Category: LTC Redesign
Recording of Webinar about the Stakeholders’ Blueprint for Long-Term Care Redesign Now Available
By SD Network, 2016-03-04
The Wisconsin Long-Term Care Coalition has pulled together the best ideas from people with disabilities, older adults, advocates and other stakeholders to present the Coalition’s views to DHS and the legislature regarding Long-Term Care redesign. These ideas are contained in the recently released Stakeholders’ Blueprint for Long-Term Care Redesign.
On March 2nd, InControl Wisconsin offered a webinar to provide an update on the current and upcoming developments in the state’s transition to a new LTC system. It showcased the Stakeholders’ Blueprint and covered the main ideas contained in it.
The audio recording of the webinar and the Powerpoint are now available on the InControl Wisconsin website.
The Department of Health Services released their draft concept paper for Family Care/IRIS 2.0 today. There are two chances to testify on the paper on March 7th. DHS will accept written testimony about the concept paper through 5 p.m., on March 7th.
DHS News Release about Long-Term Care Redesign: Choice for Members and Quality Measures
By SD Network, 2016-02-25
The Wisconsin Dept. of Health Services sent out a news release today with some details about the proposed redesign of the long-term care system. The news release is in advance of the concept paper scheduled to be released the first week of March. The release includes information about Choice for Members and Quality Measures.
DHS has scheduled two public hearings that will be held March 7, shortly after the concept paper for the redesigned system is released. They will accept written comments until March 7th.
People with disabilities and older adults in Wisconsin have a lot atstake in how Wisconsin redesigns its long-term care system. Thats why over 60 Stakeholder groups worked together over the past few months to develop a vision for the future of long term care in Wisconsin. This led to the creation of the Stakeholders Blueprint for Long Term Care Redesign.
All stakeholders agree with the Legislature and Department of Health Services that Wisconsin needs a sustainable long-term care system that provides people with cost-effective and quality care. The Blueprint fits within the parameters laid out by the legislature in the 2015-2017 budget. It is intended to help DHS and the legislature develop the best plan possible to implement the budget guidelines.
Source: http://www.wilongtermcarecoalition.org/#!blueprint/sga91
The Department of Health Service will two hold public hearings to solicit comment regarding the long term care concept plan that will be submitted to the Joint Committee on Finance on April 1, 2016. A draft of the concept plan will be published on the Family Care/IRIS 2.0 webpage the first week of March. The hearings will be live streamed so all may participate. Free parking will be available at both events.
Please note: Due to the limited time to make revisions before submission of the concept paper, and extensive public comments received previously, the Department will only accept written testimony before the hearings.
Eau Claire Public Hearing
March 7, 2016
9:30 am - 11:30 am
Florian Gardens Conference Center
2340 Lorch Avenue
Eau Claire, WI 54701
Join Eau Claire Public Hearing via webcast(link is external)
Madison Public Hearing
March 7, 2016
4:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Alliant Energy Center Exhibition Hall
1919 Alliant Energy Center Way
Madison, WI 53713
On Monday January 4th, the Department of Health Services (DHS) shared publicly its December report on Long Term Care system redesign, as required by the 2015-17 state budget.
You can read the report here:http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/misc/lfb/jfc/200_reports/2016_01_04_health_services_medicaid_waiver_request_progress.pdf
DHSs report references an ongoing internal process to redesign the system, the Departments plan to report on its internal work in the Concept Plan (due to Joint Finance April 1st), and states there will be two public hearings in March 2016. It is unclear whether these hearings will be to collect public comment on a draft of the Concept Plan.
Survival Coalition members continue to hear many questions and concerns from people with disabilities, their families, advocates, and providers across the state including:
- Will I have the same services at the same levels?
- Will my service plan look and stay the same?
- Can I keep all my sameproviders and doctors?
- Can I continue to fully self-direct if Im in IRIS, includingfull budget authority and full employment authority to hire, train,and fire my own workers?
- Can I still hire family members if I have paid family members now?
Survival Coalition finds that the quarterly report did not offer any additional information on what the content of redesigned Family Care will look like, any decisions the Department has made regarding the redesign, how the new system will operate, or when/how transition to the new system will occur.
Survival Coalition is aware that the Department has scheduled three meetings to be held this January, February, and March with selected invited advocates on select topics related to the redesign. Survival Coalition has respectfully requested additional meetings with Department leadership and redesign staff to discuss all of the topics raised in Survival Coalitions public comments.
Take Action Now
1.Read the report and see if it answers your questions about the long term care system redesign.
2.Contact your State Representative and State Senator with your unresolved questions (Go to Find My Legislators here:http://legis.wisconsin.gov/)
3.Stay tuned to participate in the upcoming public hearings in March.
***We thank the Wisconsin Survival Coalition for sharing this information.
Thanks to Disability Rights Wisconsinfor providing us with the following information:
On Friday, December 18 several members of the Assembly Aging and Long-Term Care Committee issued a letter to the Department of Health Services outlining their suggestions for the redesign of the Family Care and IRIS systems that support individuals with disabilities and older adults. Family Care/IRIS 2.0 is scheduled to go live after January 2017.
The letter suggests various performance measures and other quality indicators for the Department of Health Services to consider. The letter was issued following a November 18 informational hearing in which committee members heard from various national and state-level experts.
You can read the full letter here:DHS Letter on FamilyCare-IRIS.
Here is a summary of the letters main points:
Family Care/IRIS 2.0 should include quality and performance benchmarks to guarantee an adequate provider network.
Contracts should specify establishment of advisory committees and an active feedback loop for consumers that includes information on their quality of life.
Contracts must emphasize reducing costly institutional placements and emphasizing home and community-based settings for people.
Payments and financial incentives must be aligned with program goals. The state must regularly review quality benchmarks.
Options counseling should be independent and provided at no cost. Ombudsman services must continue to be available to resolve complaints.
The Department must ask questions to ensure Integrated Health Agencies understand how to fully implement self-direction and person-centered planning.
Wisconsin should establish benchmarks related to increasing the number of people employed in competitive integrated jobs.
The state should establish specific requirements of readiness before an Integrated Health Agency can do business in Wisconsin.
Open enrollment periods should be flexible when people have a significant change in their care or providers.
The state should take an active role in ensuring Integrated Health Agencies understand expectations and ensure that services are delivered.
What is Your Role?
If you would like to make sure that what is important to you is included in the new Family Care/IRIS 2.0 system consider the following steps:
1. Read the letter from legislators and decide which main points are important to you.
2. Take the time to thank the legislators who signed onto this letter.
3. Share a link to the letter with your own legislator and write a message about the points in the letter that are most important to you. Tell them how this impacts your life.
4. Ask your legislator to contact the Department of Health Services on your behalf to inquire about how their Family Care/IRIS 2.0 plan will address certain points.
You can find legislator contact information by entering your address here (Find My Legislators):http://legis.wisconsin.gov/
Long-Term Care: Four action steps you can take in December
This is another opportunity to engage with policy-makers and let them know you are watching and concerned about the future of Wisconsins long term care system.
Individuals with disabilities and family members, have a shared interest in the long-range sustainability and quality of Family Care. Ultimately, you have to live with whatever the new system is.
Four action steps you can take in December
- Contact your legislator with your list of critical questions, sample questions below. (Go to Find My Legislators box on this website:http://legis.wisconsin.gov)
- Provide feedback to your legislator on the DHS process thus far, and your unresolved concerns about long-term care.
- Ask your legislators to watch for DHSs report and assess the Departments answers to your questions
- Make sure your legislator accesses the national experts that presented at a legislative informational public hearing on Medicaid Managed Care, Family Care-IRIS 2.0 on November 18th (presentations archived here:http://www.wiseye.org/Programming/VideoArchive/EventDetail.aspx?evhdid=10265
Sample critical questions
- How will we know if the new system is working?
- What goals, outcomes are we aiming for?
- How do we know when weve met the goals/outcomes, and how do we measure quality and performance?
- What happens if a provider or IHA is not doing a good job?
- Will the rates ensure there is an incentive to keep me in or move me into the community rather than an institution?
DHS has indicated they expect the new system to result in cost-containment or cost-savings in Family Care.
- Where specificallylong term care, self-direction, primary/acute care, behavioral health does DHS expect to see savings?
- How much will we save and when will we see the savings?
***We thank the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities for providing us with this information.
Purpose
The purpose of this communication is to provide a summary status of the plan for
establishing the Children's Community Options Program, including necessary
direction for current operations in counties.
Background
The Department of Health Services, Bureau of Children's Services (BCS), is
charged with establishing a Children's Community Option Program (CCOP) and in
consultation with partners, develop guidelines for implementing the program and
criteria for reviewing community options programs as defined in 2015 Act 55
46.272<http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2015/related/acts/55/1535>
The CCOP is the result of merging the Family Support Program (FSP) and the
portion of Community Options Program (COP) used to serve children, into a single
allocation to counties with one set of requirements for the use of program funding.
The BCS has established a workgroup of internal and external partners to gather
input on the development of the program guidelines for the Children's Community
Option Program. We have planned a series of three meetings after which we will
establish a transition plan and subsequent program guidelines.
Status
During the first workgroup meeting, we recognized that counties and families are
asking for immediate guidance on what will, or will not, change effective
January 1, 2016as a result of the merging of Family Support and Community
Options Program into the Children's Community Options Program.
EffectiveJanuary 1, 2016we are expecting minimum differences for county use of
this combined funding. The statute for the Children's Community Options Program
establishes the authority for accessing funds under this program. In reviewing
the statutes we find only two instances wherein current use of these funds will
be prohibited in January 2016.
The exceptions are:
* Prohibiting funding for room and board in CCOP. (COP could fund room and
board, FSP could not); and
* No use of the funds for individuals over age 22. (FSP allowed exceptions
for use up to age 24), the statute limits use of program funds to age 22.
Notwithstanding the two restrictions, we are expecting counties to use the
combined FSP/ COP funding allocation to serve children eligible for FSP or COP
going forward. Families should experience no change in access or services beyond
the two restrictions noted above. Furthermore, for instances where statutorily
established restrictions do create a change, we would like to work with counties
to identify a solution and transition before the change in access to services.
Please reach out to your CSS for any specific cases wherein the limits noted
above will cause a loss of access to services to current participants into
January 2016.
Summary Take-Away
The merging of these two General Purpose Revenue (GPR) funding sources should
not be viewed as elimination of FSP or COP, but as a combining and streamlining
program funding and requirements. Families should not be unnecessarily alarmed
that something is "going away." We are working to create guidelines that will
assist in the implementation for this program. In the meantime, other than the
two restrictions for use noted above, we expect counties to continue to use this
funding allocation in their 2016 contract as otherwise allowed by the individual
FSP and COP allocations prior to the merging of the two.
We hope this overview provided some general guidance for use in current
operations. We will continue to work through the technical requirements for
ongoing operations of the Children's Community Options Program. Thank you for
your attention to this matter.
Please direct program questions to the CCOP Project Manager for additional
inputs, atAlyssa.Zirk@wisconsin.gov<
Purpose
The purpose of this communication is to provide a summary status of the plan for
establishing the Children's Community Options Program, including necessary
direction for current operations in counties.
Background
The Department of Health Services, Bureau of Children's Services (BCS), is
charged with establishing a Children's Community Option Program (CCOP) and in
consultation with partners, develop guidelines for implementing the program and
criteria for reviewing community options programs as defined in 2015 Act 55
46.272<http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2015/related/acts/55/1535>
The CCOP is the result of merging the Family Support Program (FSP) and the
portion of Community Options Program (COP) used to serve children, into a single
allocation to counties with one set of requirements for the use of program funding.
The BCS has established a workgroup of internal and external partners to gather
input on the development of the program guidelines for the Children's Community
Option Program. We have planned a series of three meetings after which we will
establish a transition plan and subsequent program guidelines.
Status
During the first workgroup meeting, we recognized that counties and families are
asking for immediate guidance on what will, or will not, change effective
January 1, 2016as a result of the merging of Family Support and Community
Options Program into the Children's Community Options Program.
EffectiveJanuary 1, 2016we are expecting minimum differences for county use of
this combined funding. The statute for the Children's Community Options Program
establishes the authority for accessing funds under this program. In reviewing
the statutes we find only two instances wherein current use of these funds will
be prohibited in January 2016.
The exceptions are:
* Prohibiting funding for room and board in CCOP. (COP could fund room and
board, FSP could not); and
* No use of the funds for individuals over age 22. (FSP allowed exceptions
for use up to age 24), the statute limits use of program funds to age 22.
Notwithstanding the two restrictions, we are expecting counties to use the
combined FSP/ COP funding allocation to serve children eligible for FSP or COP
going forward. Families should experience no change in access or services beyond
the two restrictions noted above. Furthermore, for instances where statutorily
established restrictions do create a change, we would like to work with counties
to identify a solution and transition before the change in access to services.
Please reach out to your CSS for any specific cases wherein the limits noted
above will cause a loss of access to services to current participants into
January 2016.
Summary Take-Away
The merging of these two General Purpose Revenue (GPR) funding sources should
not be viewed as elimination of FSP or COP, but as a combining and streamlining
program funding and requirements. Families should not be unnecessarily alarmed
that something is "going away." We are working to create guidelines that will
assist in the implementation for this program. In the meantime, other than the
two restrictions for use noted above, we expect counties to continue to use this
funding allocation in their 2016 contract as otherwise allowed by the individual
FSP and COP allocations prior to the merging of the two.
We hope this overview provided some general guidance for use in current
operations. We will continue to work through the technical requirements for
ongoing operations of the Children's Community Options Program. Thank you for
your attention to this matter.
Please direct program questions to the CCOP Project Manager for additional
inputs, atAlyssa.Zirk@wisconsin.gov<
DHS Adds More Public Hearings on Future of Family Care and Self-Direction in WI
By SD Network, 2015-09-10
DHS Adds MorePublic HearingsonFuture of Family Care and Self-Direction in WI
-
Wausau
September 21
9:00 - 12:00 pm
Northcentral Technical College
Rooms: E101/E102
1000 W. Campus Dr.
Wausau, WI 54401
-
Madison
September 23
9:00 am - 12:00 Noon
Goodman Community Center
Evjue Community Room D
149 Waubesa Street
Madison, WI 53704
-
LaCrosse
September 28
12:30 pm - 3:30 pm
LaCrosse Public Library Auditorium
800 Main Street
LaCrosse, WI 54601
-
Milwaukee
October 6th
9:30 am - 12:30 pm
Wilson Park Senior Center
2601 W. Howard Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53221
Additional hearings in Hayward and tribal hearing will be scheduled with locations to be determined.
If you cannot attend the hearing, e-mail your Family Care and IRIS 2.0 comments toDHSFCWebmail@wisconsin.govor mail to Department of Health Services, Division of Long Term Care, Family Care and IRIS 2.0, P.O. Box 7851, Room 550, Madison, WI 53707-7851.
The Wisconsin Long Term Care Coalition has put togethera set of principlesthat must be the foundation of Wisconsins future Long Term Care systemto help participants develop written testimony. If possible, bring a written copy of your testimony. People will be given 3 minutes to speak.
You are an expert in the daily services you and your family need to live in and be a part of the community. Now is the time to tell DHS what good things about the current system should stay the same, whether there are some things that should change, and what you do not want to see when the current system is replaced.
The 2015-17 state budget directs DHS to replace the existing long term care system (Family Care/IRIS) with an unknown and untested model.
***Thanks to the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities for providing us with this information.