Tag: House

Arkansas Session 2019

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The AR Legislative session has been going on a few weeks. They will be making important decisions that affect us. Here are some resources to help you stay up-to-date no matter where you live.

See the bills that have been filed:

The boxes are check for 2019. Just click Submit to see the latest list.

http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/SearchCenter/Pages/historicalbil.aspx

See today’s calendar to decide which committees you want to watch.

Public Health, Welfare, & Labor are committees for both Senate and House that discuss bills that affect Medicaid. Each meeting has an agenda, so you can see if the bill you care about is on the list for today.

http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/assembly/2019/2019R/Pages/Home.aspx

Watch what’s going on right now:

(Business hours)

http://sg001-harmony.sliq.net/00316/Harmony/en/View/UpcomingEvents/20190208/-1

Watch previous sessions and committees:

Bills travel to different committees, to the House, and Senate before they hit the Governor’s desk. You might want to go back to see how your legislators voted or if they discussed your concerns in the meetings.

http://sg001-harmony.sliq.net/00316/Harmony/en/View/RecentEnded/20190208/-1

1 PASSE Quits: 5 Things You Need to Do

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Big news this week in case you missed it. There were 4 PASSEs, and now there are 3. ForeverCare says they can’t move forward, right before the PASSEs would all receive the payment to manage everyone’s care on March 1. What does this all mean? Now what?

The news has covered this some in the past few days. Forevercare says the program isn’t ready, but DHS says they are. Watch this video or read this news story to see what ForeverCare had to say:

screen shot 2019-01-19 at 9.33.55 am

If you don’t know what the PASSE is, check this out (MSL Resource).

Or watch this previous town hall recording from DHS.

In light of ForeverCare’s announcement, this is what you can do:

(1) If you are concerned about this whole thing, you need to contact DHS through the PASSE Ombudsman.

They’re supposed to take our complaints, concerns, and help us solve problems:

Call –  1-844-843-7351 (during business hours)

Email – PASSEOmbudsmanOffice@dhs.arkansas.gov

More info – https://humanservices.arkansas.gov/about-dhs/dms/passe-ombudsman If you’re a provider, and you’re confused or concerned about all of this and how it will work before March 1, you need to contact DHS through

Tanya Giles | tanya.giles@dhs.arkansas.gov | 501-320-6189

(2) A lot of people want to contact their legislators and let them know what’s going on. After all, the state legislators voted this through when they voted for Act 775.

Keep them up to date on how this system is affecting you.

Contact our state legislators.

Contact any elected legislator in the US.

See how your local Representatives or Senators voted on Act 775.

(3) If you thought this was confusing, get ready for more. Keep a note pad by the phone. Keep everything that is mailed to you, and keep a phone log.

If you are a ForeverCare family, they are going to be your PASSE until March. Even after you’re reassigned, your new PASSE isn’t supposed to officially take over until March 1. But your new PASSE will be contacting you to give you more information, find out more about you and everything you need. So make sure you don’t forget ForeverCare’s contacts.

FOREVERCARE
  • Gateway Healthplan
  • Their HANDBOOK (rules, your rights, and information)
  • 1-855-544-8744
(4) You’re going to get reassigned in early February, and you’re going to get 90 days to switch PASSEs if you want.

That means you’ll have until May to decide if you like your PASSE, and if you don’t, you’ll have to research which one you want to go to.

Here is the other PASSE information. You need to check out their handbooks and networks. Ask other families what they like and don’t like about their PASSEs.

Some of them are having family and provider meeting this month. Call them to find out when theirs is!

  • Arkansas Total Carehttp://www.arkansastotalcare.com | 1-866-282-6280

    CEO, John Ryan – jryan@centene.com

    Care Coordination Contact: Amber Baker | (501) 478-2597

    Amber.Baker@ArkansasTotalCare.com

    HANDBOOK

    NETWORK LIST – none shown on website

  • Empower Healthcare Solutionshttp://www.getempowerhealth.com | 1-866-261-1286

    CEO, Nicole May – nicole.may@beaconhealthoptions.com

    Care Coordination Contact: Jamie Ables | Office (501) 707-0961

    Jamie.Ables@beaconhealthoptions.com

    HANDBOOK

    NETWORK LIST

  • Summit Community Carehttp://www.summitcommunitycare.com | 1-844-405-4295

    CEO, Jason Miller – jason.miller@summitcommunitycare.com

    Care Coordination Contact: Tiffany Parkhurst | (501) 773-6273

    Tiffany.parkhurst@summitcommunitycare.com

    HANDBOOK

    NETWORK LIST

(5) After ForeverCare’s announcement, everyone became more concerned and had serious questions. Make sure you ask your questions! Ask DHS, ask your legislators, and ask in our group.

This is what DHS had to say to our questions as of Jan 18:

page 1page2page3

Make an Impact with 2 Simple Words

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This holiday season, you can make an impact with 2 simple words: Thank you.

Especially if you’re a Medicaid recipient, let the people in charge know that we need Medicaid, and let them know what it does for us. Tell them thank you, and ask them to keep directing funding to Medicaid. Send them a photo of the person who is helped by Medicaid.

This is what advocacy is. It’s so easy! Just speak up for what matters to you.

Here’s how:

Email DHS Director Gillespie

Email Governor Hutchinson:

other contact: governor.arkansas.gov/online-services/contact-us

Email any State Congressperson

Contact any Federal Congressman

Contact any elected official

ARChoices Update

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Here’s the latest on what has been happening with ARChoices directly from our friends at Legal Aid:
(1) Second Legislative Hearing. When I last wrote, the Public Health committee of the legislature gave the RUGs algorithm an “unfavorable” review, meaning that the committee did not like it. The RUGs then went before the Rules and Regulations subcommittee. This subcommittee can only disapprove a regulation in narrow circumstances, so the RUGs was approved as a short-term measure to allow DHS to give attendant care to new applicants and to make new determinations for people up for reassessment. But, the chairperson said this:
The RUGs has not proven to be holistic in assessing the needs of the patients. Your presence here today has not fallen on deaf ears and, moving forward, because of your intense pressure, it is duly noted that RUGs is not the system we want serving the needs of Arkansans with disabilities. I believe it would be fair to say that you have the attention and the ears of the legislative branch to assure that your needs are moving forward. While we may not agree 100% on everything, the one thing we know is we can’t stay where we are. And while this process continues out after we do our duty today, then we will work to make sure that we don’t revisit this chapter again.
Even though RUGs was approved, the statement is great news for people hurt by the RUGs. Even if RUGs comes back in the short-term (it might not; see below for updates on the court case), it looks like the legislature won’t allow it to go on beyond December or early 2019. And, the public, media, and legislature will all take a close look at whatever new system DHS eventually comes up with. Personally, it was especially inspiring to see all the people most affected and their families come out and speak at the public forums or at the legislature, offer written comments, and lead the public effort (Legal Aid didn’t organize it).  And, this would not have happened without all the thoughtful and caring providers and other advocates who stepped up. It’s been wonderful to work with everyone.
(2) New System. DHS kept talking about a new system it would implement as of 1/1/19. DHS said that it would start the public comment process on 10/1/18. As of today, nothing has been published about it. Legal Aid will let everyone know when the official proposed rule comes out. The unofficial drafts we’ve seen suggest that it might be easier to understand than RUGs, but the unofficial drafts make it seem unlikely the new system will offer enough care hours for the patients with the highest needs.
(3) Court Case. Because the legislature approved the RUGs, DHS was going to start using it again as of yesterday. DHS asked the court to remove the injunction that stops them from doing that. DHS claims that it followed the proper process to adopt the rule. Today, Legal Aid, on behalf of our plaintiffs, filed an objection and asked the judge to keep the injunction in place (it is attached if you want to read the full legal document). DHS’s public comment process appears to be a sham. 43 different people criticized the RUGs for allowing inadequate care and not taking into account a nurse or doctor opinion in making hour determinations. They offered concrete ideas about alternatives. DHS didn’t even try to address the criticisms or alternatives, which the law requires it to do. Only 1 person was fully supportive of RUGs.
Our filing means that people who have applied for ARChoices services may be further delayed in getting them. DHS keeps saying that it has no lawful way to allocate attendant care, but we disagree and keep arguing that DHS can use the system of nurse discretion in place before RUGs. We are very sympathetic to the people who are waiting on services and understand they are caught up in this. However, Legal Aid has a duty to serve our clients. All of our plaintiffs (and many other clients) have been cut by the RUGs in the past. And, because DHS hasn’t been able to re-assess them for two years, they could be first in line for re-assessment. We tried to negotiate with DHS to get a formal, written agreement to ensure our clients would be safe, but DHS would not do anything formal. We had to file this objection to try to protect our plaintiffs. We have another legal case pending that could get the assessments and allocations started again with nurse discretion and will continue pursuing that option.

Contact:

Kevin De Liban, Attorney
Economic Justice Practice Group Leader
Legal Aid of Arkansas–West Memphis
310 Mid-Continent Plaza, Suite 420
West Memphis, AR 72301
Phone: (870) 732-6370 x. 2206

How to Best Communicate with Legislators

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read the artic

If you can’t see the graphic above, you can read the article.

Take Action: June Legislative Committee Meetings

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Update (6/5/18): The rules were approved in the Public Health joint committee and will be next voted upon by the ALC Rules & Regulations Joint Committee on Tuesday, June 12 at 1pm in Little Rock. Contact the committee members. Read below to catch up if you wonder which issues are being voted upon.

Original post: MSL has announced on Facebook that this committee meeting would be occurring on June 4th and that it was moved to Jonesboro. Here is some information to help you to understand what’s happening when, and what you need to do.

If you’re lost and need to catch up, you can watch a video we previously released on the subject.

Screen Shot 2018-06-03 at 10.01.07 PM

Several important issues are being discussed that affect children as well as adults:

Here is how you can contact the people of the Public Health Committee:

2018 Election Info

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It’s election season! In fact, early voting for primaries has begun. That means it’s time for you to do some homework and make decisions about which issues are most important to you. Sometimes your values on different issues may clash, which is why it’s important to rank one of them as most important to you.

Medicaid is a hot topic. We’ve seen a lot of change, and depending on the officials we elect, we may see even more. That’s why it’s important to be informed about election deadlines, requirements, and the candidates.

Your first question might be:

Who’s running?

Click here to find out.

Next you’re probably asking:

What are the deadlines?

Elections for the office of Arkansas House of Representatives will take place soon!

  • candidate filing deadline – March 1, 2018.
  • primary election – May 22, 2018.
  • primary runoff election – June 19, 2018.
  • general election – November 6, 2018.

All 100 House seats are up for election in 2018. Arkansas state representatives serve two-year terms, with all seats up for election every two years.

Elections for the office of Arkansas State Senate are also happening soon.

  • candidate filing deadline – March 1, 2018,
  • primary election – May 22, 2018.
  • primary runoff election – June 19, 2018.
  • general election – November 6, 2018.

A total of 18 seats out of the chamber’s 35 seats are up for election in 2018.Arkansas state senators serve one two-year term and two four-year terms each decade.

Arkansas will also hold elections for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Auditor, and Treasurer on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 1, 2018.

The 2018 U.S. House of Representatives will hold elections

  • candidate filing deadline – March 1, 2018,
  • primary election – May 22, 2018.
  • general election – November 6, 2018.

Arkansans elect representatives to the U.S. House, one from each of the state’s four congressional districts.

How can I be informed about the candidates?

As candidates are campaigning, make sure you take every opportunity to inform yourself. Know what questions to ask!

Have I met the requirements to vote?

Voter Registration

To register to vote in Arkansas you should provide one of the following:

  • The Last Four Digits of your Social Security Number
  • Your Arkansas Driver’s License Number

If you do not have any of these IDs, you can provide a copy of one of the following with your registration application:

  • Current and Valid Photo ID
  • Government Issued Document that shows your current name and address
  • Utility Bill
  • Government Check
  • Bank Statement
  • Paycheck that Shows your current name and address

You can alternatively provide one of these documents when you vote to complete your registration.

Voting In-Person

In Arkansas, you need to show a valid ID to vote. You can use any ID from this list:

  • Paycheck that shows your Current Name and Address
  • Current and Valid Photo ID
  • Utility Bill
  • Bank Statement
  • Government Check
  • Government Issued Document that shows your Current Name and Address
  • Veteran Health ID Issued by US Department of Veterans Affairs
Where should I vote?

Find out.

Source 1

Source 2

Source 3

Understanding the House Tax Bill

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Taxes affect our daily lives, and the House is working on a bill to “reform the tax code.” If taxes are drastically altered, it won’t just affect our personal taxes; Medicaid funding could be affected as well. For example, Senator Cotton called for the repeal of the Obamacare individual mandate through tax reform. That’s why it’s so important to stay on top of what’s happening.

A House committee released the bill, the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” this afternoon, and it’s a very long read. 

This is just a first version. They will revise the bill and try to pass it through the House by Thanksgiving to send to the Senate in order for it to take affect by January 1, 2018. 

Take the time to try to understand it and respond if necessary. Here are a few articles to help you understand what’s going on:

Make sure you understand this for yourself, and contact your U.S. Senators with your questions, concerns, and comments!