Not for Profit (NFP) Program of the Year Selected

AHCA/NCAL is pleased to announce that the 2015 NFP Program of the Year award will be presented to CARC, Inc of Carlsbad, New Mexico, for its Work Services program, which is a 30-year staple for residents and organizations in surrounding communities.  Mr. Mark Schinnerer is CEO of CARC and an ardent supporter of the program.  The award will be presented at the AHCA/NCAL Annual Convention in San Antonio, TX, October 4 to 7, 2015.  More details will follow in the next edition of NFP News. 

Living the Mission: A Day for NFP Providers

The third annual day for NFP providers will be held during AHCA/NCAL's 66th Annual Convention & Expo in San Antonio, Texas on Tuesday, October 6. This constituency education program for NFP providers is packed with motivational and educational speakers, including CMS and HUD. Lee Ellis (pictured), President and founder of Leadership Freedom® LLC, is our keynote speaker and is a popular media personality and high-profile human performance expert. Lee focuses on organizational integrity, operational effectiveness and personal accountability for enterprise, government and NFP leaders. A prolific writer, blogger and thought leader, Lee's latest award-winning book, Leading with Honor: Leadership Lessons from the Hanoi Hilton, shares his POW experience and the 14 leadership principles that helped him and his compatriots resist, survive, and return with honor. Attendees will also have the opportunity to attend the NFP reception, which will cap the day off.

For a complete list of education sessions included in this program go to our Education Session Full Schedule.  If you have any questions about this exciting event, please contact AHCA's Senior Director for NFP & Constituent Services, Dana Halvorson, at dhalvorson@ahca.org. 

NFP Grassroots Advocacy

Steven Chies, AHCA’s NFP Council Chair (pictured to the right), encourages AHCA’s NFP providers to participate in our grassroots advocacy efforts in 2015.  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 NFP Council member, Van Moore (pictured below to the right), meets with Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR-2, pictured on the left) at the Oregon Veterans’ Home in The Dalles.  Van discussed with the Congressman issues impacting AHCA/NCAL members, including the observation stays issue.  

NFPs Engaging in the Political Process

For more information on how NFPs can engage in the political process, please review this webinar and handout from Wiley Rein, LLP.  Both documents will give members of 501(c) 3 tax exempt organizations an overview of what they can and cannot do in regards to lobbying and political activity.  For issue briefs, talking points and more, visit AHCA’s advocacy page. 

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 114th Congress, first session, can be found here. The U.S. Senate schedule for the new Congress can be found here. The dates in black reference the times the U.S. Senate is in session.  The red dates represent when the U.S. Senate is in recess.  

AHCA/NCAL Advocacy App

If you haven’t already heard about it, then we wanted to alert you to a great app that allows you to keep abreast of AHCA advocacy efforts.  Among other things, it provides important talking points, issue briefs and features that allow you to take action.  It will be useful not only to you, but serves as a great way for providers to weigh in.  You can get the app by clicking on the appropriate black box below.

 

Download our advocacy app!

   

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 new 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.

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.  

Articles and Resources of Interest

• AHCA/NCAL Announces 2015 Silver National Quality Award Recipients – ahcancal.org
• AHCA/NCAL Named Top Workplace by Washington Post – ahcancal.org
• Health Tip: Get Enough Vitamin D – healthfinder.gov
• A Healthy Body Often Equals a Healthy Brain – healthfinder.gov
• Heart Association's Stroke Guidelines Support Clot-Removing Device – healthfinder.gov
• What You Should Know for the 2015-2016 Influenza Season – cdc.gov
• Increasing Influenza Vaccination among Healthcare Personnel in Long-term Care Settings – cdc.gov
• About Alzheimer's Disease: Caregiving – nia.nih.gov  

Legislative and Agency Corner

• AHCA/NCAL Welcomes Nomination of Andy Slavitt for CMS Administrator – ahcancal.org
• AHCA/NCAL Applauds Senate Finance Committee for Approval of NOTICE Act – ahcancal.org

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 Sept. 17, 2015, between 2-3:30pm ET, AHCA will host a webinar entitled, “Strategies for Addressing Workplace Violence in Healthcare Facilities and Ensuring Compliance with OSHA’s New Guidelines.”  Healthcare workers face an increased risk of workplace violence in their work and data suggests that 70% of workplace assaults occur in the healthcare industry.  In response, OSHA recently released an update to its Guidelines for Preventing Workplace Violence for Healthcare and Social Service Workers and it has indicated that it will focus on the hazards associated with workplace violence in all healthcare industry inspections.  The publication includes suggested best practices and provides some insight on how to reduce the risk of violence in various healthcare and social service settings.  Attend our webinar to learn about the new OSHA guidelines and strategies that can help you successfully address the unique challenges that the healthcare industry faces in tackling this workplace challenge.  You can register for the webinar here. 

IRS Webinar Series offered on ACA Provisions for Employers and Coverage Providers

According to a July 15, 2015, IRS Tax Tips email alert, “If you’re an employer or health coverage provider, you can attend a series of educational webinars this summer to help you understand the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) employer provisions and related requirements. The IRS is presenting three different webinars in July that will each be repeated in August and September.  The IRS designed these webinars for business owners, tax managers, employee benefits managers and health coverage providers.  All time listed below are Eastern Daylight Time.

Employer Shared Responsibility and Information Reporting
Learn about the ACA’s employer shared responsibility provisions and information reporting requirements for employers and providers of minimum essential coverage.

• July 28, 11 a.m. – 12: 30 p.m. – Click here to register
• Aug. 20, 1 – 2:30 p.m. – Click here to register
• Sept. 16, 1:30 – 3 p.m. – Click here to register

Employer-Sponsored Health Coverage Information Reporting Requirements for Applicable
Large Employers Learn about employer-sponsored health coverage information reporting requirements for applicable large employers, including who is required to report, what information the law requires you to report, and how to complete the required forms.

• July 29, 1 – 2 p.m. – Click here to register
• Aug. 11, 1 – 2 p.m. – Click here to register
• Sept. 10, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. – Click here to register

Information Reporting Requirements for Providers of Minimal Essential Coverage
Learn about the information reporting requirements for providers of minimum essential coverage, including employers that provide self-insured coverage.  Learn who is required to report, what information the law requires you to report, and how to complete the required forms.

• July 30, 1 – 2 p.m. – Click here to register
• Aug. 26, 1 – 2 p.m. – Click here to register
• Sept. 22, 1 – 2 p.m. – Click here to register 

For more information about the ACA and tax provisions for employers and health coverage providers, visit IRS.gov/aca.”  Please also visit AHCA/NCAL’s ACA website.

I Believe In You

According to Dr. Bryan K. Williams, “I believe in you. Those four simple words are incredibly powerful, yet are not used often enough. While I don’t know for sure, I would bet that most working adults have never heard those words said to them. Regardless of your job title, each person has the direct ability to brighten someone’s day by using those four, simple words. I believe in you..”  To read the full blog posting, please click here. 

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.

National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities

The National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) holds monthly calls concerning topics of interest to those who work in the field of aging and disability the first Thursday of every month at 3pm EST.  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 2015 Events

• The National Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Conference - Aug 31- Sept 3, 2015
• AHCA/NCAL’s Annual Convention & Expo in San Antonio, TX - October 4 - 7, 2015
• AHCA/NCAL’s NFP Day at Convention - October 6, 2015 

2015 Health Care Observances

The 2015 AHCA/NCAL Health Care Observances Calendar can be found here.  August marks, among other observances, National Immunization Awareness Month and Medic Alert Awareness Month.