Help for low income seniors?

Bill to be introduced in Congress, assisting seniors residing in subsidized housing or receiving services through public funding.

http://www.agingwa.org/documents/TogetherWeCanActbillinformationAug2009.pdf

Income Determination: Exclusion of SS Economic Recovery Payment

Income Exclusion - Guidance on Social Security’s One-Time Economic Recovery Payment
Notice H 09-07, Fiscal Year 2009 Social Security’s One-Time Economic Recovery Payments Excluded from Income was issued July 27, 2009. This notice provides for the exclusion of the Social Security’s One-Time Economic Recovery Payments received by applicants for assisted housing and by tenants participating in HUD’s rental assistance programs. The notice is posted on HUDCLIPS at: http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/notices/hsg/files/09-07hsgn.doc

HUD Delays Effective Date for SS & Income Requirements

HUD announced in the Federal Register a delay in the effective date of the rule entitled ``Refinement of Income and Rent Determination Requirements in Public and Assisted Housing Programs'' published in the Federal Register on January 27, 2009. This “action will provide the Department with the necessary additional time to review the subject matter of the January 27, 2009, final rule and to consider the public comments on HUD's February 11, 2009, Federal Register notice that solicited public comments on the regulatory amendments made by the January 27, 2009 final rule.

Apparently the expected additional guidance and responses to questions raised (including mandatory Social Security number, and clarifications about changes to the definition of “income”) is not expected to be complete in time, so implementation has now been further delayed until January 31, 2010

It is unknown at this time whether this further delays the mandatory implementation date for EIV - - but it does not change anything regarding the ability of owner/operators to continue to use EIV or, for those not yet using it, to continue to complete necessary operational policies and procedures or systems access requirements.

Co-Sponsors Needed for Medicare Certified Adult Day Legislation

Draft legislation has been introduced in Congress (HR 3403) which would allow Medicare beneficiaries to receive adult day health services, provided the provider of the services is Medicare certified, along with several additional qualifications. The services and program would be subject to the same regulatory processes as Medicare certified home health care agencies.

To contact your legislators with your support of this legislation, and for additional information, visit:
http://capwiz.com/aahsa/issues/alert/?alertid=13627971

LEP Advances Made ~ More HUD Documents Now Available in Translation

HUD multifamily model leases are available in 13 languages and are located here: http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/promotingfh/lep.cfm#Multi2.

Newly translated annual and interim recertification notice letters and model rent adjustment forms, along with the current resident’s rights and responsibilities brochures in the same 13 languages and are located here: http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/promotingfh/lep.cfm#Multi

Sexual Offenders in Public Housing Under Scrutiny by HUD's Inspector General

On August 14, 2009, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG) audited HUD's requirement prohibiting lifetime registered sex offenders from admission to HUD-subsidized housing and found that some offenders who were deemed too dangerous for admission were allowed to continue living in subsidized housing.

For further details on the issue, findings and recommendations, read here: http://www.aahsa.org/article.aspx?id=9881

Electronic Health Records & NH Surveys

CMS recently issued a survey and certification letter which clarifies provider and state agency/surveyor responsibilities for facilities using electronic health records (EHR). It is posted here: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/SurveyCertificationGenInfo/downloads/SCLetter09_53.pdf

Among other items covered in the memo, providers/suppliers have the right to use whatever system of medical records they choose as long as that system complies with its Medicare participation requirements. And, while surveyors are expected to enforce the specific health and safety regulatory requirements for providers/suppliers to protect the confidentiality of medical records, they are not expected to assess EHRs to determine whether they satisfy the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said they are committed to the goal of most Americans having access to health care providers who use EHRs by 2014. CMS said it recognizes the importance of the use of EHRs and their benefits to better patient/resident care and reduced costs.

Infection Control Workshop * November 17th * 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. * Marriott Seattle Airport

Infection Control Workshop - Meet Nursing Home & Assisted Living Requirements

Infectious Diseases and Their Control in the Community Settings:
H1N1, MRSA, Norovirus, Influenza, Tuberculosis, Pneumonia, Clostridium Difficile, Shingles and other diseases.
Hear about the newest on the CDC Guidelines & CMS Interpretive Guidelines.

http://agingwa.org/calendar.php

New Infection Control Guidance for Nursing Home Surveys

Issuance of Revisions to nursing home Interpretive Guidance at F Tag 441, as Part of Appendix PP, SOM (8-14-09) has just been released. This CMS survey and certification letter includes the advance copy and training materials for new long-term care facility guidance to surveyors for F441-Infection Control.

For specific details:
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/SurveyCertificationGenInfo/downloads/SCLetter09_54.pdf

Grant Opportunity to provide service coordination for public housing communities (ROSS).

The purpose of the Public and Indian Housing Resident Opportunity and Self Sufficiency (ROSS) program is to provide grants to public housing agencies (PHAs), tribes/tribally designated housing entities (TDHEs), Resident Associations (RAs), and nonprofit organizations (including grassroots, faith-based and other community-based organizations) for the provision of a Service Coordinator to coordinate supportive services and other activities designed to help Public and Indian housing residents attain economic and housing self sufficiency. For general information, click here: http://www.aahsa.org/article.aspx?id=9861, and for a copy of the federal grant notice, click here: http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/grants/nofa09/rossscsec.pdf

Urge Congress to Oppose Nursing Home Medicare Payment Cuts for 2010

Health care reform legislation drafted in the House would eliminate the 2010 Medicare payment update nursing homes are scheduled to receive as of Oct. 1. Similar provisions in the health care reform bill under development in the Senate Finance Committee are also expected. Medicare payment cuts would add to the Medicaid reimbursement reductions that skilled nursing facilities in many states have experienced as states grapple with growing budget deficits due to the recession.

Easily send a letter to your congressional representatives expressing your opposition to the cuts:
http://capwiz.com/aahsa/issues/alert/?alertid=13553841

Can we assist residents living in public or federally assisted housing to age in place?

'Together We Can Act', a House Bill soon to be introduced in Congress, addresses the many unmet needs of seniors aging in place by providing services at home where they need them, including public housing residents and federally (Medicaid) subsidized seniors.

Part of filling this gap would be met by training residents in home health care careers to assist the burgeoning aging population who have few residential options besides subsidized housing, and who are further limited by a lack of means to pay for care and services.

For more details on the legislation, visit: http://www.aahsa.org/article.aspx?id=9863

Smoking policies in public housing

HUD recently announced new guidance on smoking policies for Public Housing Authorities, strongly encouraging them to adopt non-smoking policies for some or all of their public housing units. For a copy of the guidance, click here: http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/publications/notices/09/pih2009-21.pdf

Congressional Housing Appropriations Legislative update

The House & Senate are still millions of dollars apart in their respective HUD housing budgets with respect to the Section 202 and Section 8 programs. For an update, read further: http://www.aahsa.org/article.aspx?id=9867

New Guide from HUD for Owners of Multifamily Housing

HUD has posted a new 40-page “Guide to Interviewing for Owners of HUD-subsidized Multifamily Properties” on the main RHIIP pages, with the sub-header of “the right benefits go to the right person”.

The new guide can be found at
http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/mfh/rhiip/interviewguide.pdf .

Accusure Insulin Syringes: Nationwide recall

Accusure Insulin Syringes [31G, 1/2 cc and 1 cc]
Audience: Patients with diabetes mellitus, pharmacists and diabetes healthcare professionals
Qualitest Pharmaceuticals and FDA notified patients and healthcare professionals of a voluntary nationwide recall of two lots of Accusure Insulin Syringes. The syringes in these lots have been found to have needles which can detach from the syringe. When the needle becomes detached from the syringe during use, it can become stuck in the insulin vial, push back into the syringe, or remain in the skin after an injection. Consumers who have any recalled Accusure Insulin Syringes (31 G –Short Needle-either 1/2 cc or 1 cc, lot number 6JCB1 or lot number 7CPT1) should stop using them and contact Qualitest at 1-800-444-4011 for product replacement instructions. The lot number can be found on the white paper backing of each individual syringe. These recalled products were distributed from January 2007 through June 2008 to wholesalers and retail pharmacies nationwide (including Puerto Rico).
Read the complete MedWatch 2009 Safety summmary including a link to the firm press release, at: http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/SafetyInformation/SafetyAlertsforHumanMedicalProducts/ucm179955.htm

Euthanizing old people conspiracies are crazy!

Dr. Bill Thomas, geriatrician, comments via video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65q9Zhmj5Zc

The Art of Living Well at Any Age

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 11:30 am
Health Care Series: The Art of Living Well at Any Age
Horizon House, Aging Services of Washington member
900 University St, Seattle WA
http://www.seattlecityclub.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=22

Featuring:
Christine Fordyce, MD, Healthy Aging Project Medical Director, Group Health Permanente
Denise Klein, Executive Director, Senior Services
Phil Smart, Sr.; Entrepreneur
Carol Vecchio, Founder and Exec. Director, Centerpoint Institute for Life and Career Renewal

Aging with Intention - Free Educational Seminars

Aging Services of Washington is pleased to offer a ten-session series of choice-affirming seminars, open to anyone who wants to proactively prepare for their own aging or those of a friend or family member: http://agingwa.org/documents/AgeWithIntentionFlyerFinal.pdf

Member help needed - Wireless Nurse Call Systems

One of your colleagues is looking for an independent tech consultant with experience and expertise in:

Nurse call systems
Wireless; paging
Nurse call systems project management with the following requirements: 1)Vendor selection; 2)Implementation; 3) Vendor management.

Please reply by 'commenting' on this post and we'll collect the information to share with all members.

Change 3 Effective August 1 - HUD Handbook 4350.3

Click on the link here for more information on the details of Change 3 to HUD Handbook 4350.3: http://aahsa.org/article.aspx?id=9499

Older American's Act Funding update - click to send a letter to Congress

Update on House and Senate Numbers for FY 2010 Labor-HHS Appropriations Bill

The House and the Senate have released their numbers for FY 2010 Labor/HHS Appropriations. Overall, the Senate figures keep most of the Older American Act (OAA) funds at their FY 2009 numbers. Aging Services and AAHSA have been advocating for a significant increase for all Titles under the OAA so that they can adequately serve older adults and continue to provide quality services as more baby boomers begin to utilize OAA programs. We are currently working with other national organizations in order to provide more funding to these critical programs before the final numbers are decided upon. This issue is constantly changing, so please stay tuned for more updates.

House funding figures include:

$19,462,000 more for nutrition services (including congregate and home-delivered meals, this would provide three million more meals to seniors).
$10,000,000 more for supportive services (Title III(b), which covers in-home and adult day services).
$30,589,000 for the nursing home diversion program.
$8,000,000 for the Community Innovations for Aging in Place (the NORC) program.
Same funding as in 2009 for the Family Caregiver Support Program.
Same funding as in 2009 for the Social Service Block Grants (SSBGs).
Senate funding figures include:
Same funding as in 2009 for nutrition services.
Same funding as in 2009 for supportive services.
Same funding as in 2009 for the Family Caregiver Support Program.
$2,500,000 for the Lifespan Respite program.

We need you to contact your members of Congress and urge them to maximize resources for HCBS next year.

Missed an audio conference? Need a refresher?

Just order a CD recording of the program! See the link for all of the details and a list of audio training recordings available: http://agingwa.org/AudioEducation.php

Hospice Medicare Rate up 1.4% in FY 2010

Hospices beneficiaries will see a 1.4% increase in their 2010 Medicare payments , per CMS.

CMS ANNOUNCES FINAL WAGE INDEX CHANGES FOR THE MEDICARE HOSPICE BENEFIT

Hospices serving Medicare beneficiaries will see a 1.4 percent increase in their payments for fiscal year 2010 according to a final regulation released today by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

The hospice payment increase is the net result of a 2.1 percent increase in the “hospital market basket,” an indicator of input price increases, offset by a 0.7 percent decrease in payments to hospices due to CMS’ revised policy to phase out its wage index budget neutrality factor.
Specifically, the final rule revises the phase-out of the wage index budget neutrality adjustment factor (BNAF) which was made final in the fiscal year (FY) 2009 final rule, to now occur over seven years. Under CMS’s final policy, the budget neutrality adjustment will be reduced by 10 percent in FY 2010, and 15 percent each year from FY 2011 through FY 2016.
The rule also adopts a Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) recommendation which requires physicians to complete a narrative on the certification and recertification describing the clinical justification for the patient’s terminal prognosis. The proposed rule also sought comments on future hospice payment reform, the cap calculation methodology, and on requiring physician visits to evaluate eligibility in patients with longer lengths of stay. CMS will consider the comments in future analyses.
This final rule reflects the ongoing efforts of CMS to support beneficiary access to hospice services while maintaining responsible financial stewardship of the Medicare Trust Fund.

Final Rule Details

The BNAF is to be phased-out over seven years, beginning with a 10 percent reduction in FY 2010, and followed by an additional 15 percent reduction in each of the next six fiscal years. Phase out will be complete in FY 2016. This more gradual phase-out provides opportunity for CMS to consider the effects of a reduction in payments in the context of hospice payment reform, which is under consideration. The 10 percent reduction to the BNAF is partially offset by the annual market basket increase, which is 2.1 percent for fiscal 2010.
This rule also makes final a change to the physician certification process, where doctors will be required to submit a brief narrative supporting a patient’s life expectancy of six months or less.

A link to the final rule, which will be published in the Federal Register on August 6, 2009, along with accompanying documents will be available at:
http://www.federalregister.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2009-18553_PI.pdf.

SNF Payment Rates Final Rule issued for FY 2010 - Net decrease of 1.1%

For financial calculators, analysis of final rule, etc: http://www.aahsa.org/article.aspx?id=9740

Red Flag Rules further delayed until Nov. 1, 2009

The FTC has issued yet another delay in the enforcement of its Red Flag Rules. Long Term Care and Senior Services providers are not exempted from the requirements of the rules, but do have another three month window in which to analyze their risks of exposure to identity theft scenarios. Scroll down to find resources on Red Flags here: http://agingwa.org/regulatory.php