FAHSA Link


October 16, 2008		Volume 15, Issue 43
		FAHSA LINK

		In This Issue
Welcome to this week's edition of the FAHSA Link
Six Constitutional Amendments Remain on November Ballot -- On November 4, 2008, Floridians will have an opportunity to vote on six of nine originally-proposed Constitutional Amendments, four of which regard taxes that were brought to the ballot by the Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission (TBRC). Last month, the Florida Supreme Court ordered Amendment 5 off the ballot, and then issued a 15-page opinion, agreeing with the lower court on grounds that found the amendment defective. The Court also struck Amendments 7 and 9, reversing a lower court decision that ruled these amendments legal and constitutional. Amendment 7 would have removed the constitutional ban on using public funds for religious-based institutions, and Amendment 9 would have authorized school vouchers by allowing the use of public money for tuition assistance at private schools while simultaneously requiring school districts to spend at least 65 percent of their funding in the classroom. A full description and summary of Amendments 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8 are available by clicking on FAHSA's Voter's Education Summary, located on FAHSA's Web site. In addition, more about the pros and cons of the amendments can be found on either the Florida TaxWatch Web site, or the Florida's Constitutional Amendments and You Web site. Please be sure to disseminate the FAHSA document and other material to your residents and staff. Minnix Says "Economic Woes Not Insurmountable" - "Times are tough economically, but they're not impossible. We believe the problems we face are solvable, not that they're easy, but they're solvable, and we've got to solve them," says Larry Minnix, President & CEO of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA), speaking during an interview from Philadelphia on Tuesday with editor Jim Berklan from McKnight's Long Term Care News and Assisted Living. "The good news is that long-term care members know what to do," Minnix said. "Going forward, the long-term care field has to find a way to finance care delivery differently. Also, the industry needs to work on acquiring capital to invest in their facilities for renovations, to implement culture change and for information technology. Our message to our members is basically, we have to deal realistically with the situation, so pay attention to the basics back home." To read the entire article, or to watch the interview by Web-cast, click here.		Feature Article ALF News Education News HCBS News Housing News Nursing Home News Retirement Community News Sponsor - Plante & Moran Preferred Business Associate News Job Mart

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		Calendar ALF Alerts General Alerts Housing Alerts Nursing Home Alerts Retirement Community Alerts Preferred Business Associates



ALF News
New Web Site Helps to Locate ALF Facilities and Adult Care Homes -- The Department of Elder Affairs "Find a Facility" search module at www.FloridaAffordableAssistedLiving.org Web Site has been discontinued. The department has established, in conjunction with Florida Housing Finance Corporation, a new search module for locating assisted living facilities (ALFs) and adult family care homes (AFCHs) at www.floridahousingsearch.org. The Department of Elder Affairs is currently notifying all licensed ALF and AFCH providers that they can now update their basic facilities information already listed on the Website. This information may include monthly rent, available services, special accommodations, whether the facility provides single or double occupancy units, and many more options/amenities. The facility locator service allows individuals to locate available housing and service options that best fit their individual and family needs. The service can be accessed online 24 hours a day and is supported by a toll-free, bilingual call center M-F, 9-6 EST. For any technical questions regarding updating your facility, please contact Erin Stewart, DOEA, at 1-877-428-8844 or via e-mail at alf-fl@socialserve.com.
ALF Alerts
Education News
Going Green - Saving Green - Join us on November 19 for FAHSA's 15th Annual Maintenance Workshop in Orlando. The theme, Going Green to Save Green, features presentations on how to save money while at the same time, preserving the environment. Register today and plan to join us at the Ramada Orlando Celebration Resort and Convention Center on November 19. Register for the upcoming Webinar and other FAHSA events online - Registering for FAHSA events is only a few clicks away. Go to the Calendar page on the FAHSA Web site and make plans to join us for one of these events. Upcoming Educational Events: October 21 - Webinar: Risk Management Guidelines, NeverEvents featuring Susan Bugg, RN and Jan Ferguson, Esq. October 29 & 30 - FAHSA's Board of Trustees Meeting, TradeWinds Island Grand Resort, St. Petersburg Beach November 13 - Webinar: Bridging the Gap: Understanding New Wireless Technology November 19 - Maintenance Workshop, Ramada Orlando Celebration Resort and Convention Center
Event Calendar
HCBS News
FCOA Develops Issue Paper on CCE - The Florida Council on Aging (FCOA) has prepared an issue paper on the importance of continued funding to the Community Care for the Elderly (CCE) Program. Florida's CCE Program provides case management and an array of community-based services that make it possible for physically and cognitively impaired, low or moderate income older adults, age 60 and older, to receive services and remain in their homes. At this time, more than 20,780 persons or families are waiting for care statewide. For more information, contact Florida Association of Aging Services Providers at moreinfo@fasp.net or the Florida Council on Aging at moreinfo@fcoa.org.
HCBS Alerts
Housing News
HUD Issues Notice of Section 202 Pre-Development Grant NOFA - On October 14, US Department of Housing and Urban Development Section 202 Demonstration Pre-Development Grant Program grant notice of funding availability was issued and posted on the grants.gov Web site. Please note the application due date is December 16, 2008. Florida's Affordable Housing Study Commission Plans Next Meeting - Florida's Affordable Housing Study Commission (AHSC) plans to meet on October 15, 2008 at the Tampa Airport. If you are interested in attending, please review the handout materials and location of the meeting on the AHSC Web site. New Study Finds Many Florida Medicaid Reform Enrollees Lacked Key Information About Changes - Findings released this week by Kaiser Family Foundation's 2006/2007 Survey of Florida Medicaid Beneficiaries, finds that Florida's Medicaid reform program aims to encourage consumer choice and market competition by giving health plans new authority to vary benefits. Enrollees can choose among the different plans, but about three in ten enrollees were not aware that they needed to make this health plan choice, and over half of those who were aware reported difficulty making a plan choice. The study surveyed enrollees in the two pilot counties during the first year of the Florida Medicaid reform program. The survey found that more than four in ten enrollees overall appear to have been assigned to a reform plan by the state, rather than reporting making a conscious decision based on the options available to them. Three-quarters of the enrollees who were unaware of their need to choose a plan said that they had not been told so by the state - suggesting that they either did not receive, did not read or did not understand the state's letter and other communications about their transition, conclude the study's researchers at the Urban Institute, Kaiser and the University of Florida. In 2006, Florida became one of the first states to implement a competitive consumer-choice model in its Medicaid program, beginning with a pilot project in Broward and Duval counties. Florida's program allows private health plans to offer Medicaid enrollees a choice of plans with different benefit packages, rather than offering a uniform state-determined Medicaid benefit package. Several other states (Idaho, Kentucky and West Virginia) also have implemented elements of benefit variation or consumer choice in their Medicaid programs. The Kaiser Family Foundation, in collaboration with the Urban Institute and the University of Florida, is conducting a follow-up survey in Florida to continue to track the experiences of Medicaid enrollees in the reform program.
Housing Alerts
Nursing Home News
Florida Supreme Court Decision on "Patient's Right to Know Act." Could Affect Nursing Homes -- In 2004, voters approved Amendment 7, the "Patient's Right to Know Act." The amendment gave patients access to any records made or received in the course of business by a health care facility or provider related to an adverse medical incident. The amendment defines the term "adverse medical incident" to mean medical neglect, intentional misconduct, and any other act, neglect or default of a health care facility or health care provider that caused or could have caused injury to or death of the patient, including but not limited to, those incidents that are required by state or federal law to be reported to a governmental agency or body, and incidents that are reported to or reviewed by any health care facility peer-review, risk management, quality assurance, credentialing or other similar committee, or any representative of any such committee. The Florida Supreme Court will now decide if the constitutional amendment applies only to doctors and hospitals or if it extends to other health care providers such as nursing homes. Attorneys for Marlene Gagnon, a nursing home resident who died a few days after allegedly choking on food that was not included in the special diet order by her physician, contend that any reasonable person who voted for the amendment would have assumed it applied to all health care providers including nursing homes. Attorneys for Tandem Healthcare Company, the owner of the nursing home, believe otherwise. A trial judge ruled in favor of the defendant and ordered the nursing home to release adverse incident documents to the plaintiff's attorneys. The 4th District Court of Appeals overturned the ruling and asked the Florida Supreme Court to take the case. The Florida Supreme Court heard oral arguments on September 10, 2008, but it could be months before the court rules on the case. If the Florida Supreme Court decides in favor of the plaintiff, records of nursing home risk management and quality assurance committees will be fair game when a lawsuit is brought against a nursing home. It could also have a chilling effect on a staff's willingness to report and document specifics about an adverse incident. Message from Florida Medicaid: Take Backs on Emergency Payments -- Take backs on Florida Medicaid emergency payments will appear on remittances dated 10/22/08 (claims processed the weekend of 10/18/08). A message about the take backs has been posted on the Agency for Health Care Web site and providers should receive letters in the mail next week. Read more about this and other news in this week's Nursing Home Alert, NH 08-37. Other Nursing Home News: Immediate Attention Message from Florida Medicaid: Take Backs on Emergency Payments Sprinkler System Deadlines New Infection Control Guidelines MDS 3.0 STATUS: Crosswalk Available Now
Nursing Home Alerts
Sponsor - Plante & Moran Clinical Group
Plante & Moran Clinical Group - Would like to introduce all FAHSA Members to the MxManage tool, called MxManage Quality and Financial Stat; a web-based, real-time, MDS analytical tool compatible with any MDS software. Our mission with MxManage is to synthesize MDS data into effective management reports that easily identifies opportunities for quality and financial improvement. The Financial Stat reports contain a PPS 'Quick Check' function that reviews MDSs PRIOR to the State submission in order to capture rightful reimbursement, and includes an Executive Summary (Medicare Vitals) that summarizes critical financial management information about a facility's Medicare program, such as the average Medicare rate, the facility's average ADL score, and therapy efficiency. Most MxManage users experience increases in their Average Medicare Rate of $25/day or more! Financial Stat Reports include Medicare Benchmarks, Pre-Submission Opportunities, and Real-Time Medicare Enhancement. Quality Stat contains an instant online quality analysis which serves the clinical and administrative staff with a list of residents targeted for survey and action plans to address all survey and QA needs. In addition, the online reports contain customized clinical queries that go above and beyond the facility QI/QMs for a more detailed analysis with drill-down capabilities for root cause analysis. F-Tag dashboards listed by care domains will provide critical survey and risk measurements at all times! Our clients have stated to us on numerous occasions that having MxManage at their fingertips is like having a mock survey all year long! Quality Stat Reports Include Survey Risks, Domains of Care, F-Tags: Domain and Resident, and Automated QA Charts. Our relationship with FAHSA allows you to see MxManage Quality and Financial Stat first hand by offering you a FREE TRAIL using this online tool with your MDS data. We will gladly walk you through your own report access and review your specific outcomes and opportunities. You are also entitled to the FAHSA-member discount for unlimited MxManage access. Contact Kelton Swartz at (800) 827-1280, ext. 29067 to get started with your FREE TRIAL or visit the MxManage Web site at www.mxmanage.com to learn more!
Preferred Business Associate News
	-- A list of PBAs can be found by on the FAHSA Web site www.fahsa.org by selecting Preferred Business Associates from Products menu tab.
FAHSA Preferred Business Associate Page
Job Mart
FAHSA is pleased to provide an opportunity for you to advertise your "position wanted" or "position available" through the FAHSA Link newsletter and on our Web Page. FAHSA members may use the Job Mart services at no charge. A nominal fee of $25 will be charged to nonmembers. Your Job Mart advertisement will be displayed on our Web site for approximately three months. The FAHSA Link is published weekly and distributed to our membership which is comprised of nursing homes, CCRCs, HUD housing, assisted living facilities, independent living facilities and companies/firms. To reserve advertisement space in our Job Mart program, please complete the application and fax it to FAHSA at (850) 671-3790 or E-mail Erin Steele at esteele@fahsa.org


Copyright 2008 -- Publication of the Florida Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (FAHSA). FAHSA Chair: Alma Ballard FAHSA President/CEO: Janegale Boyd Managing Editor: Gail Matillo Copyright Information: Copies of the articles and other information in this publication may be noncommercially reproduced for the purpose of educational or scientific advancement. Otherwise, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, mechanical or electronic, including photocopying, microfilm and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the editor. Correspondence: Should be addressed to: Editor, 1812 Riggins Road, Tallahassee, FL 32308. For telephone inquiries, call (850) 671-3700. Or E-mail FAHSA at info@fahsa.org. © 2008 FAHSA. All rights reserved. Disclaimer: The information contained in this correspondence is not intended as a substitute for legal advice. Please discuss any information gathered from this or any other FAHSA publications with your legal counsel in the context of your particular situation before implementing any new policies or procedures.