go
to
http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/promotingfh/lep.cfm,
scroll down to "Resident's Rights and
Responsibilities Brochure." Those interested in
finding the English version on the HUD's Multifamily
website can still find it
here.
Also, please remember that HUD has provided copies
of the English document and the translations
available from the Multifamily Housing
Clearinghouse. The Clearinghouse can be reached by
calling 1-800-685-8470.
It's Not Too Late to Register for a MetLife
Best Practices Session on December 11 --
Part 2 of the Metlife Best Practices in Senior
Housing conference call will be held tomorrow,
December 11 at 2:00 p.m. The 2009 MetLife
Foundation Awards for Excellence in Affordable
Housing focused on the best in senior housing. The
winning properties highlight innovative, ongoing
efforts toward sustainable and service enriched
senior housing. Tomorrow, the following two
properties will highlight their programs:
- Lytton Gardens Senior Communities, Palo Alto CA
- Green retrofit of a 1970's HUD 202 property, 100%
seniors with aging-in-place features supporting a
broad age range. Learn from Lytton Garden's creative
approach to in-place green rehab and retrofit,
centered on resident involvement, and their
processes for excellent tracking of green cost
savings.
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Mercy Housing California, San Francisco CA - New
construction, green, Low Income Housing Tax
Credit property, a remediated brownfield
transit-oriented development ("TOD") and mixed
use property (onsite public library) for a
seniors population. Hear how Mercy Housing
California planned for and manages a
well-coordinated array of senior and supportive
services and operating subsidies, including an
onsite adult day health center. To register for
tomorrow's program,
click here.
FAHSA Housing Alert Page
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Legislative News |
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Haridopolos Named Next Florida Senate
President -- This week, Sen. Mike
Haridopolos (R-Indialantic) was
formally designated by the GOP Caucus as the
Senate's next president. Haridopolos will succeed
President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, if
Republicans maintain their Senate majority in next
November's election. He then would serve a two-year
term.
Haridopolos, known for his conservative views, is a
guest lecturer in political science at the
University of Florida. Last session, he sponsored a
proposed constitutional amendment to create a
taxpayer's bill of rights (TABOR) that would have
capped government spending at 2010 levels. The bill
did not pass. He is now exploring ways to revamp
Florida's Medicaid program, possibly asking CMS for
a waiver to drop out of the federal Medicaid
program.
Update on CLASS in Senate Health Care Reform
Proposal -- Last Friday, the U.S. Senate
voted 98-0 on a Sense of the Senate Amendment
(non-binding but symbolic), that if CLASS is a part
of the overall health reform legislation, the
savings in the initial decades which resulted from
its premiums, should be earmarked for use strictly
for the CLASS program. The amendment was brought by
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a long-time CLASS
Act champion.
Following the Sense of the Senate Amendment vote,
Senator John Thune (R-SD) issued a strike amendment
to strip the CLASS provisions out of the Senate
Healthcare Bill. This was an expected action,
though we were surprised that the motion came from
Senator Thune who has not been vocal on this issue.
The Senate voted 51-47 to strip CLASS out of the
health reform package. That might seem like an
awful development, and it would have been, but for
the fact that 3/5 or 60 votes are needed for an
amendment to pass in order to alter the health
reform legislation. Though this was a solid victory
for CLASS, several key centrist Democrats decided to
vote against the legislation. Fortunately, U.S.
Senator Bill Nelson (D-Florida) was not among them.
Our Republican Senator George LeMieux voted for the
amendment which would have removed CLASS from the
bill.
Source: The Jewish Federations of North America
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Nursing Home News |
Delay in
Implementing Phase 2 of CRs 6417 and 6421 --
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
(CMS) will delay, until April 5, 2010, the
implementation of Phase 2 of Change Request (CR)
6417 (Expansion of the Current Scope of Editing
for Ordering/Referring Providers for Claims
Processed by Medicare Carriers and Part B
Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs)) and
CR 6421 (Expansion of the Current Scope of
Editing for Ordering/Referring Providers for
Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics,
Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) Supplier Claims
Processed by Durable Medical Equipment Medicare
Administrative Contractors (DME MACs)). CRs
6417 and 6421 are applicable to Part B claims
only.
The delay in implementing Phase 2 of these CRs
will give physicians and non-physician
practitioners who order items or services for
Medicare beneficiaries or who refer Medicare
beneficiaries to other Medicare providers or
suppliers sufficient time to enroll in Medicare
or take the action necessary to establish a
current enrollment record in Medicare prior to
Phase 2 implementation.
Other Nursing Home Alert Issues:
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FAHSA Requests Board of NHA to Review AIT and
Preceptor Provisions
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Renewal Alert for Certified Nursing Assistants -
Licenses Expire December 31
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AHCA has Upgraded Background Screening Website
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CMS Webcast: H1N1 and the Elderly Population
FAHSA Nursing Home Alert Page
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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 Web site
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 2009 -- 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. © 2009 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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