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Register Now! A Virtual Event Celebrating Employment First in Maine October 13, 2020 Dr. Lisa Mills 9:30 – 12:00 noon We are pleased to have Dr. Mills share Maine’s history of supported employment. Join us to look at where we have been, what opportunities we currently have and plans for moving forward to increase access and opportunities for employment for Mainers with disabilities. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER http://employmentfirstmaine.org/ to learn about the Employment First Maine Statute and the work of the Employment First Coalition, including the Recommendations for Maine. Dr. Lisa A. Mills has been a consultant in the field of disability for 29 years with a primary focus on community services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She is currently a consultant on Medicaid home and community-based services, long-term care disability policy, managed long-term services and supports and Employment First systems change. She has worked in Maine and twenty other states over the past 14 years on Medicaid waiver renewals, Medicaid 1115 demonstration waivers, policy and rate/reimbursement models, supporting service provider capacity-building and engaging other state systems as critical partners with Medicaid. Dr. Mills was also the Subject Matter Expert on an Office of Disability Policy Technical Assistance Grant on employment in Maine.  Brought to you by Maine APSE, Maine DHHS and Maine DOL
in recognition of National Disability Employment Awareness Month 2020 SAVE THE DATE A Virtual Event Celebrating Employment First in Maine October 13, 2020 Dr. Lisa Mills 9:30 – 12:00 noon We are pleased to have Dr. Mills share Maine’s history of supported employment. Join us to look at where we have been, what opportunities we currently have and plans for moving forward to increase access and opportunities for employment for Mainers with disabilities. Zoom Registration coming soon! http://employmentfirstmaine.org/ to learn about the Employment First Maine Statute and the work of the Employment First Coalition, including the Recommendations for Maine. Dr. Lisa A. Mills has been a consultant in the field of disability for 29 years with a primary focus on community services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She is currently a consultant on Medicaid home and community-based services, long-term care disability policy, managed long-term services and supports and Employment First systems change. She has worked in Maine and twenty other states over the past 14 years on Medicaid waiver renewals, Medicaid 1115 demonstration waivers, policy and rate/reimbursement models, supporting service provider capacity-building and engaging other state systems as critical partners with Medicaid. Dr. Mills was also the Subject Matter Expert on an Office of Disability Policy Technical Assistance Grant on employment in Maine. Maine’s Medicaid Educational Liaison, Trista Collins – Trista Collins, Maine’s Medicaid Educational Liaison, will be joining us to review and answer questions in regards to the MaineCare and Department of Education Guidance for School-based Services. Monday, September 21st – 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM Register – https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Tte1YlbKTNCODAxlvj1K5w Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities National Training Center Webinar:
Preventing Suicide through Empowerment of Youth with Disabilities Thursday, September 17, 2020, 2:00-3:00 PM ET Webinar Registration According to recent reports from the CDC, suicide rates among our nation’s youth have increased 56% since 2007. Further reports shows that youth with disabilities are four times more likely to think about suicide than their nondisabled peers. In an effort to address this at-risk but underserved population, MHDD has developed training that will give young people with disabilities the tools to navigate the ableism and stigma they experience. MHDD's current work through the Center for Dignity in Healthcare for People with Disabilities, focused on the medical discrimination that people with disabilities often face when seeking mental healthcare in times of crisis, will also be discussed. The Partnership for America's Children has compiled a one-page document for service providers on how they can support and proactively contact the Census Bureau ahead of service based enumeration (SBE) to ensure their location, as well as additional service providers locations in their community, are included during these operations. The document can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1kXf4wygyfwQDt1EnYk7K_qXjDC9ktN-9C3F-2wBVyhY/edit?usp=sharing Or, the document has been embedded below: MACSP ACTION ALERT - Contact Governor Mills Today Re CARES Act funds to Keep DSPs on the Frontlines9/3/2020
MACSP ACTION ALERT
Contact Governor Mills Today! Call, Tweet, Email, Submit feedback through her website! Ask Governor Mills to utilize CARES Act funds to Keep Direct Support Professionals on the Frontlines Caring for Mainers with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. The Basic Ask: Please use CARES Act funds to develop a Direct Support Professional Stabilization Program as proposed by MACSP. This program would provide time-limited monthly direct incentive payments of $1200 to each full-time and $600 to each part-time workers who have remained on the job caring and supporting adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities during the pandemic. The 12,000+ frontline hidden hero DSPs, and the thousands of vulnerable Mainers they care for, need your support! Background Governor Mills is close to expending Maine's $1.25 billion dollars of the federal CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund that was given to the state to help address the extraordinary needs and costs associated with this public health emergency. On August 12th, MACSP requested that the Governor develop a Direct Support Stabilization Program providing each DSP with a monthly incentive stipend. Letter Here. As she considers where to direct the last of the funds it is important that she hears from the I/DD community (consumers, guardians, DSPs, and providers alike) who understand the vital role that DSPs have in keeping vulnerable and high-risk Mainers safe through the pandemic. Disproportionately represented by women, New Mainers, and people of color, DSPs have remained on the frontline throughout the pandemic, risking their safety and, in turn, the safety of their families to provide daily support and care to some of Maine's most vulnerable, medically fragile, and high-risk individuals. Their exceptional commitment, compassion, and effort have been credited by the Department for Health and Human Services staff for reducing the spread of COVID-19 among people with I/DD and saving lives. Five months on, the public health crisis has only deepened the pre-existing workforce crisis in this field. State Medicaid reimbursement rates for residential service wages remain below minimum wage. Without additional hazard or incentive stipends that they deserve, fatigued and underpaid DSPs will continue to leave their jobs for lower risk and higher-paying positions, jeopardizing the quality of care and access to services that people with I/DD need and deserve. A DSP incentive program is critically needed to stabilize the existing workforce who are working day and night to protect adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities from the spread of infection throughout the pandemic, all while providing daily personal care and support. Contact Governor Mills today! Email: governor@maine.gov Phone: 207-287-3531 Click Here For Easy Action Steps! Examples of Social Media Communications Tweet: Please use CARES Act funds for incentive payments to #Maine 's 12,000+ Direct Support Professionals as they continue to provide care to ppl w/ #disabiliites during #COVID-19. Thank you for your consideration! Facebook Post: As Governor Mills decides how to use the CARES Act funds, make your voice heard. Urge her to provide incentive payments to Maine's 12,000+ Direct Support Professionals as they continue to provide care and support to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities during this pandemic. Contact Governor Mills today and Advocate for Maine's DSPs! Email: governor@maine.gov Phone: 207-287-3531 Follow these Easy Action steps. Notice of Agency Waiver Renewal
AGENCY: Department of Health and Human Services, MaineCare Services RULE TITLE OR SUBJECT: Chapter 101, MaineCare Benefits Manual, Section 29, Support Services for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder. WAIVER: ME.0467, Support Services for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder Waiver CONCISE SUMMARY: The Department is planning to renew the Support Services for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder waiver, known in Maine as Section 29 of the MaineCare Benefits Manual. This waiver renewal incorporates internally-generated updates to the waiver’s appendices. Some of the major changes in the renewal are as follows:
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: CFR §441.304 DEADLINE FOR COMMENTS: Comments must be received by 11: 59 PM, September 13, 2020. AGENCY CONTACT PERSON: Thomas Leet, Long-Term Services and Supports Manager AGENCY NAME: MaineCare Services ADDRESS: 109 Capitol Street, 11 State House Station Augusta, Maine 04333-0011 Thomas.leet@maine.gov TELEPHONE: 207-624-4068 FAX: (207) 287-1864 TTY: 711 MPF Additional August Webinar - Register now! Dr. Laura Blaisdell Provides Medical Guidance on COVID 19 – Dr. Laura Blaisdell a Pediatrician and member of Maine's Academy of American Pediatrics will present a webinar on navigating the social distancing recommendations as it pertains to school and in-person learning as well as any updated research on how COVID 19 and children. Thursday, August 20 – 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM Register – https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_dt9QYrfNTkOZN07l7-kwPA “Team Up for Your Child” Presented by Diane Bouffard, CFPS, and Rebecca Williamson, CFPS, Regional Parent Support Coordinators Getting services for a child with behavioral health needs can be overwhelming. “Team Up for Your Child” is a step-by-step guide designed to help families navigate confusing service systems and work smarter with doctors, schools, agencies and insurers. When a child has serious behavioral health issues, you suddenly have a team of professionals in your life who provide a variety of services. This team could include doctors, therapists, health workers and teachers but remember that the coach of this team is you - the parent. You are the only one who takes care of the whole child. Learn how to identify your child’s strengths and needs, make sense of reports and evaluations, understand your child’s treatment plan, track your child’s progress and translate the Individualized Education Program. Thursday, August 20, 2020 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. with breaks included Register Here: https://gearparentnetwork.org/event/team-up-for-your-child/ |
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