| March 26, 2008 |
Vol 15, Issue
16 | |
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FAHSA
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| Welcome to
this week's edition of the FAHSA Link.
Budget Challenges
Continue as Legislators Conclude Week Four of Session --
The main focus of
lawmakers continues to be the economy and the budget.
Economists are scheduled to meet again next week to update
their forecasts. They are expected to report that revenue
collections are not improving and income from sales tax
receipts is down. Meanwhile, the House and Senate Budget
Committees are about to finalize their respective proposals.
As of noon today, the Senate Health and Human Services
Appropriations Committee is recommending the elimination of
funding for the several optional Medicaid programs and the
reduction in funding for most remaining programs by as much as
6.5 %. The House Healthcare Council is recommending a 10%
across the board cut for nearly all state funded programs,
including nursing home care. The Council is also
proposing a hold on the enforcement of nursing home staffing
standards for the coming year. As of today, the Senate is
silent on this issue.
All eyes are on the
Taxation and Budget Reform Commission in the hope that its
recommendations may help create a more stable tax structure
for the state in the future. Janegale Boyd, FAHSA
President/CEO, is asking the Commission to clarify words in a
constitutional amendment proposal (CP 0002) that would
preserve the sales tax exemption for several categories
including "health services" and entities that providing
"charitable care", neither of which is defined. We remain
concerned that the proposed constitutional amendment, which
was adopted, since it could result in the legislature
eliminating most sales tax exemptions if it passes.
Several of the
priority bills that FAHSA is tracking saw action this week.
The good news is SB 646 by Senator Gwen Margolis (a glitch
bill on HIV/AIDS educational requirements for licensed
professionals and health care entities) and SB 686 by Senator
Mike Bennett (nursing home regulation) passed out of the
Senate and are in messages to the House. The bad news is that
a bill (SB 2076 by Senator Ted Deutch) that would restrict the
use of arbitration clauses passed out of its first committee
of reference in spite of strong opposition by the business
community. For more detailed information, please look for the
"End of the Week" update that will be e-mailed to you
tomorrow. Also plan on participating in the Legislative
Advocacy Conference call that FAHSA hosts every Friday at 10
AM for member homes and home and community-based service
organizations.
CFO
speaks at Housing Day Rally at Capitol -- Call to Florida
Legislature to Stimulate Florida's Economy by Using Housing
Trust Fund Monies for Housing -- Florida lawmakers, people
in need of affordable housing, and 25 statewide groups of the
Sadowski Workforce Housing Coalition, gathered on the steps of
the Capitol Wednesday to call on the Legislature to use
Florida's Housing Trust Fund money for housing.
Chief Financial
Officer, Alex Sink joined with Senator Steven A. Geller
(D-31), Barney Bishop, President/CEO, Associated Industries of
Florida, Charles Milsted, Associate State Director, AARP,
Jaimie Ross, 1000 Friends of Florida, Gail Matillo, Director
of Housing, FAHSA, and other coalition members to urge the
Florida Legislature to use all the monies in the state and
local housing trust funds for their intended purpose:
affordable housing.
"Affordable
housing programs are an investment in our future," said Chief
Financial Officer Alex Sink. "These tax dollars help create
jobs, stimulate local economies, and assist Floridians in
realizing the American Dream of home ownership."
"AIF has a
particular interest in this appropriation at this time of
economic downturn in Florida," said Barney Bishop, President
and CEO of Associated Industries of Florida. "We are promoting
an economic stimulus package for the state and affordable
housing is a key part of that package."
"A powerful group
of business interests delivered a unified message at the
Capitol today - using the monies in the trust funds, which are
approximately $590 million -would provide a $6 billion dollar
economic stimulus to the state," said Jaimie Ross, Affordable
Housing Director, 1000 Friends of Florida; President, Florida
Housing Coalition; facilitator of the Sadowski Workforce
Housing Coalition.
Lawmakers have
capped the trust funds and with the repeal of the cap not
expected to pass in the 2008 session, Florida will never again
have the money to put into housing that it has now.
Florida has a one-time opportunity to jumpstart its economy
with the monies from the Florida state and local housing trust
funds. Rally participants are calling on the legislature
to refrain from raiding the housing trust funds to fill budget
deficits.
Weekly TBRC Update -- Watch your e-mail
on Friday for a comprehensive update on Commission activities
this week.
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| CCRC /
Retirement Community News |
IFAS Receives Funding from National
Institute on Aging --
AAHSA's Institute for the Future of Aging Services (IFAS) has
received funding from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) to
conduct a pilot study to evaluate the acceptability and
prognostic value of the Short Physical Performance Battery
(SPPB) in older residents and the staff of independent housing
and assisted living settings in a CCRC. The SPBB measures
lower extremity physical performance (tests of balance, rising
from a chair, and gait velocity) and has been found in
clinical testing to be highly predictive of future functional
decline and institutionalization. The utility of the SPPB in
residential settings, however, has not been well
studied.
This
research project will assess the ability of diverse CCRC staff
to be effectively trained in utilization of the SPPB, and the
predictive value of these performance tests in terms of onset
or progression of disability and transfer to a higher level of
care within the CCRC. In addition, this project will begin to
explore staff-to-staff communications within the CCRC that
will permit effective communication of findings from SPPB
assessments to clinical staff who are positioned to act on
this information. IFAS will partner with the Evangelical
Lutheran Good Samaritan Society's CCRC in Waconia, Minnesota
as the study site. Source:
IFAS
Age E-Newsletter.
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| District and Membership News |
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Quality First
Implementation Guide for State Associations - AAHSA
has developed a Quality First implementation
guide to provide you with new information about the
Quality First program and as a resource. The guide is
divided into the following sections, to incorporate each set
of ideas into the appropriate program:
- Leadership
- Communications
Outreach
- Annual
Meetings/Conferences/Education
- Advocacy/Public
Policy
- Member
Recruitment/Retention
- Other
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| Education News |
It's Heating Up
in Tallahassee - Plan to Attend FAHSA's Legislative Workshop
and Find Out What's Going On -- Join your colleagues
in Tallahassee on April 15 & 16 for FAHSA's
2008 Legislative Workshop to find out what's going on with the
budget, affordable housing, property taxes, sales tax, and
reimbursement. This session
is one of the most important in recent memory. This is
your opportunity to talk to your legislators about important
legislative proposals and the shape of the economy. Depending
on how these issues are handled, the solutions could hurt or
help your organization. It's very important that you attend
the workshop so you can share your concerns directly with your
legislators. Make
hotel reservations now by calling the Wingate by Wyndham Hotel
(850) 553-4400 and mention that you will be attending FAHSA's
meeting to receive the discounted group rate. Online
registration for this workshop is available on the FAHSA Web
site. Or, watch
your mail for a new copy of the workshop brochure and
registration form.
Upcoming
Educational Events:
·
April
14 --
FAHSA
Board of Trustees Meeting, Wingate by Wyndham,
Tallahassee
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April
15-16
-- FAHSA Legislative Workshop, Leon County Civic Center,
Tallahassee
·
April
22 --
Webinar - Deficit Reduction Act (2:00pm)
·
May 16 -- Webinar -
End-of-Legislative-Session (2:00pm)
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May
19 --
Webinar - Submitting Medicaid Claims through EDS's New Web
Portal (2:00 to 3:30pm)
·
July
27 --
FAHSA's 5th Annual Strategic Visioning Workshop,
Boca Raton Resort
·
July
28-31 --
FAHSA's 45th Annual Convention and Exposition, Boca
Raton Resort
FAHSA Calendar of
Events |
| General
News |
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Leadership
AAHSA
Application Deadline May 15, 2008 -
Each year, Leadership AAHSA offers a small group an
opportunity to participate in a challenging and engaging
learning experience, designed to help aging services
professionals accelerate their leadership development. For
more information about this program, or to apply, click here.
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| Housing
News |
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Super NOFA Notice
Released Last Week - The U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released the
2008 Super Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) last week
that includes funding for the Section 202 Supportive Housing
for the Elderly program, the Section 811 Funding for the
Disabled program, and the ROSS Service Coordinators
program. Please
review the deadline dates for each of the programs on the
grants.gov web site.
They will also be published in future NOFA's. To download the NOFA,
click
here.
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| Nursing
Home News |
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Board of Nursing
Proposes Fees for Specific Applications and
Renewals -- The Board of
Nursing is proposing a rule to add the following fees:
ü
Application fees
for Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) certificates--
$75.00;
ü
Renewal fees for
dual RN/CNS license certificates-- $155.00;
ü
Application fees
to change from active to inactive for dual RN/CNS
certificates-- $75.00;
ü
Renewal fees to
inactive dual RN/CNS certificates-- $75.00;
ü
For reactivation
of delinquent or inactive dual RN/CNS license
certifications--75.00
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| Preferred Business Associates
News |
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 FAHSA's
Preferred Business Associates Program (PBAs) -- A
list of PBAs can be found by on the FAHSA Web site www.fahsa.org and
selecting Preferred Business Associates from the left side
menu bar or clicking on the FAHSA Preferred Business
Associates Page hyperlink. FAHSA members can also use the
on-line directory to search for PBAs by specialty.
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| 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
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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.
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