[il-talk] Fw: DRS Community Partnership Update Oct 2012

[Robert Gardner]

--------------------------------------------------
From: "Zenner, Lori" <Lori.Zenner at illinois.gov>
Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2012 3:39 PM
To: "Zenner, Lori" <Lori.Zenner at illinois.gov>
Subject: DRS Community Partnership Update Oct 2012

> Attached is the DRS Community Partnership Update for October 2012.  This 
> newsletter is going out to DHS Secretary Saddler, DRS' providers, DRS 
> advisory councils, DRS advocates, DRS field supervisors, DRS central 
> office staff.  Field supervisors, please share with your staff.  Text is 
> below.  thanks
>
> October 2012
> Division of Rehabilitation Services
> Community Partnership Newsletter
>
> Legislation and Administrative Rules:  Part 552 of the VR rules has been 
> approved by the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules and will be posted 
> in the Illinois Register as adopted on September 28, 2012.  This rule 
> pertains to referrals of customers to the VR program and indicates an 
> initial interview must be completed and the customer placed into 
> application status no later than 30 days from the date of the referral.
>
> The following School rules are in various stages of the review process. 
> All have been submitted for Executive Review within the Department and 
> several have completed the Department's review and are being prepared for 
> submission to the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules for 
> consideration.  The rules are being revised so they are current with the 
> Illinois State Board of Education's rules pertaining to Special Education 
> and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
>
> Part 750 - Role of Residential Educational Facilities Operated by the 
> Department of Human Services
> Part 751 - Definition of Terms
> Part 755 - Admission Procedures
> Part 765 - Special Education Program and Services
> Part 795 - Identification, Evaluation and Placement of Students
> Part 815 - Special Transportation
> Part 827 - Rules of Conduct, Discipline, Suspension and Discharge 
> Procedures
> Part 828 - Impartial Due Process Hearing
> Part 829 - Sex Equity
>
> Senate Bill 1351 has been signed in law and is now Public Act 97-1019. 
> This measure amends the HSP component of the Division's enabling act and 
> the changes will assist with HSP programmatic changes and rule 
> implementation.
>
> Bureau of Blind Services:  Bureau Chief, Bettye Odem-Davis was nominated 
> and chosen to receive a 2012 Chicago Lighthouse Community Partner Award. 
> She and a guest have been invited to attend the annual breakfast at the 
> Lighthouse on October 18th from 8:30 am until 10:00 am. This award is 
> given in appreciation to community partners that make a difference in the 
> lives of those who are Blind or visually impaired.
>
> Bureau of Field Services:   In September, Bureau Chief Louis Hamer and 
> Rehabilitation Services Supervisor Lizette Tripur attended a TACE Region 5 
> Agricultural Technology Training Workshop in Madison, Wisconsin.  Topics 
> discussed included Farm Culture, Farm Viability, AgrAbility and Scope of 
> Agriculture.  Members of the workshop visited a farm to better understand 
> the viability of employment on a farm.  Wisconsin Vocational 
> Rehabilitation is a national leader in employing individuals with 
> disabilities in farming environments.
>
> Bureau Chief Louis Hamer met with Marsie Frawley, Self Employment 
> Resources Network (SERN), to discuss better collaboration between DRS and 
> the Network.  Also discussed was the Active Community Care Transition 
> Project which assists individuals moving from DD facilities back to their 
> home communities who have the potential to work independently in that 
> community.
>
> Two meetings were held with ILDOL/DEI and WIA/DEI to discuss collaboration 
> with Disability Employment Initiatives for better serving our customers 
> across Illinois.   Region 1 Assistant Bureau Chief, Elayne Weathersby, and 
> her staff held a strategic planning meeting to discuss ways for increasing 
> outcomes in Cook County.
>
> Bureau of Home Services:  HSP continues to undergo a series of changes and 
> has been working on a series of efforts to improve the efficiency and 
> effectiveness of our processes at the front door.  We also are working on 
> various efforts required by the proposed FY 13 budget.  Many efficiency 
> and effectiveness efforts are also part of the budget.
>
> * Physically Impaired Only - During October HSP will start implementing 
> its revised eligibility determination process intended to ensure the 
> program only serves individuals who qualify for service based on a 
> determination that their physical impairment meets the HSP eligibility 
> rule.  This was included in the FY 13 budget, but more importantly, it 
> will ensure compliance with federal guidelines on waivers and the intent 
> of the program in general.  Implementation will start with new applicants. 
> We are working on protocols with the Divisions of Developmental 
> Disabilities and Mental Health for existing customers.  Each customer will 
> be assessed individually.
>
> * Medicaid Managed Care - Phase I of the Medicaid Managed Care program 
> will go into effect on December 1.  Almost 1,500 HSP customers will be 
> impacted in this round.  The managed care entities will assume 
> responsibility for all aspects of a customer's HSP services other than 
> eligibility determination and redetermination and Personal Assistant 
> timekeeping.  This will allow management of in-home care services to be 
> incorporated into management of all other health care services on an equal 
> basis.  Larger number of customers will be affected in the next phases on 
> the transition to managed care.  Not all HSP customers will be affected. 
> The program will remain as is for children, those on spend-down, and those 
> who are not on Medicaid at all.
>
> * Waiver Amendments for Budget Initiatives - Several changes envisioned in 
> the FY 13 budget cannot be implemented until waiver amendments are 
> approved.  Amendments have been drafted for the increase in the minimum 
> DON score, for decreasing service cost maximums for those below 40 points 
> on the DON, and for limiting services to children.  These amendments 
> cannot be filed until amendments already filed related to managed care are 
> approved.  Plans to introduce a new eligibility tool to replace the over 
> 30 year-old DON also are moving forward.  It is possible the new tool will 
> be implemented before, and therefore instead of, the increase in the 
> minimum DON score.
>
> Strategic Planning:  In recent years, DRS has placed an emphasis on staff 
> completing key elements of VR casework on time.  The Rehabilitation 
> Services Administration, our federal funding agency, has set a minimum 
> statewide standard of 90 percent on-time completion for two key 
> activities:  certification of eligibility and development of an 
> individualized plan for employment (IPE).
>
> Kudos:  Across the state, 86 counselors achieved 100% on-time performance 
> for certification of eligibility during FY2012.  A total of 66 counselors 
> achieved 100% on-time performance for IPE development.   Combining these 
> two lists, we found 20 counselors who achieved 100% on-time performance 
> for both measures.  This high level of performance is a great benefit to 
> our customers as well as a big boost to DRS in achieving its RSA 
> performance target.  A special "GREAT JOB" goes out to the following 
> counselors:
>
> Counselor Office
> Michael Henson Humboldt Park
> Cindy Colon Wood Street
> Debra Scott Downers Grove
> Rhonda Erickson Rock Island
> Judith West Champaign
> Kathy Dyson Jacksonville
> Joyce Brewers Jacksonville
> Tiana Sanders Mt. Vernon
> Piedad Arias-Hutchinson Champaign
> Barbara Kaurin Downers Grove
> Patika Hackleman East St. Louis
> Nathan DeJong Freeport
> Rochelle Chambers-Hyndman Joliet
> Rachel Curry LaSalle
> Jennifer Escorcia Macomb
> Angelia Downs Olney
> Donna Carlson Quincy
> Jessica Edwards Sterling
> Richard Jonathas Waukegan
> Patricia Gallagher Westchester
>
> Education Services:  Interviews occurred in September for the 
> superintendent positions at both the Illinois School for the Deaf (ISD) 
> and the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired (ISVI) in Jacksonville, 
> Illinois.  Recommendations have been made to the Governor's Office for 
> review.
>
> Training Unit:  The Training Unit has begun conducting webinar trainings 
> with the Vocational Rehabilitation staff.  The initial trainings were 
> based on recent changes to Section 590 of the Illinois Administrative Code 
> and focused on three specific areas: Services Related to Post Secondary 
> Training; Supported Employment; and Self Employment.  One hour sessions 
> were developed for each topic and offered six different times during a 
> given week.  This allowed staff to choose the time and day best suited for 
> their schedule and provided an excellent opportunity for training unit 
> staff to deliver a consistent message to all staff in a fraction of the 
> time it would have taken to travel around the state for face-to-face 
> sessions and with zero expense!  Participants were directed to an on-line 
> evaluation form and sessions were archived for future reference and 
> review.
>
> In related news, the Training Unit has purchased and received webinar 
> equipment to be used to create an interactive studio in each field office 
> across the State.  The equipment includes:  a laptop computer, projector, 
> portable camera, speakers, microphones, and a whiteboard to project an 
> image or Power Point presentation.  The roll-out plan to deliver and 
> provide hands on training to set up and operate the equipment is being 
> developed and will be completed by early November.
>
> The Statewide Regional Forums were conducted on September 11, 12, and 13 
> in Alsip, Champaign/Urbana, and Effingham, respectively.  Regional Forums 
> provide an opportunity to disseminate and discuss information related to 
> goals, objectives, new initiatives and ideas for improvement in the 
> delivery of VR and HSP programs and services.  Perhaps most importantly, 
> they serve as a mechanism to motivate and promote interaction among staff 
> at all levels of DRS.
>
>
> 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: CPU Oct 2012.docx
Type: application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
Size: 19556 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://nfbnet.org/pipermail/il-talk_nfbnet.org/attachments/20121003/8cf12956/attachment.docx>