Heads Up, PSWs: Early Billing Date in July

Please note that in accordance with the State PSW Payroll Calendar, the PSW submission date in July 2015 is Thursday, July 2nd.  That’s really early. Monthly due dates have been pushed earlier and earlier in the past couple of years, and the Fourth of July holiday has historically caused a bit of a squeeze on billing timelines even in the best of times. Those two factors have combined this year to create the first time in brokerage history that providers have been asked to have their timesheets and invoices to us by the second of the month.

We no longer have any control over due dates or pay dates, so we want to do everything we can to publicize this very early due date to ensure that everyone gets paid on time. Please help us spread the word about the July 2nd due date by sharing this information with your PSW friends and colleagues. We rely on our community partners to help us communicate and you always come through for us. We appreciate it!

 

 

 

We Need Your Help: Brokerage Case Management Funding Faces Reduction Next Week

Dear Customers, Family Members, and Providers,

I’m writing you to ask for your help.

On Monday, Legislators meet to make final budget decisions and Brokerages statewide may receive cuts to our administrative and case management funding. Your support can make all the difference in making sure that doesn’t happen.

If you have a spare couple of minutes between now and Friday, we would greatly appreciate your support. A quick email to the legislators listed below or just a call to their offices will go a long way. Ask them to support “funding of the Workload Model at 95% and no less!”

I have come to know many of you over the past couple of years as INW has done outreach to the community, educating hundreds and hundreds of community members on the systemic changes, specifically the K Plan (Community First Choice Option). While the K Plan has brought a lot of funding into the system to pay for direct services, it has not added a penny to our administrative budgets. Personal Agents who were supporting 45 people historically managed about a half million dollars in Medicaid funds on behalf of customers and providers. Today, many manage double, triple, and quadruple that. Think about the way you’ve seen your plan or the plans of others change over the past two years and multiply that by 7,800, the number of people brokerages serve statewide. The change has been huge. Add to that the Adult Needs Assessment requirement, the unfunded burden of the eXPRS payment system implementation, our Personal Agents now entering timesheets on behalf of many providers, the state’s change to a much longer and more complicated ISP, and enormous systemic shifts, and we are in no place to take a statewide reduction in funding. I believe that some lawmakers may be confusing the K increase with an overall funding increase and it’s just not the case.

I have included a couple of example letters you might use as a template for your email or as a script for your phone call. If you could contact the legislators listed below (whether you live in their district or not) it would be great! If you’re interested in additional details about the Workload Model issue, check out this in-depth explanation: Brokerage Reductions at 90%.

The importance of your support is immeasurable to us right now. I wouldn’t ask for last-minute action if I didn’t believe it could change the future. Your voice will make all the difference between a continued move toward better and more person-centered services versus a world where we may be looking at increased caseloads and a reduction in overall quality for a system known for its innovation, responsiveness, and vision. Our system has taken enough hits this past biennium.

Best to you and yours and thank you again for your support and the opportunity to serve this community.

Larry Deal
Executive Director

 

Legislators to Contact

Representative Deborah Boone Rep.DeborahBoone@state.or.us 503-986-1432
Representative Alissa Keny-Guyer Rep.AlissaKenyGuyer@state.or.us 503-986-1446
Representative Nancy Nathanson Rep.NancyNathanson@state.or.us 503-986-1413
Representative Andy Olson Rep.AndyOlson@state.or.us 503-986-1415
Representative Duane Stark Rep.duanestark@state.or.us 503-986-1404
Senator Alan Bates Sen.AlanBates@state.or.us 503-986-1703
Senator Elizabeth Steiner Hayward Sen.ElizabethSteinerHayward@state.or.us 503-986-1717
Senator Jackie Winters Sen.JackieWinters@state.or.us 503-986-1710


SAMPLE LETTER FROM CUSTOMER/FAMILY MEMBERS

Dear LEGISLATOR,

I am a customer of OR a family member of a person who receives brokerage services for people with IDD (intellectual and developmental disabilities) here in Oregon. I understand that you are making budgetary decisions next week regarding funding for case management. PLEASE FUND BROKERAGES AT THE 95% WORKLOAD MODEL LEVEL – AND NO LESS.

While the Community First Choice Option (K Plan) brought more services to me/my family, it did not add any additional funding for brokerages to administer double and triple the services they have administered historically. We need to know that our brokerage Personal Agent will be responsive when we need him/her. If you reduce funding, we know that increased caseloads are likely. That means we won’t have access to the services we need as quickly. Some of the services I receive right now are: __________________________________. The time I need my brokerage support the most is to help me ______________________________.

Statewide, brokerages have experienced huge increases in workload related to the K Plan, the state’s much more complicated ISP, the eXPRS payment system, and all the paperwork changes. I rely on these services to live an independent life in the community. Please fund brokerages fairly in the next biennium – 95% and no less.

Thank you for your consideration and your service.

YOUR NAME

_________

SAMPLE LETTER FROM PROVIDER/PERSONAL SUPPORT WORKER

Dear LEGISLATOR,

I am a Personal Support Worker/Employee/Provider of services for a person who receives brokerage services for adults with IDD (intellectual and developmental disabilities) here in Oregon. I understand that you are making budgetary decisions next week regarding funding for IDD case management. PLEASE FUND BROKERAGES AT THE 95% WORKLOAD MODEL LEVEL – AND NO LESS.

While the Community First Choice Option (K Plan) brought more services to the people I serve, it did not add any additional funding for brokerages to administer double and triple the services they have administered historically. We need to know that the brokerage Personal Agents we work with will be responsive when customer needs arise – including processing payment to providers like me. If you reduce funding, we know that increased caseloads are likely, meaning slower response time for getting essential needs met. As a provider, I rely on the brokerage for ___________________________________________.

Statewide, brokerages have experienced huge increasing in workload related to the K Plan, the state’s much more complicated ISP, the eXPRS payment system, and all the paperwork changes. The people I support rely on these services to live an independent life in the community and my livelihood is reliant on this program. Please fund brokerages fairly in the next biennium – 95% and no less.

Thank you for your consideration and your services.

YOUR NAME

 

State to Hold Info Call for Families Re: Entry into Sheltered Workshops (06.17.2015)

The Office of Developmental Disability Services (ODDS) will be holding an informational phone call about the upcoming policy changes for entry into sheltered workshops for individuals and their family members/support people on Wednesday, June 17, 2015 from 9:00 – 10:00 AM.

The purpose of this call is to discuss:

  • Upcoming changes to entry into sheltered workshops
  • How these changes will affect you or your family members/support people
  • Effects on those already working in a sheltered workshop
  • Effects on those not working in sheltered workshops
  • Other employment services that are available
  • Answer your questions

To call in please use this conference line:  800-260-0702 and enter guest code 361647

Additional Resources:
Entry into Sheltered Workshops: Upcoming Policy Changes FAQ
Watch a Video of ODDS Director Lilia Teninty Answering FAQs About the Changes
Governor’s Executive Order

 

Meet Kelly Quinlan – Independence Northwest Customer Stories Project #2

Kellly has been an INW customer since 2008.

Kellly has been an INW customer since 2008.

Kelly Quinlan has a first-hand understanding of how Oregon brokerage services help in establishing and maintaining a good quality of life for adults with intellectual disabilities. A prolific writer, with over 50 short stories and author of a self-published book of personal memoirs, Kelly is a vivacious 36-year-old woman known for her bubbly personality and unique style of dress, which includes wearing legwarmers year-round. She loves spending time with her best friend, playing board games and making movies to post on youtube. Energetic, with a great sense of humor and a variety of interests, Kelly says, “There is a lot of flavor in my life right now!“

But about 7 years ago, Kelly’s life was different. She was on a waiting list for brokerage services, and though she was connected with some social services like Section 8 Housing and Social Security Income, she did not have access to individualized supports for individuals with intellectual disabilities. “There was not a whole lot going on–working on my stories—but that was it. I was lonely without having any friends,” she recalled. When she entered brokerage services in 2008, Kelly was surprised at the variety of supports available, and pleased with how dramatically her life was enhanced. She now receives training in independent living skills, assistance with communication due to hearing impairment, support with social skills, and help with medical management. She uses two independent contractors and contracts with a day support activities provider organization for community inclusion.   She describes her life as balanced and thriving, quite different from her adult life before receiving services. “If I just had funding for one thing, I don’t know what I would do. I would have to advocate and say, I need more funds for this,” Kelly says as she recounts her providers and lists her goals and support needs.   “It would be hard if I didn’t get help.”

Kelly has found the design of brokerage services flexible enough to access services catered to her specific support needs. Kelly has severe food allergies, so was thrilled to find a provider who helps her shop, read food labels, find recipes, and cook. In the past, if she accidentally ate something she was allergic to, she said, “I would get really sick. And it does take me a while to get back on my feet after I am contaminated with the food that I am allergic to.” A favorite recipe she discovered with her provider is a gluten-free vegan clam chowder that “tastes like the real thing, only with coconut cream and sweet rice flour.” This brokerage service “really helps me out,” she says. Another unique service Kelly has access through the brokerage is the ability to attend the national Turner Syndrome conference each year.   “I have Turner’s. I like to go to these conferences that happen every year. And the brokerage pays for that, which is really nice.” While Kelly saves money to afford a plane ticket and hotel room, her brokerage service plan covers the cost of her conference registration so that Kelly can network with hundreds of people affected by Turner syndrome and go to workshops and presentations given by healthcare providers and other professionals. Another part of her brokerage plan that Kelly states is very valuable to her is transportation services that allow her to get places she cannot access independently. The individualized services outlined in Kelly’s annual support plan are entirely unique, and as Kelly points out, different from other brokerage customers. “I live out on my own—not everyone I know lives on their own. Not everyone that I know has food allergies, not everyone I know has Turners, or the same kind of medical conditions. I don’t know anybody else that gets the same kind of services that I get,” Kelly says.

Part of Kelly’s busy schedule includes working at her uncle’s restaurant, Cheryl’s on 12th, where she spends about 15 hours per week.   “I’m a dishwasher, that’s basically my title,” says Kelly, laughing.   “I sometimes come out and help with washing down tables, bus tables, and sometimes I’m a hostess.” She says that she loves “working along side the people that work here…. to work with people that I’m familiar with. Most people know that I’m Eddie’s niece, so sometimes that’s when they really straighten up. And sometimes I do chuckle about that!” She prides herself on “the sense of accomplishment” that comes from helping at the restaurant. When asked what she likes most about her employment, she said, “Working. Just having a job. Being out in the community and contributing what I can do. And helping my uncle.”

Kelly is an avid user of social media. “I like posting all the stuff that I do, posting activities with On-the-Move, saying what I did at work… my family likes that I post things on Facebook so that they have a good sense of what’s going on.” She also posts personal memoirs and original creative writing on a self-publishing internet site, and makes short movies that she posts on her youtube channel. She observed that her interest in communicating her experiences through these different media increased as she has become more involved in her community, particularly through her community inclusion program. “When I started going to On-the-Move I thought, that’s interesting… this part is interesting to ME. And it’s something special that happened to me.” Having interesting, novel experiences that are independent from her family give her rich experiences that Kelly defines as key to a good quality of life.

When Kelly heard, in the spring of 2015, that there were possible cuts proposed that would negatively impact her brokerage and services, she decided to go to the state capitol to speak to her legislators directly. “It was really interesting, the building gave off the impression that I am big, large, and I mean business. I had never been there before. But inside it was more low-key and it felt like you can address your problems and someone will listen to you.” While there Kelly spoke to her representative about the importance of having people with disabilities present in the community, and how important it is to have community inclusion supports. “It’s good… being in the community with other people that are disabled. If you cut our programs, there’s not going to be any community living for people with disabilities.” She says she felt the advocacy effort was effective. “Oh, I definitely got some people’s attention. I was talking to a group of people!”

kelly3 capitol 225x300 kelly

Excited to continue with advocating for individualized services and support for adults with intellectual disabilities, Kelly has already planned another trip to Salem and is joining the Board of Directors of a local Portland nonprofit. She said she would make the following recommendations to anyone just entering the brokerage system: “I would definitely tell them about On-the-Move, I would tell them that if they have any medical issues then tell your PA. If you need assistance with financials, speak up, don’t be shy, because that’s what they’re there for. When I first started, I wasn’t quite sure what to ask, or what was even available. I wasn’t quite sure if I could get help with learning how to cook, and what kinds of things would help me out when it came to community, things like that. The medical stuff is especially important,” Kelly says, referencing transportation services, adds, “and going to places that I cannot get to.” Having access to services that are uniquely individualized to her specific needs and circumstances has been life-changing for Kelly. “Yes, it’s really important!” she says.

You can read Kelly’s stories on fanfiction.net (fanfiction.net/u/37688/kellyQ) and wattpad.com (wattpad.com/user/kellyq204) and see her videos on her youtube channel (youtube.com/user/kellyq204).

– Text by Molly Mayo

 

“Did You Get My Timesheet?”

Since the State of Oregon Department of Human Services began taking on Personal Support Worker and provider payment through its eXPRS system, one of the most common questions brokerages have received from providers is “Did you get my timesheet?”

There’s a relatively easy way for providers to access this information via eXPRS. ODDS’ Julie Harrison and her team have created a How To guide entitled “How to Find/View Plan of Care Service Claims”. Check out the guide by clicking here. You’ll learn how to read the eXPRS screens and determine where your payment claim is in the process. Be sure to bookmark this guide for future reference. (Of note: eXPRS refers to hours or miles keyed into its system as SDEs – Service Delivered Entries.)

One additional note: If you are sending invoices or timesheets via email, please be sure to use the billing@independencenw.org email address. If you are faxing invoices or timesheets, please be sure you receive a return confirmation that the fax was received.

Thanks for your continued partnership through the ongoing systemic changes. Your work is very much appreciated.

didyougetmytimesheet