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NYDA calls for Direct Support Wage Enhancement in ’23 budget

CP State and its partners in New York Disability Advocates are calling attention to the pay disparity between state-operated and non-profit provider agencies. We’re also encouraging Gov. Kathy Hochul to to establish a new Direct Support Wage Enhancement for direct care staff in her 2023 executive budget.

Make your voice heard by sharing the thread below:

CP State offers recommendations to address the gaps in quality physical- and mental-healthcare

New Yorkers with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) often experience stigma, discrimination, and receive inferior quality service when seeking healthcare.

Cerebral Palsy Associations of New York State (CP State), in consultation with its 24 Affiliates throughout the state, has developed recommendations to prioritize health equity for people with I/DD. CP State’s white paper “Prioritizing Health Equity for People with I/DD in NYS: The Smart Thing and The Right Thing To Do,” highlights policy priorities and recommendations as service providers, legislators, and policymakers move forward in ensuring the fundamental right to health care for all New Yorkers.

Among the recommendations are:

  • Loan forgiveness for clinicians training in complex care and those receiving specialty I/DD training.
  • Training first responders, emergency technicians, social services/child protective personnel, and families
  • In disability competencies to ensure quality disability support and care.
  • Expanding telehealth for triage, primary care, behavioral health, and specialty services.

“We drew on the immense amount of experience among our Affiliates and other providers to capture the challenges of disability health issues, as well as the potential solutions we hope will complement and enhance the work that is underway at the state level as the Department of Health and the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities strive for health equity in the Medicaid program,” said Mike Alvaro, President and CEO of CP State. “We offer these ideas for our policy leaders, elected officials and others interested in health policy and disability issues to consider as they chart a path forward in New York.”

COVID exacerbates Mental Health Issues in I/DD population

 In addition to the disparity in healthcare, there is a growing unease from disability service providers concerning issues related to mental health services for people with co-existing mental conditions.

In “At The Crossroads: People with Intellectual and/or Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) and Coexisting Mental Conditions,” CP State lays out a pathway to better diagnose mental health disorders in the disability population, provide crisis mental health care, and increase suicide prevention and awareness.

Among the recommendations are:

  • Creating a better understanding between the mental health and disability provider fields, including creating consistent language for co-occurring conditions.
  • Make mental health, wellness, and wellbeing a priority in every disability provider’s child and adult program/service. This includes assessment, treatment, documentation and follow-up in schools, clinics, day habilitation, supported apartments, and respite.
  • Establishing a system of family and agency support in cases where a person threatens suicide, attempts suicide and/or completes suicide.
  • State-funded training for mental health supports.

“The bottom line is simple,” said Alvaro. “We must take the mental and physical health of New Yorkers with disabilities as seriously as we do anyone else’s. Until we do that, we are failing to adequately care for this vulnerable population.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Funding Assistance Program for Equipment, Supplies, and other Supports

The Community Health Outreach Project is a grant program funded by the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation and administered by the Cerebral Palsy Associations of New York State (CP of NYS) to provide financial assistance for the purchase of equipment, services, supplies, and other supports needed by individuals with intellectual, developmental, and other significant disabilities when all other funding opportunities have been exhausted.

This Project seeks to assist people with disabilities of all ages living within New York State by addressing the shortcomings in current supports and systems. Funds through this Project will provide access to supports for individuals in an effort to increase their health status and promote community participation. By removing barriers and offering assistance unavailable to them through other sources, CP of NYS can do its part to improve social and environmental living conditions while promoting quality of life. CP of NYS will focus on health measures and outcomes as well as the social determinants of health to identify priorities for funding and enable people to remain independent and active within their homes and communities.

Funding Opportunities for Agencies
The Community Health Outreach Project provides funding for the purchase of equipment, services, supplies, and other supports needed by persons with disabilities when other funding options, such as Medicaid, Medicare, government programs, private insurance, and other foundations/grants, have been explored and deemed unavailable. Agencies can be funded in two ways:

1) An agency can apply for funding of equipment, services, and programs to benefit the individuals you serve within your agency (i.e., IRA locations, day program, physical therapy department). The agency must provide information on all individuals who will benefit from the requested item; justification as to why the item is critically needed; written documentation as to why Medicaid and/or Medicare will not cover the cost of the item; and a vendor cost sheet/invoice showing the negotiated price for the item. If your application is approved, CP of NYS will pay the vendor directly.

2) An agency can be reimbursed for expenses incurred, less the amount covered by Medicaid, Medicare, government programs, private insurance, or other funding mechanisms, when it has already purchased equipment, services, supplies, and other supports. The agency must provide information on all individuals who benefitted from the requested item; justification as to why the item was critically needed; written
documentation as to why Medicaid and/or Medicare did not cover the cost of the item; and a paid invoice for the item. If your application is approved, CP of NYS will pay your agency directly.

Funding Eligibility
1) The individuals who will benefit from your request must reside within New York State.
2) The expenditure was incurred or will be incurred for the individuals during the Project’s funding period, which
is January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022.

Funding Limitations
This Project has a limited amount of funding to award during the year. Therefore, all applications will be handled on a first-come, first-serve basis. All completed applications will be considered by the Awards Committee provided funding is still available at the time of receipt of application. There is no guarantee of funding or approval of your request.
Agencies may submit more than one application. However, the Awards Committee will closely monitor the number of applications submitted by each agency and will limit awards in order to avoid a disproportionate share of the funds to any one agency. Additionally, only one application for equipment/services for each certified IRA or specific department within your agency will be accepted. Therefore, please prioritize your requests accordingly.

Supporting Documentation
You must complete the “Community Health Outreach Project Application Form for Agency Use Only” and provide appropriate, written documentation to accompany the application form, which validates your request:

  • A paid invoice or quotation-of-costs showing the final negotiated price from the vendor.
  • A written affidavit indicating that your agency sought funding for this request from all other sources, such as self-pay, Medicaid, Medicare, Government Programs, other foundations, other grant programs, etc., before applying to the Community Health Outreach Project.
  • A written affidavit stating the reason why Medicaid, Medicare, Government Programs, other foundations, other grant programs, etc. would not cover the expense.
  • Justification as to why this request is critically needed by your organization.

Required Signature
All applications must be signed by an authorized representative of the requesting Agency, affirming that the information furnished in the application form and supporting documentation is true and accurate. Unsigned forms will be ineligible for reimbursement.

Cindy Morris is the Project Director working at the CP of NYS offices.  Please contact her to learn more about the project or to obtain application forms.  She can be reached at (518) 436-0178 or via email at cmorris@cpstate.org.  Additionally, complete details can be found at www.cpofnys.org/CHOP.  There you’ll find an Application Form for Funding Assistance that can be completed by individuals/caregivers, and a separate form that Agencies can submit for reimbursement of expenses.

Submission Process
You can submit the completed application form as follows:
If an application form is sent electronically, send email with attachments to cmorris@cpstate.org.

Fax to (518) 436-8619, Attn: Cindy Morris

If application is sent via mail:
Cerebral Palsy Associations of NYS, Inc.
3 Cedar Street Extension, Suite 2
Cohoes, NY 12047 If application is sent via fax:
Attn: Cindy J. Morris, Project Director

 

 

Gov: Hospital capacity still a major concern

COVID-19 DATA FROM 12/21:

Statewide Positivity Rate – 5.8%
Statewide Positivity Rate, Excluding Focus Zones – 5.5%
Positivity Rate Within Focus Zones – 6.8%
Current Hospitalizations – 6,661 (+330)
Patients Currently in ICU – 1,126 (+31)
Patients Currently Intubated – 614 (+1)
Deaths – 139
Total NY Pandemic Deaths – 28,850

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COVID-19 DATA FROM 12/21:

Statewide Positivity Rate – 5.8%
Statewide Positivity Rate, Excluding Focus Zones – 5.5%
Positivity Rate Within Focus Zones – 6.8%
Current Hospitalizations – 6,661 (+330)
Patients Currently in ICU – 1,126 (+31)
Patients Currently Intubated – 614 (+1)
Deaths – 139
Total NY Pandemic Deaths – 28,850

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REGIONAL POSITIVITY RATES:

Capital Region – 6.9%
Central New York – 6.5%
Finger Lakes – 8.3%
Long Island – 6.5%
Mid-Hudson – 6.2%
Mohawk Valley – 8.5%
New York City – 4.3%
North Country – 5.2%
Southern Tier – 2.4%
Western New York – 6.4%

HOSPITAL CAPACITY: Governor Cuomo stressed that managing hospital capacity is still a major concern for New York. A hospital must alert New York State if it is within 21 days from 85% capacity to give the State three weeks to assess the situation. No hospital in the State has given a capacity notice as of today.

HOLIDAY SPREAD: With the holidays approaching, infection rates are likely to increase. The Governor urged celebrating safely over the coming weeks. He stressed that it has been a long year and the safer New Yorkers act, the greater the chances are that the State will avoid a shutdown.

UNITED KINGDOM COVID-19 VARIANT: The COVID-19 variant that has emerged from the United Kingdom (U.K.) is a serious issue. Prime Minister Boris Johnson had to shut down the country only one week after claiming it would not be necessary. The U.K. variant is reportedly 70 times more transmittable than the common strand. Governor Cuomo urged the Federal Government to follow his lead and mandate testing of those who enter the U.S. from the United Kingdom. Dr. Fauci recently said he doesn’t believe that a travel ban is necessary, but the country should require testing before travelers enter. Dr. Fauci also believes the U.K. variant could be in the country now, but there is currently no evidence it is present here.

· The State has now engaged hospital systems to begin testing for the variant immediately, with the Department of Health working with those hospitals with higher lab capacity. Currently, the State has performed 4,000 tests and has found no evidence that the variant is here. In response to a question from a reporter, Governor Cuomo noted that testing for the variant on top of testing for COVID-19 will not slow the State down or cause a delay in results.

VACCINE: As of today, 50,000 doses of the vaccine have been administered. The State has received 630,000 doses, and expects an additional 300,000 doses next week. In two weeks, the State expects residents and staff at 618 nursing homes to be vaccinated. The Governor once again stressed that vaccine distribution is not political; it is run by hospital systems. Governor Cuomo has asked healthcare workers administering vaccines to continue to work over the holidays.

BUFFALO BILLS: The Governor indicated that the State is working with the Buffalo Bills to allow fans to safely enter the stadium. Protocols that other teams around the nation have implemented are currently being researched. The Department of Health is looking at an experimental model to work with data and testing to make viewing the game in-person as safe as possible. The Governor noted how much the State has invested in renovations to the stadium.

CP continues to make ‘Connections’ with NYC Ballet

We are very excited to announce that, once again, artists from the world-renowned New York City Ballet have partnered with CP State to conduct a dance workshop designed specifically for people with disabilities.

As part of “Connections”, the 2020 CP of NYS Virtual Conference, we will present this virtual workshop on October 28, from 10:30 am to 12:00 pm. We encourage you to share this information with anyone in your organization, including families, who may be interested in this exciting opportunity.

A New York City Ballet (NYCB) dancer and pianist will conduct a dance movement workshop based on a ballet from the Company’s vast repertoire.

You won’t want to miss this session!

If you’ve been lucky enough to see or participate in our CP of NYS/NYCB workshops in the past, you know what a good time this is!

Below is the link for this workshop.  You can share this with your staff and families, and they will be able to access this event from any safe and suitable site with a reliable internet connection.

 Topic: 10-28-20 NYC Ballet Workshop

Time: 10:30am to 12:00pm

Meeting ID: 933 9180 7182

Passcode: 063374

 To Join by Video: 

https://CPofNYS.zoom.us/j/93391807182?pwd=VlV3aU5sVjE2ZmlTYU1QTUU5aEdpdz09

One tap mobile:  +13017158592,,93391807182#     or     +16468769923,,93391807182#

To Join by Telephone:

        +1 301 715 8592

        +1 312 626 6799

        +1 646 876 9923

        +1 253 215 8782

        +1 346 248 7799

        +1 669 900 6833

Meeting ID: 933 9180 7182

To participate in other CP of NYS Virtual Conference sessions, please contact your agency’s Conference Liaison.  Your Conference Liaison will receive the links to the other sessions by the end of the week.

If you have any questions, please contact me at dwilliams@cpstate.org, or by calling 518-436-0178.

 

Voting information for persons with developmental disabilities

Election Day 2020 is November 3. Deadlines to request an absentee ballot or an accessible absentee ballot are coming even sooner. There is so much on the line this year, and voting is absolutely critical to ensure that Medicaid and programs like CDPA continue to exist and are available to everyone who needs it. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to help shape the future of healthcare access and vital long-term care services.

 

Make sure you are registered to vote, find your polling place, and check out the dates for important deadlines below, as well as information on how you can make sure your vote counts.

Make a plan to vote.

  • Absentee ballot request deadline – October 27
    • Absentee ballots must be requested on or before October 27, 2020.
    • Ballots sent by mail must be postmarked on or before November 3, 2020.
    • Ballots must be returned in person by 9 PM on November 3, 2020.
    • Request an absentee ballot here.
  • Accessible Absentee ballot request deadline – October 27
    • The form to request an accessible absentee ballot must be submitted on or before October 27, 2020.
    • Completed accessible ballots must be postmarked on or before November 3, 2020.
    • Completed accessible ballots must be returned in person by 9 PM on November 3, 2020.
    • Request an accessible ballot here.
  • Early voting – October 24 to November 1
    • Find the times and days for early voting in your county here.

Want to do more? Check out these online tools and resources from our partners at the New York Association on Independent Living to help organize and educate voters with disabilities.
The following information is provided by OPWDD:

The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (also known as “The Motor Voter Act”) made it easier for all Americans, regardless of ability, to exercise their fundamental right to vote. The Motor Voter Act requires all offices of State-funded programs that are primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities to provide all program applicants with voter registration forms and to assist in their completion and submission.

OPWDD is committed to ensuring that voting rights are upheld for the people we serve, and that every person is given the opportunity to register to vote. Every effort should be made to discuss with individuals their right to vote and to encourage and assist with any interest in doing so.

This year’s general election will be held: Tuesday, November 3, 2020.

In NYS, the deadline to register to vote is: Friday, October 9th, 2020, and it can be done online, in person or by mail.

Additionally, if registered to vote, mail-in ballots can be requested by Tuesday, October 27, 2020. Several early voting days will be available, beginning October 24th.

A safe way to vote must be discussed with every individual seeking to exercise this right.

Mental Hygiene Law 33.01 provides for equal provision of civil rights to persons with developmental disabilities and specifically includes the right to register for and to vote in elections “if in all other respects qualified and eligible.” New York State Election Law sets forth the qualifications for eligible voter participation. Section 5-106 prohibits those who have been convicted of a felony and those who “have been adjudged incompetent by order of a court of competent judicial authority” from voting. Interpretation, implementation and monitoring of eligibility criteria is left to the Local Boards of Elections and questions regarding specific individuals’ eligibility and registration statuses should be directed to the Local Boards of Election.

Counsel’s Office Bureau of Service Delivery may be contacted at (518) 474-7700 with additional questions.

AFFILIATE APPRECIATION

President & CEO Susan Constantino and Executive Director Mike Alvaro will close out this year’s virtual conference with messages of appreciation for our Affiliates and their staff.

And, of course, there will be giveaways! 

Prizes will be raffled off throughout the closing session. All you need to do is attend a previous session to have your name automatically entered in the drawing! 

Back to conference overview.

AN UPDATE ON THE CP OF NYS TELEHEALTH GRANT AND THE FUTURE OF TELEHEALTH

Missed this session? Watch it now!


The telemedicine project awarded to Cerebral Palsy of NYS, and funded by DOH’s Transformation Grant, successfully rolled out in early 2020. 

The COVID-19 crisis posed challenges to its implementation, but ultimately StationMD’s telemedicine program has provided a crucial access point to health care for individuals with IDD with successful results. Moreover, a silver lining to COVID-19 crisis has been a relaxation of telemedicine at a state and federal level, opening up further opportunities to address needs of this population.

This session will explore the advances, opportunities and positive outcomes of telehealth for individuals with I/DD.

Speakers:

Dr. Matthew Kaufman, Station MD

Meghan Calichman, MPA, Station MD

Download the presentation.

Back to conference overview.

CULTURAL ASPECTS OF THE WORKPLACE

Missed this session? Watch it now!

Diversity and inclusion in the workplace has never been more important!

Professionals in the staff-development field will discuss the impact of defining culture at your agency; diversity and inclusion as part of employee training initiatives; and incorporating more stakeholders and programs in advancing these initiatives.

Speakers:

 Elaine Angelo, Performance Consultant, ProKnowledge

Delphia Howse, D. Howze Solutions

Maureen O’Brien, President & CEO, NYSID

Raeshell Harris, Assistant Director of Human Resources, CP of Long Island

Back to conference overview.