Waiver Title
Community Protection
Description of Emergency
N/A
Start Date
End Date
Description of Transition Plan
Community Protection waiver participants will transition to emergency service status as soon as it becomes evident that they are impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. This will be evidenced by contraction of COVID-19 by the waiver participant, their provider or their housemate, local quarantines, or other guidance of isolation or precautionary measures issued by local or federal health departments.
Area(s) Affected
Area Affected
statewide
Access and Eligibility
Increase Cost Limits
N/A
Modify Targeting Criteria
N/A
Services
Modify Scope or Coverage
N/A
Exceed Service Limitations
Staff/family consultation may be provided to more than one individual at a time with a rate reduction when providing service in a 2:1 or group setting. Specialized Medical Equipment will cover items related to health and safety such as personal protective equipment, and disinfection supplies when not otherwise covered in the Medicaid state plan. Waiver transportation service will expand to travel to non-waiver service such as transportation to another family members home, when that transportation is required to prevent illness or meet immediate health and safety needs. Expand limit and provider type in staff family consultation to include emergency preparedness consultation support from a provider trained in emergency management or similar. All waiver services except goods may be offered remotely by providers when travel to the waiver participant is not possible due to COVID-19 infection. Approval for remote support will require a prior approval by DDA. Temporarily add Wellness Education to the waiver to provide information regarding COVID-19 and health and safety.
Add Services
N/A
Expand Settings
Direct care services Residential Habilitation, Respite Care, and 1:1 services Positive Behavior Support, staff/family consultation, crisis diversion beds, and behavioral health stabilization- positive behavior support, nurse delegation, skilled nursing (not otherwise covered under the Medicaid state plan and not available when nursing is available in the quarantine setting) may be provided in a hotel, shelter, church, or alternative facility based setting or the home of a direct care worker when the waiver participant is displaced from their home because of quarantine or hospitalization or when providers are unavailable due to illness or business closure. Temporarily allow for Residential Habilitation, Positive Behavior Support ad Staff/Family Consult to be provided in a non-integrated setting (such as a hospital or other quarantine site) when DDA identifies that no other alternatives are available and a non-integrated setting is the only service setting that service may be offered to meet an individuals health and safety needs. This will only be authorized when the support the waiver service provider is offering is not otherwise funded by another resource. This may include other group settings such as a gymnasium or portable if provider networks become so depleted that there are no other options to provide direct care in the clients home. The direct supports provided through these services (see service descriptions below) will not duplicate the supports already available in that setting.
Provide Service Out of State
N/A
Allow Payment for Services by Families
N/A
Modify Provider Qualifications
Modification of Provider Qualifications
Temporarily allow provider enrollment or re-enrollment with modified risk screening elements such as onsite visits or fingerprint checks, or modified training requirements, when requested by the waiver participant to all service providers. When needed, suspend provider licensing or certification for up to 1 year when COVID 19 pandemic impacts ability for providers to obtain license or certification due to state staff or service provider availability to all service providers.
Modify Provider Types
Expand provider types for specialized medical equipment to include the use of a purchase card and community choice guides in order to purchase items from nontraditional vendors who have necessary items in stock when supply or cost impacts occur due to COVID 19 on a case by case basis.
Modify Licensure/Requirements for Waiver Settings
When needed, suspend provider licensing or certification for up to 1 year for residential providers when COVID 19 pandemic impacts ability for providers to obtain license or certification due to state staff or service provider availability to Group Homes, LSRs, Adult Day Care, Childcare Center, Group Care Facility, Licensed foster home, for respite and residential habilitation
Modification LOC Eval and Re-Eval Processes
Reassessments of level of care may be postponed up to one year and services will continue on a case by case basis when conditions do not allow a waiver participant, their representative, or DDA staff to participate in a reassessment due to illness or quarantine to allow sufficient time for the case manager to complete the annual reassessment paperwork. For service plans that are expiring and currently meeting an affected waiver participants needs, but a new person centered service plan is unable to be developed due to ongoing COVID-19 impacts, the time limit to approve the plan may be extended on a case by case basis when monthly remote or telephonic monitoring is provided to ensure the plan continues to meet the participants needs. Telephonic assessments may occur in place of face-to-face assessments on a case by case basis until impacts of COVID-19 are resolved. Telephonic Initial Assessments will be conducted when needed to prevent exposure related to COVID-19. For Initial CARE assessments, staff may complete the assessment and personcentered service plan via the telephone or other electronic means and then do a brief in-person visit before moving the assessment to current. If the pre-visit questionnaire response indicates it is not safe to do an in-person visit services can be authorized prior to an in-person visit occurring. All initial CARE assessments may be sparse, ensuring that mandatory fields are completed with the minimum necessary to complete a minimal care plan. Annual assessment Inter-rater reliability monitoring will be postponed up to 1 year when workforce is limited due to COVID-19 or when the clients household in impacted by COVID-19.
Increase Payment Rates
N/A
Modifications of ISP
N/A
Modify Incident Reporting/Med Management Safeguards
N/A
Allow Payment for Services During Acute Care Hospital/Short Term Institutional Stay
N/A
Inclusion of Retainer Payments
N/A
Institute/Expand Opportunities for Self-Direction
N/A
Increase Factor C
N/A
Other Changes Necessary
N/A
Addendum
HCBS Regulations
Not comply with the HCBS settings requirement at 42 CFR 441.301(c)(4)(vi)(D) that individuals are able to have visitors of their choosing at any time, for settings added after March 17, 2014, to minimize the spread of infection during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Services
Add Electronic Method of Service Delivery
N/A
Add Home Delivered Meals
N/A
Add Medical Supplies, Equipment and Appliances
N/A
Add Assistive Technology
N/A
Conflict of Interest
Other Changes Necessary
N/A
Other Changes Necessary
N/A
Provider Qualifications
Allow Spouses and Parents of Minor Children to Provide Personal Care Servcies
N/A
Allow a Family Member to be Paid to Render Services to an Individual
N/A
Allow Other Practitioners in Lieu of Approved Providers Within the Waiver
N/A
Modify Service Providers for Home-Delivered Meals to Allow for Additional Providers, Including Non-Traditional Providers
N/A
Processes
Allow an Extension for Reassessments and Reevaluations for up to One Year Past the Due Date
N/A
Allow the Option to Conduct Evaluations, Assessments, and Person-Centered Service Planning Meetings Virtually/Remotely in lieu of Face-to-Face Meetings
N/A
Adjust Prior Approval/Authorization Elements Approved in Waiver
N/A
Adjust Assessment Requirements
N/A
Add an Electronic Method of Signing Off on Required Documents Duch As The Person-Centered Service Plan
N/A
Link To Application
N/A