Archive for April 8th, 2014
Friends,Â
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The Disability Rights Network of Pennsylvania has given us this important information about the Healthy PA 1115 Waiver. Healthy PA is the plan proposed by the state under the Affordable Care Act instead of expanding Medicaid. You will be able to submit your thoughts about Healthy PA before it is finalized. There are some serious concerns about what these changes will mean, so it is very important that your comments are included. We’ve given you some suggestions and guidelines for submitting comments below.
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Last month, the Department of Public Welfare sent in the final version of Healthy PA to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Healthy PA explains the Department’s plans to do two things.Â
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(1) To limit the current Medicaid program.Â
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(2) To give Medicaid to a group of uninsured adults ages 21 to 64. This group is anybody who makes less money than a level set by the government, and who would not be able to get Medicaid another way. You can see the Draft 1115 Waiver application here.Â
It is important for the disability community to send in comments about Healthy PA to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The last day to send in comments is Thursday, April 10, 2014 by 11:00 PM. There is more information about how to send in comments below.
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There are a few main areas of concern that we would recommend including in your comments. These are:
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- *The Elimination of MAWD
- * Caps on things; targeted examples: *Loss of access to LTSS (Long Term Supports and Services) for those 133%-250% of FPL because of the MAWD cut, which prevents those with LTSS needs from moving out of poverty.Â
- ~Durable medical equipment ($2.5k/year on high risk plan)
- ~access to mental health care
- *There are no caps on nursing home or institutional settings, which could push those whose needs exceed the caps into more restrictive settings.
It is important for the disability community to submit comments on Healthy PA. Written comments must be submitted to CMS by 11:00 PM on Thursday, April 10, 2014 Written comments may be submitted here or emailed to 1115DemoRequests@cms.hhs.gov. CMS will review and post comments received, but will not respond to each individual comment.Â
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More information about Healthy PA can be found at the Disability Rights Network of Pennsylvania’s website here.
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IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS:
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Questions or comments may be directed to Savannah Logsdon-Breakstone, at SBreakstone@autisticadvocacy.org.