October 2008 News

Announcements

• DelARF Holds Annual Retreat: Uncertain times? From surviving to thriving!
  The 2008 DelARF Retreat will provide you with the information and strategies you'll need to create the future you want for your organization and those you serve. This year's registration fee covers the cost of food only – we've kept your cost as low as possible to encourage and enable your attendance. Download the retreat schedule and registration form, as well as hotel reservation information.
  
  
  • When: November 6 & 7, 2008
  • Where: Atlantic Sands Hotel and Conference Center - Rehoboth, DE
  • Cost: Members - only $75! Non-members - $100
• DelARF Commissions to Testify at State Budget Hearings: DelARF Commission Chairs will testify at the upcoming budget hearings held by the Office of Management and Budget. The Hearing Schedule can be found online. The DHSS hearing will be held on Monday, November 24 from 12:30 to 4:30 in the Senate Chambers at Legislative Hall. All members are welcome. (For more on the state’s budget, see below.)
• Gubernatorial Transition: All of you know that Delaware will be electing a new governor on November 4. At the Gubernatorial Disabilities Forum held last July and attended by Lt. Gov. Carney, State Treasurer Markell, and Independent Candidate Protack, we asked them about issues related to the disability community. (Bill Lee was invited but chose not to attend.) Both Carney and Markell came out with Disability Plans prior to the event and they are posted on our website here. A review of Bill Lee’s webpage does not show any specific policies directed at people with disabilities. My notes from the Forum highlighting Mr. Markell’s remarks are being sent to all DelARF members. Pictures of the Forum are available here.
• News from the September/October Commission Meetings: These meetings are open to all DelARF members and are listed on our calendar. Below you will find just some of the topics the groups discussed and their strategies going forward:
• Behavioral Health: The group held a brief business meeting and then welcomed DSAMH’s new Division Director, Michael Kelleher, and Mental Health Director Steve Dettwyler. We asked them to focus their remarks on the following issues:
  
  
  • Status of FY09 and FY10 Budget – What Providers Can Expect: Mr. Kelleher plans to use Division funds to support existing programs instead of adding new programs in FY10. In an open discussion among members, we decided that we needed to stress the following:
    
    
    • Show how cost pressures are impacting our programs and services;
    • Lay out in specific terms how the lack of increases for staff impacts the quality of services we can provide;
    • Include information on rising insurance, healthcare costs and how these impact our ability to serve these individuals;
    • Focus on how service providers in the MH and addictions community save people’s lives – the lives of friends and neighbors who often hold down full time jobs while supporting a family;
    • Find a legislative champion;
    • Talk about the economic impact of our programs – the number of jobs we create, the number of families those jobs support in Delaware;
    • Present what will happen to both those we serve and our staff if our programs are cut significantly or reduced entirely.
  • Status of the Medicaid Rehabilitation Services Option: We asked if DSAMH had a “fall back” position in the event that the changes in the Medicaid Rehab Option were implemented. They noted that group home programs and the CCCPs would all be impacted. Also funding cannot be used to maintain functioning (habilitation) but is for “rehabilitation.” The Division said they were looking into the 1915(i) State Plan Amendment process as a way to preserve services. This avenue has been used successfully in other states.
  • Our Goals for the BeHC Commission: We presented the broad goals that the Commission has adopted for the year and the group discussed those.
  • The commission’s next meeting will be held on November 12 at 1:00 (Note change in usual time) at DHSS’s Holloway Campus in Room 190 in the Main Administration Building.
• Business Services: The Commission met in September and reviewed their goals for the year.
  
  
  • Strategic Issue #1: How DelARF can ensure quality products and services to its customers. To this end, the group plans to develop measurement tools to evaluate service delivery – both self assessments and customer satisfaction.
  • Strategic Issue #2: Investigate new areas for potential addition to the state’s procurement list. The commission will investigate these throughout the year with the goal of adding at least one new service in FY09.
  • The Commission’s next meeting will be held on November 19 at 1:00 at OCI’s offices at the Business Enterprise Park in Dover.
• Developmental Disabilities: At their regular meeting at the Bear Library on October 14, the group discussed a variety of topics:
  
  
  • Preparation for the Upcoming Budget Hearings: They recommended we focus on salaries of Direct Support Professionals; funding of the re-based ICAP; the “economic development case,” i.e. that providers employ large numbers of individuals that support Delaware families; the need for us to educate legislators; and other topics. They began to draft the testimony.
  • DDC Meeting with Marianne Smith/DDDS Retreat: The group suggested items for Connie’s meeting with DDDS and decided they would like to move forward with the concept of a joint DDC and DDDS retreat. Due to the upcoming transition within state government, we agreed that the event should take place after the transition.
  • Review of DDC goals for the year.
  • The next meeting of the DDC will be on November 11 at 1:00. Since this is Veteran’s Day, the Bear Library will be closed and the meeting will be held at the Community Service Building (CSB). For those who wish to join the meeting by conference call, the dial-in, toll-free phone number is 866-740-1260 and the access code is 5149403
• Government Relations: GRC met on October 1. The meeting focused on:
  
  
  • A review of the legislative priorities and our suggested topics for the Disability Coalition meeting on October 29. The group suggested ten initiatives.
  • The November 24 OMB testimony: The group will await the priorities from the various Commissions.
  • They next discussed the Legislative Preview to be held in February: nature of gathering; content, invitation list, possible collaborators, tentative date, and pre-events visit. This will be discussed in greater detail at the next meeting.
  • The next meeting will be held on November 5, at 9:00 at the Community Service Building. For those who wish to join the meeting by conference call, the dial-in, toll-free phone number is 866-740-1260 and the access code is 5149403.
• Physical Disabilities: On September 24, the PD Commission discussed the purpose of the Commission, ways to build membership, and the goals for the year. They decided to parallel their activities with those of DSAAPD. There will be a greater inclusion of entities serving individuals who are disabled and aging and those who are aging and become disabled. Members encouraged the commission to collaborate with organizations and advocates with similar purposes, such as the Statewide Independent Living Centers. They next reviewed the Commission’s goals for the year:
  
  
  • Seek funding for FY10 to fund PAS waiting list;
  • Participate in the development of the ADRC (Aging and Disability Resource Center) for DE;
  • Promote the development of a comprehensive long term care planning process for the state.
  • The next meeting of the Commission will be November 20 at 9:30 at the CSB. For those who wish to join the meeting by conference call, the dial-in, toll-free phone number is 866-740-1260 and the access code is 5149403.
• Vocational Services: The Commission’s new chairperson met with staff and we have decided to survey all members about their own expectations for the commission, possible goals, training topics, and preferences on meeting locations and times. That survey will go out in early November. The results will be shared with members at the next meeting.
  
  
  • The next meeting is November 12 at 3:00 at Goodwill on Lea Blvd. in Wilmington. For those who wish to join the meeting by conference call, the dial-in, toll-free phone number is 866-740-1260 and the access code is 5149403.

News from Dover

• State Budget:
  
  
  • In June we were all holding our collective breaths when the General Assembly (GA) considered the FY09 budget. Following a March DEFAC (Delaware Economic and Financial Advisory Council) report that showed dramatic decreases in state revenue, the GA leadership began a series of meetings and also met with the Joint Finance Committee to develop a balanced budget for FY09. In the end, most of the cuts were made in administrative areas. With the exception of several DelARF members who received cuts in programs provided with Tobacco Fund revenue, the provider community did not sustain cuts in their funding. However, there were no increases in contracts or in the ICAP rates. All of this came at a time when increased costs in gasoline, food, and electricity were setting national records.
  • This brings us to this year. Budgeting for FY10 has begun. The Governor has asked her staff to submit a budget with no more than a 1% increase. However, this request was made before the recent downturn in the economy and the latest DEFAC meeting held in September. The DEFAC report indicated that state revenue would increase $39 million less than it had predicted in June. The scaled-back revenue growth puts new pressure on numbers-crunchers to find an additional $39 million to make ends meet while still providing services. See their latest report here. As noted above, the DelARF Commissions are now working on their testimony before the Office of Management and Budget in November.
  • Some have asked about the status of the FY09 budget. There has been no official notification that the current FY09 budget will be cut. However, we have heard rumors that discussions are taking place at the Division level to prepare for cuts. Given the fact that the state made significant administrative cuts last year, has a “hiring review” for most open positions, and did not give raises to state employees, there is concern that the next place they can cut is into direct services. DelARF Commissions and staff are working with the Divisions now on these issues.
• State Fiscal Crises Across the Nation: As you can imagine, Delaware is not alone with sinking revenues. Now a majority of states are facing huge deficits. For a detailed account of the problems in other states is available here.
  

News from Washington

• Medicaid Update: Previous updates to our members have told you about the various changes that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) having been trying to push through. All of these initiatives will shift costs to the states and some will disenfranchise significant numbers of individuals with disabilities and their families. As noted this summer, legislation was passed delaying the implementation of 6 of the 7 regulations until April 2009. This was a victory for the advocacy community and for those we serve. Nevertheless, this victory is only temporary. With the latest economic crisis and the $700 billion “bail-out,” there are fears that the next President will be faced with some hard choices. Medicaid’s current budget is predicated on these moratoria ending on April 1, 2009. Therefore, if they continue, new funding must be found to continue services to the affected populations. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) has introduced S. 3611, the Medicaid Services Restoration Act of 2008, which amends the definition and scope of Targeted Case Management and Rehabilitation Services in order to address statutory issues with the services and rules that have been placed under the moratorium. To read the bill or track its progress, go here and search for S 3611.
• Presidential Election: In October Connie attended a meeting in DC where both of the major campaigns were invited to speak about their disability platforms. The McCain Campaign did not send a representative but the Obama campaign sent Michael Strautmanis, Sr. Counsel to the Obama Campaign. He spoke about Senator Obama’s approach to issues and highlighted the work of the Disability Policy Committee headed by Stan Klein and Seth Harris. (DelARF members should note that Dr. Klein, a psychotherapist, is a close associate of John Kemp who spoke at our Annual Meeting.) Mr. Strautmanis told us that he has a child on the Autism spectrum. During the Q&A, I asked if he or the Senator understood the extreme workforce issues that the community is facing. This has occurred due to chronic underfunding and that this crisis is coming at a time when we will need more qualified and trained staff as the country ages and more people rely on caregivers. I encourage you to read the candidates positions as listed on their websites. The McCain information is found within his Health Platform and focuses on Autism. The Obama information can be found here.
  

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