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FUNDING SOURCES
As of the writing of this guide, the Department of Human Services submitted its Statewide Transition Plan (STP) to comport with the CMS Final Rule regarding Home and Community Based Settings (HCBS) and is awaiting approval. What is the status of the STP? When the NJ Department of Human Services (DHS) requested public comment on the first draft of the STP, more than 1,000 stakeholders commented. Hundreds of families requested more flexibility for individuals with special needs to choose settings they needed or wanted. DHS revised the STP to assess existing settings for compliance. The State Density Review was eliminated and replaced with a Community Integration Review which will look at a variety of factors, including individual experiences, in determining whether a setting is truly home and community based. As of this writing, CMS approval is pending.
The state has until 2019 to bring all HBCS waiver funded services such as CCW, MLTSS and the Supports Program into full compliance, and DHS has taken substantial measures to implement the policies in the STP as submitted in preparation for this deadline. The DHS will likely adopt regulations incorporating these policies as requirements. Thus, when considering housing and vocational options to be funded by Medicaid waivers, one should be well informed of the current state requirements and any changes that may have occurred since the writing of this publication. To learn more about the New Jersey Statewide Transition Plan go to WWWSTATENJUSHUMANSERVICESDMAHSINFO HCBS?TRANSHTML
MORE ABOUT THE CMS “FINAL RULE:” MANDATE ON INTEGRATION
Beth Miller of The News Journal reported that some people see a group home “as a sequestered environment, exactly the kind of thing the nation is trying to leave behind as it promotes community-based life for all. Others see such options as a welcome, sustainable alternative for those who may need support but still want a place of their own.” The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released guidance regarding its final rule concerning isolation in institutional settings and describing what federal funds will support in the future. Each state receiving HCBS waiver funding must submit and implement a transition plan by 2019 that identifies how the state will bring all of its waiver-funded services into
compliance. Miller states that CMS is “steering everything toward independence, choice, and community integration. Anything that looks or functions similar to an institution will have to prove it is no such thing to be eligible for future home and community-based funding. The new rules reflect the mandates of the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) and the subsequent 1999 U.S. Supreme Court ruling known as Olmstead, which said that people with disabilities have the right to full access to the benefits of community living and the opportunity to receive services in the most integrated setting appropriate.” For more information visit WWWDELAWAREONLINECOM STORYNEWSLOCALCONFERENCE FOCUS INNOVATIVE NEIGHBORHOODS .
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