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Call for Sessions Due April 14 for 30th Annual HCBS Conference
The National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) is holding the 30th Annual National Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Conference from September 15-18, 2014 in Arlington, VA. The conference offers a blend of policy, program and practice issues for professionals interested in home and community-based waivers and services for all ages and abilities. Last year's conference had a strong presence from the agencies of the US Department of Health and Human Services including Administration for Community Living (ACL) and Administration on Aging (AoA). The deadline to submit proposals for workshops is April 14, 2014.
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Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services
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February 2014 Medicaid Enrollment Report
On April 4, 2014, the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services released the February 2014 monthly report on state Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) application, eligibility and enrollment data. Among the 46 states (including the District of Columbia) reporting both February 2014 enrollment data, pre-open enrollment baseline period and approximately 61 million individuals were enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP in February. This is a gain of 3 million additional individuals and 5.2 percent increase over the average monthly enrollment for July through September of 2013.
Click here to view the full February 2014 Medicaid and CHIP report.
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New Medicaid.gov Feature - "Policy in Practice" Offers First Item on Tobacco Cessation
Medicaid.gov offers a new feature, Policies in Practice, which includes web pages that focus on a particular policy topic and bring together a set of both internal and external resources about the issue. The new feature will also highlight state best practices in implementing the policy or practice.
The first section of this feature is focused on Medicaid support for smoking cessation activities. There is also a new State Highlight available that calls out Maryland's efforts in this area.
Click here to view the Smoking Cessation page of the new feature.
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Webinar: Sustainable Oral Health Care Delivery Models in Schools and Community-Based Settings
The Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS) and the Medicaid-CHIP State Dental Association (MSDA) are holding a webinar about improving oral health through access on May 14, 2014, 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. ET. The learning objectives for the webinar are to understand, through examples from school- and community-based dental providers:
- How to develop a business plan that supports the delivery of school- and community-based oral health care services,
- How billing practices for school- and community-based, and school-linked dental programs may support and sustain dental services for disadvantaged children, and
- How two states have successfully developed a sustainable school- and community-based dental services program.
Invitations with registration information will be available soon.
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Federal Transit Administration
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Response on Mobility and Transportation Performance Measures
The Federal Transit Administration is sponsoring an online dialogue to get input from the public on Section 5310 Formula Grant Performance Measures. Section 5310 grants are intended to enhance mobility for seniors and persons with disabilities. The deadline for submissions is April 18, 2014.
Click here for more information and to submit suggestions.
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Health and Human Services
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HHS Secretary Sebelius to Step Down
Earlier this morning, President Obama announced the resignation of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, as well as the nomination of her preferred successor, current Director of the Office of Management and Budget Sylvia Mathews Burwell.
Speaking from the Rose Garden, President Obama praised the outgoing Secretary for her service, stating "Kathleen's work over the past five years will benefit our families and our country for decades to come". In remarks following the President's, Sebelius described her work at HHS as "the opportunity of a lifetime" and reflected on her tenure by recalling the words of former Vice President Hubert Humphrey, which are inscribed on a wall in the HHS Building that bears his name: "The moral test of government is how it treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those in the shadows of life...".
Sebelius was confirmed on April 28, 2009. Her tenure - 1,809 days as of Friday - is nearly a year and a half longer than the average for HHS Secretaries, dating to the Carter administration. Federal health officials said Thursday night that she has not set a departure date, but that her plan generally is to remain until her successor is confirmed.
Burwell was unanimously confirmed to her current Cabinet-rank position in April 2013.
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HHS Honors National Minority Health Month
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a statement by Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in honor of National Minority Health Month. "Despite some recent progress in addressing health disparities, great challenges remain. Minorities are far more likely than non-Hispanic whites to suffer from chronic conditions, many of which are preventable. This is a particularly troubling statistic, because chronic diseases account for seven of the ten leading causes of death in our nation. For example, African Americans, American Indians and Alaska Natives are twice as likely to be diagnosed with diabetes and Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are more than three times as likely to receive the same diagnosis. And Latinos are twice as likely to die from liver cancer. While these persistent disparities are deeply troubling, there are some hopeful trends. The gap in life expectancy between African Americans and non-Hispanic whites has been closing, and is now the smallest it's been since these statistics have been tracked."
Click here to view the entire news release.
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National Public Health Week
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a statement by Assistant Secretary of Health Dr. Howard Koh in honor of National Public Health Week. "National Public Health Week is a time to recognize progress we have made in strengthening and protecting the public health and to rededicate ourselves to the work of improving the health and well-being of Americans by preventing disease, supporting medical research, and promoting safer and healthier communities. To help gauge advancements in America's public health, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services tracks leading health indicators via the Healthy People initiative. This provides science-based 10-year national objectives for improving the health of all Americans. National Public Health Week is an opportunity to recognize not only the important work of public health workers in communities across our country, but also the role every citizen plays in the effort to "Be Healthy from the Start." By taking better care of ourselves, and supporting friends and family in their efforts to lead healthier lives, we can all play an important role in National Public Health Week."
Click here to view the entire news release.
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Social Security Administration
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SSA Announces New Fraud Prevention Unit in New York
Carolyn W. Colvin, Acting Commissioner of Social Security, announced the establishment of a centralized fraud prevention unit in New York City. This unit will identify potential fraud and detect fraud trends that can be applied to disability cases nationwide. This unit also consists of experienced disability examiners who are currently involved in the re-review of disability medical decisions resulting from recent indictments in Puerto Rico and New York City. Using their specialized experience, the disability examiners will collaborate with Social Security systems personnel to help build data analytics to detect and prevent fraud at the earliest possible point in the disability decision-making process. Social Security's anti-fraud approach has resulted in a fraud incidence rate that is a fraction of one percent.
Click here to learn more about the fraud prevention unit.
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Colorado Department of Human Services
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Training for Mandatory Reporters
The Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS) is holding an on-line training for mandatory reporters and other professionals. Mandatory reporters are professionals that report suspected physical or sexual abuse, exploitation, and caretaker neglect of at-risk elders (persons age 70 and older) to law enforcement within 24 hours of their observation of the mistreatment. The training will take 30-40 minutes to complete and participants will be able to print out their results for their files or employers, once they have completed the training.
Click here to access the training. Click here to view the PowerPoint with information on Mandatory Reporting.
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Senators Champion Increased OAA Funding in FY15
On April 3, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging, was joined by 26 of his colleagues in calling for a significant funding increase for Older Americans Act (OAA) programs in Fiscal Year (FY) 2015. As part of the annual appropriations process, the Senators submitted their request to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the appropriations panel in charge of funding OAA programs. The Senators' letter acknowledges the need for a stronger investment in the OAA, and asks appropriators to increase funding levels for these programs to begin to offset years of stagnant funding and to address the pressures of population growth, inflation, and sequestration.
NASUAD strongly supports the Senators' request. We thank Sen. Sanders for his leadership on this critical issue, and we greatly appreciate the support from his 26 fellow Senators who endorsed the request. In addition to Sen. Sanders, the letter was signed by Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), John D. Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Tim Johnson (D-S.D.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Robert Casey (D-Penn.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Carl Levin (D-Mich.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.).
The letter is available here .
A Press Release from Sen. Sanders office is available here.
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50 Over 50: Inspiring Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
For the upcoming Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, AARP will be launching a list called 50 Over 50: Inspiring Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. AARP invites the public to nominate a person for the list which will honor the contributions and impact of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) who are or were over 50 years old. Every day of May, the AARP AAPI Community Facebook page will post one or two persons selected from the 50 Over 50 List. The call for nominations ends April 15, 2014, 5:00 p.m. ET.
Click here to nominate inspiring AAPIs.
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National Healthcare Decisions Day - April 16
The Alzheimer's Association recognizes, National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD) on April 16. This day provides an opportunity to empower individuals to make the best health care decisions and plans for their future care. This is especially important for individuals in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias when they can still express their future wishes and care decisions before cognition and function decline. Early planning also eliminates the guesswork for families and allows time to work through complex legal and financial issues.
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CCAL Advancing Person-Centered Living
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Feedback for Survey on Dementia Care in America
CCAL-Advancing Person-Centered Living in affiliation with the University of Buffalo-Institute for Person-Centered Care is gathering feedback on a research project about the public's views regarding dementia care in America. The aim of the survey is to develop agreement on priorities for dementia care, research, education, and funding from the perspectives of people living with dementia, family care partners,and advocates for people with dementia. There will be another round of edits as the final survey is built -- CCAL is hoping participants will assist providing feedback on multiple rounds. Feedback is due on April 25, 2014.
Click here to review the the survey.
Click here to request a paper version of the survey and a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
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Statement on Mickey Rooney's Death
The Elder Justice Coalition (EJC) released a statement on the death of Mickey Rooney, an award-winning actor in films, television and Broadway. "The bi-partisan, 3000 member Elder Justice Coalition mourns the death of Mickey Rooney, American Oscar-winning film legend and elder abuse victim, who died yesterday at the age of 93. In a statement released today, National Coordinator Bob Blancato said "His courageous testimony before the Senate Special Committee on Aging focused the eyes of a nation on the growing problem of elder abuse. Financial abuse costs its victims $2.9 billion a year and the direct medical costs associated with elder abuse now exceed $5 billion. In his testimony, Rooney explained that he was stripped of his basic rights."
Click here to view the entire news release.
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National Center for Mobility Management
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The National Center for Mobility Management is seeking applications for an in-depth training on establishing one-call and/or one-click services for transportation information. The training will be implemented through three webinars and one two-hour, in-person workshop. The deadline for receipt of letters of interest and commitment is April 18, 2014, 5:00 p.m. ET.
Click here for more information.
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Save the Date: 2014 Consumer Voice Annual Conference
The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care is holding the 2014 Consumer Voice Annual Conference from November 15-19, 2014 in Arlington, VA. Attendees will have the opportunity to network with advocates and colleagues from across the country; interact directly with long-term care consumers; hear from the best speakers in the field; receive the latest long-term care policy updates from key experts; and acquire tools and resources that will re-energize their work and help put advocacy into action.
Click here to receive updates on registration and conference agenda details.
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April is Parkinson's Disease Awareness Month
Approximately one million Americans live with Parkinson's Disease, with about 60,000 new diagnoses each year. As our society continues to age, the number of people with Parkinson's Disease is expected to grow exponentially. Raising awareness about Parkinson's Disease takes on new importance when people take into account the numbers of aging Baby Boomers and others who will potentially face Parkinson's Disease.
Click here to access materials for Parkinson's Awareness Month.
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3-D Printing Food for Seniors
The EU has begun an initiative to prepare for the shifting demographics and the growing number of seniors who need healthy, tasty meals. The PERFORMANCE initiative
envisions a system whereby healthcare workers and nutritionists compile individualized profiles-portion size, nutritional needs, food texture-which is then embedded as data in QR codes that are stamped on plates. A local 3D printing facility scans the codes and produces appropriate meals, which are then delivered to homes or assisted living facilities.
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WellPoint: Health Policy Manager/Director
Wellpoint is seeking a Health Policy professional at either the Manager or Director level, pending applicants experience and qualifications. The Health Policy Manager will support efforts to monitor, research, analyze, and evaluate the impact of proposed state and federal legislation and regulations. The Health Policy Director will maintain a portfolio of public policy issues facing the company and leading related activities including developing proactive legislative agendas at the state and federal levels related to public policy issues covered in the portfolio.
Click here to apply for the position.
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