From The Office of the Governor:

1/10/19: SACRAMENTO — Governor Gavin Newsom submitted his 2019-20 “California for All” budget proposal to the Legislature today – a fiscal blueprint that builds a strong financial foundation by investing an unprecedented $13.6 billion in budget resiliency and paying down unfunded pension liabilities.

Links to DDS Highlights and Regional Centers and Developmental Centers Estimate can be found here:

https://www.dds.ca.gov/Budget/Home.cfm

HCBS Compliance Activities Funding

In recognition that service providers will need to continue taking steps towards modifying their services, the 2018 Budget Act (SB 840, Chapter 29, Budget Act 2018) contains $15 million to fund changes that are necessary for providers to come into compliance with the HCBS rules by March 2022.

The Department will hold two, one-hour webinars to review this process and answer questions. To register, click on either of the dates below:

• Thursday, November 15, 2018, from 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
• Monday, November 26, 2018, from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Information regarding the funding process, by fiscal year is available below:

HCBS 2018-19 Funding Letter

HCBS Funding Guidelines FY1819

Attachment C HCBSFunding FY1819

10/3/2018 – The Department of Developmental Services (DDS) released an online survey for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families to provide information that will be part of the larger on-going regional center provider rate study.  It is the first time that the State is conducting a survey specifically for regional center consumers and their families on issues linked to regional center provider rates, that follows the recently completed statewide survey of regional center providers.
The deadline for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families to respond and submit the new online survey is October 28th, midnight, Sunday evening.
The new online survey for consumers and families is voluntary and not mandatory.
The anonymous survey takes about 15 to 20 minutes or less to complete online. To protect people’s privacy, the online survey does not ask any information regarding a person’s name or address, though does ask general information about the person filling out the survey.
In addition to English, the online survey was also translated in sixteen languages that Medi-Cal is required to use in California.
The survey can be accessed online at:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DDS_Rate_Survey
:   There is no hard copy version of the survey.
The Department of Developmental Services – the state agency that oversees, under contract, the 21 non-profit regional centers who determine eligibility, handle caseload issues and fund the community-based organizations and individuals who provide the actual services and supports – is required to submit the finished the regional center provider rate study to the Legislature by March 2019.  That requirement was part of a special session bill in 2016 (ABx2 1) that also included significant funding increases for regional centers and a wide range of providers.

WHAT THE ONLINE REGIONAL CENTER CONSUMER & FAMILY SURVEY IS SEEKING
The online regional center consumer and family survey seeks information from people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families on services and supports they are receiving – or not receiving. This includes questions about the quality of services or availability of services.
The questions in the online survey are connected to the issues regarding regional center provider rates, which is the money from the State (most of it matched by federal Medicaid dollars) that are paid to regional center funded community-based organizations and individuals to provide those supports and services. This includes issues that are connected to unmet needs due to lack of services for various reasons, including ethnic and cultural disparities and geography.
Like the previous online regional center provider survey, the online consumer and family survey is voluntary and not mandatory.
The Department of Developmental Services (DDS) said the information from the both surveys and also other information (including public input from the soon to be announced regional meetings or forums) will be critical parts in helping the Brown Administration this year and the new Administration next year come up with recommendations to the Legislature due by March 2019.
Those recommendations in the rate study will likely be a subject of the Legislative budget subcommittee hearings that includes public comments in March-April 2019, and also the subject of the new Governor’s proposed budget revisions in May 2019 – known as the “May Revise”.  That will be followed by a final round of Legislative budget subcommittee hearings that will likely include the rate study and possible proposals either from the new Governor or from legislators (or both) with public comments.  Depending on the economic and political environment next year and other factors, that in turn could lead to possible increases in rates for some – or all –  regional center funded providers possibly in the 2019-2020 State Budget year that begins July 1, 2019.
The regional center provider survey and the regional center consumer and family survey are two pieces of a larger rate study of regional center funded providers that was required by state law passed and enacted in 2016.  That rate study is meant to address what Brown Administration officials, legislators from both parties, people with developmental disabilities and families, providers, regional centers, and advocates have publicly agreed is a major State issue regarding the need for more funding for services and supports for hundreds of thousands of children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families, including community-based organizations and workers who provide those services and supports.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE REGIONAL CENTER CONSUMER & FAMILY SURVEY
For questions or comments about the regional center consumer and family survey, send email to: CASurvey@hsri.org
For questions about the regional center provider rate study, send email to: vendorsurvey@dds.ca.gov
Regional Center Provider Rate Study Webpage (Department of Developmental Services website):
https://www.dds.ca.gov/ratestudy/
Burns and Associates (consulting firm hired by Department of Developmental Services to conduct the rate study under the department) webpage on the regional center provider rate study:
http://www.burnshealthpolicy.com/ddsvendorrates/

October 1, 2018 –The Department is pleased to announce that the initial 2,500 participants for the Self-Determination Program have been selected.

The Department will mail notification letters to all individuals to communicate their selection status.  To find out if you were selected to participate, you may enter your UCI (Unique Client Identifier) number at https://www.dds.ca.gov/SDPverification/index.cfm.

Please view this updated information at https://www.dds.ca.gov/SDP/SDPUpdates.cfm

copy of notification letters: SDP Selection Letter 10 1 18 

SDP Not Selected Letter 10 1 18

Department of Developmental Services Announcement

Date:  August 17, 2018

In 2016, ABX2 1 (Chapter 3, Statutes of 2016) added Welfare and Institutions (W&I) Code section 4519.5(h) to the W&I Code and allocated funds to the Department of Developmental Services (Department), to assist regional centers in the implementation of strategies to reduce disparities in the purchase of services (POS).  In Fiscal Year (FY) 2016/17, the Department solicited regional center proposals and approved funding for projects to reduce disparities and promote equitable access to regional center services and supports.

In 2017, trailer bill language amended W&I Code section 4519.5 to allow community- based organizations (CBO) to apply for and receive funding to address disparities and/or equitable access to services. The Department is accepting proposals from regional centers and CBOs for funds available in FY 2018/19.

Regional centers and CBOs are invited to respond to this call for applications for the Disparity Funds Program. Applicants that submit proposals must comply with the instructions contained in the attached Guidelines for Applicants. Applications must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. PST on October 16, 2018. The Department will review proposals and respond to each by November 30, 2018.

A list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) will be posted to the Department’s webpage and updated following the conference call on 9/13/18. If you need copies of any of the documents referenced in this packet, please contact:

Regional Center Branch Department of Developmental Services 1600 9th Street, Room 340, MS 3-12

Sacramento, CA 95814, disparityfundsprogram@dds.ca.gov (916) 654-2297

June 18, 2018

The Department, in collaboration with the self-determination advisory workgroup and other stakeholders, has been working on the major components necessary to implement the Self-Determination Program (SDP). Outlined below are some of the major components requiring completion prior to the SDP becoming operational. The list below is not exhaustive but includes the key components and steps under active development.

The Department will post updates on the progress of each component.

• Federal Funding Approval
  As noted in the June 7, 2018 update, the application for federal funding, or Waiver, was approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Status: Completed
• Individual Budgets – Target for completion: August 15, 2018
  Task: Finalizing guidance information on how the individual budget amount is calculated, and the process for adjusting the budget when needed.
• Financial Management Services (FMS) – Target for completion: August 31, 2018.
  Task: Finalizing FMS vendorization requirements and rates.
• Independent Facilitators – Target for completion: August 31, 2018.
  Task: Defining the role(s) an independent facilitator may play and how this may be different if a participant chooses to select their service coordinator to fulfill the functions of an independent facilitator.
• Participant Selection – Target for completion: October 1, 2018
  Task: Selection of the initial SDP participants. It’s important to note that only those individuals who have participated in an informational meeting and whose names have been received by the Department will be considered for selection as participants in the SDP. The Department will provide a final date for submission of names to be added to the selection group for random selection (by the Department) in a future update. Information for those who are interested on how they can be considered for participation in the SDP can be found at www.dds.ca.gov/SDP/sdpEnrollment.cfm.
• Home and Community-Based “Settings” Requirements – Target for completion: October 31, 2018.
  Task: Finalizing training materials on the federal requirements, how they apply to services in the SDP and the assessment process for ensuring all services, or “settings”, meet the requirements. Due to federal regulations effective in March 2014, everywhere someone receives services (e.g. the “setting” where the service is provided,) must promote, and not prevent, community participation and inclusion. The target date projects time needed to provide training to those who will be involved in the assessment process.
• Orientation Materials – Target for completion: October 31, 2018.
  Task: Finalize all orientation materials. The orientation materials will form the basis of the information participants need to support them in the SDP. In addition to the components above, the orientation will include information on what services are available in the SDP and tools to help participants choose qualified service providers. Training for those providing these orientations will also be necessary prior to participant orientations.