Developmental Disabilities Newsletter

March 2005 Volume 8; Issue 2

"When a fellow says it ain’t about the money but the principle of the thing, it’s about the money.” - Kin Hubbard (American Humorist & Writer)

In This Issue:

U.S. HHS Secretary
Michael Leavitt

Michael O. Leavitt was sworn in as the 20th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services on January 26, 2005. Prior to his current service, Secretary Leavitt served as Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Governor of Utah. While at the E.P.A., Leavitt signed the Clean Air Diesel Rule, implemented new, more –protective quality standards for ozone and fine particle pollution and organized a regional collaboration of national significance to clean and protect the Great Lakes.

The people of Utah elected Secretary Leavitt governor three times. Born February 11, 1951, in Cedar City, Utah, Secretary Leavitt graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics and business from Southern Utah University. Secretary Leavitt is married to Jacalyn S. Leavitt; they are the parents of five children.

Taken From: HHS Website

Financial Management Issue

This issue contains information about the financial management of Federal awarded grants. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the information contained in this newsletter, please contact your State Program Specialist.

Additional Financial Management information can be found at the Region VI Administration for Children & Families Website located at:
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/region6/program_info/fm.html

Office of Management & Budget (OMB) Circulars
What Are They?

OMB Circulars are information or instructions issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which has the mission to assist the President in overseeing the preparation of the Federal budget and to supervise its administration in Executive Branch agencies. In addition, OMB oversees and coordinates the Administration’s procurement, financial management, information and regulatory policies.

Please find a partial listing of OMB Circulars below:

Looking for Frequently Used Financial Forms?

The Administration for Children & Families’ Office of Financial Services provides information on expenditures by States for public programs, grants/funding opportunities and financial audits performed by both independent and Federal staff.

More information found at the Office of Financial Services website located at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofs/forms.htm.

HHS Approves Connecticut Plan

On January 19, 2005 former HHS Secretary, Tommy G. Thompson, approved a Connecticut demonstration plan to make it easier for individuals with disabilities to remain in their own homes by giving them greater control over a broad array of Medicaid services.

The Connecticut plan will allow people to play an essential role in deciding how to plan, obtain and sustain community-based services for themselves. The waiver will provide services that include personal care, supported employment, group day services, vehicle modification, transportation, specialized medical equipment, companion services and family training. Participating individuals will be able to select and direct their personal assistants as well as manage many other services for themselves. The state hopes to serve over 3,000 people in this demonstration.

Taken From: HHS Press Release, January 19, 2005

Grants Terms and Conditions

Terms and Conditions of grants are special, specific requirements that accompany the acceptance of the Federal grant award. The Terms and Conditions of the grant are always included with the first grant award as an attachment. By accepting the award, grantees are committing to operate according to the Terms and Conditions.

Examples of some of the terms and conditions included with the Protection & Advocacy grant include:

It is important that grantees are aware of the Terms and Conditions of their grant. If you have any questions, you should contact your Regional Office Financial Management Specialist.

New Medicare Preventive Benefit

January 10, 2005 new Medicare preventive benefits became available designed to provide seniors with better care and a higher quality of life. As of January 1, 2005 people with Medicare coverage can take advantage of three important new Medicare benefits: a one-time “Welcome to Medicare” physical exam, cardiovascular screening, and diabetes screening.

New Medicare beneficiaries now have the “Welcome to Medicare” physical exam, coupled with an increasingly broad set of preventive benefits that will include prescription drug coverage next year. These provide people with Medicare greater access to more prevention-focused benefits than ever before. The services are key features of the Medicare Modernization Act (MMA), signed into law in December 2003.

In addition to the physical and other benefits added in recent years, Medicare’s comprehensive set of preventative benefits includes screening services for the following:

Fifty-six percent of Americans 50 and older do not get screening tests that can detect colon cancer at an early, treatable stage, despite the fact that Medicare covers such tests. When colon cancer is caught early, survival rates are over 90 percent.

Medicare also recently announced its intention to cover smoking cessation counseling for beneficiaries who have smoking-related diseases.

Taken From: HHS News Release, January 10, 2005

Wheel Chairs and Scooters—New Coverage Criteria

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released draft coverage criteria for power wheelchairs and scooters on February 3, 2005. CMS’ proposed coverage criteria would rely on clinical guidance for evaluating whether a beneficiary needs a devise to assist with mobility and if so, what type of devise is needed. This new approach would replace an older, more rigid standard that relied on whether a patient was ‘nonambulatory” or “bed or chair confined”.

CMS plans to publish the final guidance in March and to provide information on how to use and, document the new criteria.

Taken From: CMS News Release, February 3, 2005

Code of Federal Regulations: What Are They?

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government. It is divided into 50 titles that represent broad areas subject to Federal regulation. Each volume of the CFR is updated once each calendar year and issuance of these updates is staggered on a quarterly basis.

* Titles 1-16 are updated as of January 1st
* Titles 17-27 are updated as of April 1st
* Titles 28-41 are updated as of July 1st
* Titles 42-50 are updated as of October 1st

Each title is divided into chapters, which usually bear the name of the issuing agency. Each chapter is further subdivided into parts that cover specific regulatory areas. Large parts may be subdivided into subparts. All parts are organized in sections, and most citations in the CFR are provided at the section level.

For programs administered by the Administration for Children & Families (ACF) the primary CFR is Title 45 (Public Welfare). Copies of 45 CFR can be found at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.html.

Specific Chapters of note are:

Native American Initiative Announced

A Native American Initiative was announced on February 10, 2005 to strengthen American Indians and tribal governments through donations from private sector and Fortune 500 firms.

The Native American Initiative is a collaboration between the Administration on Native Americans (ANA), and Gifts In Kind International, the world’s leading charity in product philanthropy and the third largest charity in the United States.

ANA serves as the lead agency in the Initiative by providing information to tribes, tribal colleges and nonprofit Native American organizations about Gifts In Kind and its programs. ANA is coordinating outreach to Native American communities that are interested in accessing resources.

The goals of the Native American Initiative are to:

For additional information about the Native American Initiative, contact ANA at: www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ana and go to the Native American Initiative, or call toll-free at 877-922-9262,

Taken From: HHS Press Release, February 10, 2005

Co-Occurring Disorders

A new Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) was released on January 31, 2005, by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) which estimates that 50-75 percent of patients in substance abuse treatment programs have co-occurring mental illness, while 20-50 percent of those treated in mental health settings have co-occurring substance abuse. Most people with co-occurring disorders do not receive treatment for both mental disorders and substance abuse. Many receive no treatment of any kind.

SAMHSA’s 2003 National Survey on Drug Use and Health shows 27.3 percent of persons 18 and older (in the past year) with serious mental illness used an illicit drug. In 2003, the survey also found that 5.7 million persons ages 18 and older with serious mental illness engaged in binge alcohol use and 1.9 million were heavy drinkers. Overall, the survey showed that about 4.2 million adults aged 18 and older met the medical criteria for both substance abuse and mental illness.

The Protocol is designed for substance abuse treatment counselors and mental health providers who usually treat one or the other of the two ailments, but it will also be useful for administrators, primary care providers, criminal justice staff and other health care and social service personnel who work with people with co-occurring disorders.

Taken From: SAMHSA News Release, January 31, 2005

$100 Million to States for Energy Aid

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt announced on January 31, 2005 that an additional $100 million in emergency funds will be provided to states, territories, and tribes from the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

The funds will provide states with extra assistance, over and above the $1.6 billion states have received this heating season and $100 million in emergency funds last December, to help low-income families pay their heating bills.

The $100 million announcement uses contingency funds made available by the FY 2005 omnibus appropriations bill. Each year LIHEAP aids more that 4.5 million low-income families pay the costs of heating their homes in the winter and cooling their homes in the summer.

The funding levels for Region VI states are below:

Taken From: HHS News, January 31, 2005

The Region VI Developmental Disabilities Team thanks the State Councils and State P&A Systems for the timely submittal of Program Performance Reports and Statements of Goals & Priorities!

HHS Reallocates SCHIP Funds

A redistribution of $643 million dollars in unspent State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) funds will be undertaken in order to help states avoid funding shortfalls in 2005.

States have three years to spend each year’s SCHIP allotment. In previous years, Congress has allowed a portion of funds left unspent to be redistributed to states that have exhausted their money. This year, the unspent 2002 funds will be redistributed to states that demonstrated the need for additional SCHIP funds.

In all, 28 states will be getting supplemental funds under today’s announcement. Without the redistribution, five of the states, including Arizona, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey and Rhode Island, would have run out of Federal funding for their SCHIP programs.

Funds in the reallocation were available to states on January 19, 2005. All states administer a SCHIP program which is intended to provide health care coverage to otherwise uninsured children whose families earn too much for traditional Medicaid, but not enough to afford employer-sponsored or private sector policies. Currently, some 5.8 million children are enrolled in SCHIP.

More information can be found at www.cms.hhs.gov/schip.

Taken From: HHS Press Release, January 19, 2005

On-Line Data Collection (OLDC) System

The On-Line Data Collection System (OLDC) is a system which will allow for the on-line transmittal of financial reports. There are several advantages to electronic reporting through the OLDC System:

Stay tuned for more information on the OLDC.

The Region VI Developmental Disabilities Newsletter is issued 6 times a year by the Region VI Administration for Children and Families

2005 Region VI DD Institute

The Region VI ACF DD Team is planning to host the 2005 DD Institute in the Fall of 2005. Please stay tuned for more details.

Look for the next Newsletter May 2005

U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services
Administration for Children & Families
1301 Young Street,
Room 945 / ACF-3
Dallas, Texas 75202-5433

Administration for Children & Families - Region VI

Leon R. McCowan
Regional Administrator

Developmental Disabilities Team
Fax: 214-767-8124

Janice Davis, Team Leader
(214) 767-8075
jdavis@act.hhs.gov

Sharon Butler, Program Specialist
(214) 767-8093
sbutler@acf.hhs.gov