Nomination Deadline Nears -- Nominate One Hero to Honor All

Be sure to submit your nominee for the IDDD Hero of the Year award, which honors individuals who have shown commitment, dedication, and compassion in serving persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities and their families. These wonderful and caring people need to know how much management appreciates them. Nomination forms for the Hero award can be found here, and must be submitted to AHCA by May 23, 2016.

2016-2017 AHCA Elections and Solicitation for Candidates

The 2016-2017 election cycle has officially opened for AHCA members in good standing interested in running for the AHCA Board of Governors. The AHCA elections are for three officer positions (Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary/Treasurer), one Not-for-Profit Representative, one Multifacility Representative and three At-large Representatives. AHCA members interested in running for an AHCA Board position may obtain the necessary candidacy materials online. Applicants must complete and electronically submit the AHCA candidacy materials by close of business on June 6, 2016. Candidates will submit completed materials by sending an e-mail to Christy Sharp.

The AHCA elections will take place during the second Council of States meeting at the AHCA/NCAL 67th Annual Convention & Expo, October 16 - 19 in Nashville, TN. Once the application phase has ended, the AHCA/NCAL Credentialing Committee will hold an in-person meeting to conduct a certification process for each candidate. Once certification occurs, AHCA will announce the slate of candidates to the membership. If you have further questions, contact Christy Sharp.

Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Grassroots Advocacy

Holly Jarek, AHCA's ID/DD Committee Chair, encourages AHCA's ID/DD providers to participate in our grassroots advocacy efforts in 2016.  AHCA would like to help you get facility tours and in-district meetings set up over future recess days.  Please provide your name, facility address, and email address and we will craft the invite and send it to you to send to the Congressional office.  The four brief steps for a successful facility tour visit can be found here.  Please feel free to contact Matthew Smyth and Dana Halvorson who can help you with all of the logistics.

AHCA’s ID/DD Committee members, Renee Naylor (pictured to the left) and Kelly Head (pictured to the right), met with Representative Kurt Schrader (D-OR-5) last year, during AHCA’s ID/DD Residential Services Providers annual Hill Fly-In event. 

Congressional Briefing is Next Week!

Keynote Speaker Chuck Todd, NBC News Political Director and Host of Meet the Press and MTP Daily, will bring in current events in the context of politics and the upcoming election. More special guests will be announced shortly.

Join us in Washington, D.C.
May 23-24, 2016
Renaissance Washington, D.C. Downtown Hotel

Get all the details and register today. Congressional Briefing is a unique and critical opportunity to meet and discuss key issues in long term and post-acute care, and then take meaningful action by speaking directly to your Representatives.

• Earn 8.5 CEUs
• Find out all the latest news from Capitol Hill
• Discuss and plan around key talking points for Congressional visits
• Meet with your Members of Congress and their staff

The conference registration fee is complimentary to AHCA/NCAL Members and AHCA/NCAL Associate Business Members, and their spouses, and is accepted on a first-come basis. All registrations include continental breakfast, networking lunch, and cocktail reception.

Rooms fill fast in the spring time as D.C. is a popular destination. Make your hotel reservations today and register for Congressional Briefing.

See the complete agenda at cb.ahcancal.org.

U.S. Congressional Calendars

As you are planning your visits with members of Congress and their staff in Washington, D.C., or in your district, the Congressional calendars will be of assistance to you.  The U.S. House of Representatives calendar for the 114^th Congress, second session, can be found here.  The U.S. Senate schedule for 2016 can be found here. The dates in blue reference the times the U.S. Senate is in session.  The red dates represent when the U.S. Senate is in recess.

VOR Corner

VOR is a national nonprofit organization advocating for high quality care and human rights for all people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). VOR empowers its members to make and protect quality of life choices for individuals with developmental disabilities.  Founded in 1983, VOR is a national 501(c)(3) organization governed by a volunteer board of directors and funded solely by dues and donations.  VOR represents primarily individuals with intellectual disabilities and their families/guardians.  VOR advocates that the final determination of what is appropriate depends on the unique abilities and needs of the individual and desires of the family and guardians.  More information about VOR can be found here.

Save the Date for the Developmental Disabilities Nurses Association’s 25th Annual Education Conference

• Where: Dallas, Texas - Hyatt Regency Dallas
• When: April 7-10, 2017
• Target audience: Health care professionals working in the field of ID/DD.

Overall objectives: The goals and objectives of the conference are:

• To present cutting-edge education on the most up-to-date practice issues and research regarding the specialty of developmental disabilities nursing.
• To provide a forum for networking and to facilitate the sharing of information to improve nursing practice in the developmental disabilities field.
• To bring together leaders and experts in developmental disabilities to engender consensus that improves the health and lives of persons with developmental disabilities.

As the premiere resource for practicing ID/DD nurses, DDNA is committed to providing quality education programs that include cutting edge content with practical application.  Join us in 2017!  For more information, please visit: www.ddna.org or find us on Facebook/Twitter!

We’ve Got You Covered! AHCA/NCAL Insurance Solutions Website

The American Health Care Association (AHCA) and National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL) now offers a variety of comprehensive insurance programs to meet your business needs. Backed by the strength of our membership, AHCA/NCAL Insurance Solutions programs are designed with exclusive member savings and discounts for both the fully-insured or self-insured members.

The program offers health insurance options, group and voluntary benefit packages, an aggressive Stop-Loss insurance program as well as cloud based HR platforms that will help members achieve savings and greater efficiencies on HR services within your company, while also tracking and reporting on key Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirements.  For more information, please contact AHCA’s Dave Kyllo at dkyllo@AHCA.org and visit the AHCA/NCAL Insurance Solutions website.  

AHCA’s State of the States Clearinghouse

AHCA members have access to key Medicaid and Medicare information through the State of the States Clearinghouse.  The AHCA State of the States Clearinghouse is a one stop shop for key Medicaid and Medicare information impacting the long term care profession.   

This resource provides valuable data, including:

• Overview of the demographic landscape;
• State-specific nursing center occupancy and ownership breakouts; 
• Certificate of Need requirements for nursing centers and state licensure requirements; 
• State data on the cost of care for long term services and supports;  
• State data on the total number of Medicare enrollees; 
• Data on state Medicare Advantage plan enrollees and comparisons to the national average; 
• State and national Medicaid expenditure data;
• State Medicaid rates, costs and shortfalls;
• And other significant state-specific data related to payment structure, managed long term services and home and community based services coverage.

AHCA will continue to provide the most up-to-date information through the Clearinghouse and share new data/resources as they become available.  Also be sure to visit the AHCA Medicaid Page to learn more about the program and to access additional AHCA members-only Medicaid resources.

Articles and Resources of Interest

• New Program For Adults With Autism Matches Potential With Skills – disabilityscoop.com
• Excessive Folate May Increase ASD Risk – disabilityscoop.com
• Airline Accessibility Remains An Issue – disabilityscoop.com
• New Test May Guide Cerebral Palsy Treatment Options – disabilityscoop.com
• Group Homes Struggle To Remain Staffed – disabilityscoop.com
• Family-Driven ‘Cohousing’ Offers Group Home Alternative – disabilityscoop.com
• The Curriculum of Caring: Fostering Compassionate, Person-Centered Health Care – ama-assn.org
• Is Proxy Consent for an Invasive Procedure on a Patient with Intellectual Disabilities Ethically Sufficient? – ama-assn.org
• Older Americans Month 2016 – acl.gov
• Older Americans Month Resources – acl.gov
• Flu and You – cdc.gov
• National Disability Employment Awareness Month 2016 theme announced – dol.gov
• Are People With Rosacea at Higher Risk for Alzheimer's? – healthfinder.gov
• Type 2 Diabetes May Damage Hearing, Study Finds – healthfinder.gov
• Participating in Alzheimer's Research: For Yourself and Future Generations – nia.nih.gov
• Fibromyalgia in Gulf War Veterans – va.gov

Legislative and Agency Corner

• Feds: Relying On Nursing Homes For Those With Disabilities Not OK – disabilityscoop.com
• First ABLE Accounts Expected This Summer – disabilityscoop.com
• Justice Department Postpones Web Accessibility Rules – disabilityscoop.com
• IDEA Applies No Matter Where Kids Call Home, Feds Say – disabilityscoop.com
• AHCA Applauds Senator Jeff Flake for Introducing the Willing Workers and Willing Employers Act – ahcancal.org
• Rural Skilled Nursing Centers Call for Greater Access to Technology – ahcancal.org
• Rural Health Care Access Legislation Approved out of Full House Committee – longtermcareleader.com
• President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts – whitehouse.gov
• President Obama Signs the Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act – longtermcareleader.com
• Summer Signals Start of Congressional Briefing, Facility Tours – longtermcareleader.com

Webinars of Interest

Stay informed and tune in to AHCA/NCAL-hosted pre-recorded and live webinars on a number of topics impacting the long term care profession.  On May 20, 2016, at 2pm EDT, AHCA will host a webinar entitled, “Medicaid Managed Care Final Rule – Considerations for Nursing Centers.”  As you may know, on April 25, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released the much anticipated Medicaid managed care final rule.  During this webinar, AHCA staff and legal experts will provide initial thoughts and reactions to key themes of the final regulations and explain implications for long term services and supports providers.  This will be the first in a series of educational materials that will fully explore the implications of the new rules in the weeks and months ahead.  You can register for the webinar here.

AHCA/NCAL Learning Management Website

AHCA/NCAL has recently launched a comprehensive online Learning Management System to support the training needs of its members. The website, known as ahcancalED, contains a wealth of information including educational programs, webinars, instructional videos, training courses, and other tools. It is available free to AHCA/NCAL members.

"We created ahcancalED for our members who do not have the time or budget to develop the newest in-service training," said Dr. David Gifford, AHCA/NCAL Senior Vice President of Quality and Regulatory Affairs. "Our objective also was to provide the best and latest educational tools, especially as CMS increases its regulatory requirements about staff training and competency in a number of areas. ahcancalED is designed to help individuals in our profession do a better job of caring for patients and residents and advance in their careers."

The information on ahcancalED is structured to make the online learning experience engaging, meaningful, and interactive for users. The fresh graphics and clearly defined sections within the site make it easy for users to navigate and find the information they need. The site also allows users to track their own learning progress.

Teams of experts from around the country working with AHCA/NCAL staff helped to create the content. "We will constantly be adding new programs and materials so that we can keep the site fresh and dynamic," said Gifford. "We'll continue to look for new ways the site can grow and serve our members. It's a great value-added benefit and a tangible example of our commitment to enhancing quality."

ahcancalED can be accessed at https://educate.ahcancal.org/. Suggestions for content or other site enhancements can be submitted to the ahcancalED team at educate@ahca.org. AHCA/NCAL welcomes ideas that will help improve quality and strengthen the knowledge, skills and attitudes of staff in the long term and post-acute care community.

BW Leadership Academy 2016

On November 3-4, Dr. Bryan K. Williams is introducing the first ever BW Leadership Academy in Baltimore, Maryland.  According to Dr. Williams, “the BW Leadership Academy is an experience unlike any other because it's not just about leadership ... it's about the leader.  It's a unique opportunity for strong mid-managers and those who are close to becoming senior leaders.  They will become completely engaged in a two-day event that strictly focuses on making the attendee the leader they are meant to be, and to grow the future generation of the leaders.”  For more information and to register for the Academy, visit www.BWLeadershipAcademy.com.

Dr. Williams is a consultant, trainer, and author, who focuses on the areas of service excellence and organizational effectiveness.  He has spoken at numerous AHCA/NCAL events, and his passion is to serve others so they may better serve the world.  Here is a link where you can see some of Dr. Williams’ book recommendations on service, leadership and personal development.

From the Blog of Josh Linkner

Noted on the Josh Linkner blog, “To Josh Linkner, creativity and innovation are the lifeblood of all human progress. As such, he’s spent his career harnessing the power of creative disruption.  His journey has been non-traditional at every step. As the founder and CEO of four tech companies, Josh built his businesses from a blank page into a combined value of over $200 million. As a hyper-growth CEO of over 20 years, he’s used innovative approaches to topple competitors, fight through adversity, and achieve at the highest levels.”  The bio section of Linkner’s blog goes on to include that, “Josh is an internationally-recognized thought leader and top-rated keynote speaker on innovation, creativity, reinvention, and hyper-growth leadership. His keynotes are focused on not only inspiring audiences, but also sharing actionable strategies to drive meaningful outcomes.”  Read some of Linkner’s blogs below.  In addition, you can view some of his keynote speaking addresses here. 

• Making a Mogul – The Four Differences Between Jay Z and DJ Khaled
• Could THIS Be The Secret To Happiness?
• How Quest Nutrition Crafted a $1 Billion Corporate Culture

National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities

The National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) holds a monthly call or webinar concerning topics of interest to those who work in the field of aging and disability.  One of the past calls focused on resources for people with Alzheimer’s and related dementias and their caregivers.  Information about future calls, and audio recording of previous ones, can be found here.

Upcoming 2016 Events

• AADMD 14th Annual Educational Conference – July 8-10, 2016
• AHCA/NCAL 67^th Annual Convention & Expo – October 16 – 19, 2016
• A Day for ID/DD Providers at the AHCA/NCAL Convention – October 18, 2016
• 26th Alzheimer Europe Conference – October 31 – November 2, 2016

2016 Health Care Observances

The 2016 AHCA/NCAL Health Care Observances Calendar can be found here.  June 2016 marks, among other observances, Cataract Awareness Month, Migraine & Headache Awareness Month, and National Safety Month.