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CKSN Update for August 15, 2004 |
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CKSN UPDATE for August 15, 2004 ABC for Health, Inc. IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Case Tip: Using the Medicaid Deductible When Over Income 2. Parent Training Opportunity in Watertown 3. Caring Hands Seminar in Wisconsin Rapids 4. Call for Proposals for Presentations at 2005 Circles of Life Conference 5. Revised Medical Home Training Curriculum Available 6. HealthWatch Updates and Contacts 7. Suggestions for the Update? Contact Us! 8. Where Will You Be on October 14? 9. ABC for Health Silent Auction Needs Items ________________________________________________________________________ 1. CASE TIP: OVER INCOME FOR MEDICAID? THE MEDICAID DEDUCTIBLE FEATURE MAY BE YOUR TICKET TO ELIGIBILITY AND HEALTH CARE COVERAGE. For Medicaid eligibility, you must meet certain age, health status and income categories. These categories include: children under age 19, pregnant women, disabled persons, and people age 65 and older. If you are otherwise eligible for Medicaid but are over the income limits for eligibility, the deductible feature of the program could help you qualify for health coverage. With a deductible, your costs for health insurance premiums and health care bills are subtracted from your excess income until you meet the Medicaid income eligibility limits. The Deductible is calculated for a six-month period. After you meet the income guidelines with a deductible, your eligibility begins for the remainder of the six-month Medicaid eligibility period. All health insurance premiums due during the six-month deductible period are applied to meet the Deductible. These premiums do not have to be paid in advance but must be anticipated as an expense during the six-month Deductible period. An example: A child is over income by $500 for each month of the six-month Deductible period, giving a Deductible of $3,000. However, the family will pay $600 a month for health insurance premiums for a projected payment in the next six months of $3,600. Therefore, the family can apply $3600 toward the deductible and gain, Medicaid eligibility on the first day of the six-month Deductible period. Extra tip: Non-citizens eligible for Emergency Services for Medicaid are eligible to use a deductible to qualify for the program. For more information, visit: http://www.emhandbooks.wi.gov/meh On the left hand side of the page, click on Section 4, Financial Requirements, then find section 4.9 and then find section 4.9.8.1 ________________________________________________________________________ 2. PARENT TRAINING OPPORTUNITY IN WATERTOWN PARENTS IN PARTNERSHIP is a program for parents of children who have disabilities. This program is offered through a DPI IDEA Discretionary Grant, Wisconsin Statewide Parent-Educator Initiative (WSPEI). Briefly, PARENTS IN PARTNERSHIP: a) is a statewide program for parents or caregivers that have children with special needs, age 6-14 years old, b)builds parents' skills in creating effective partnerships with individuals who work with their families on the local, state, and national level, c) gives parents an opportunity to meet and interact with state leaders and policy makers, d) creates the chance for parents to meet other families to exchange information, support, ideas and resources, and e)makes partial support available for parent travel and childcare to enable all families to participate. The Parents in Partnership group meets five weekends during the year in Watertown, Wisconsin beginning September 17 & 18 2004. For more information, contact: Martha DeYoung, 608-742-8814, Ext. 255. 3. CARING HANDS SEMINAR IN WISCONSIN RAPIDS On Saturday, September 18 from 8:30 – 3:30 there will be a Caring Hands Seminar in the auditorium at Mid-State Technical College in Wisconsin Rapids. Caring Hands is designed to educate individuals of any age who are interested in providing care for children with special needs. The keynote presentation will be by Judy Cumley of CESA 5 on Creating Communication Environments. The cost of the seminar is $15.40 and the registration deadline is September 10. For more information, contact JoAnn Grode at 715-422.5318. 4. CALL FOR PROPOSALS FOR PRESENTATIONS AT 2005 CIRCLES OF LIFE CONFERENCE This is a reminder that the deadline to submit a Presentation Proposal for the 2005 Circles of Life (COL) conference is fast approaching. Proposals must be post-marked by August 27, 2004. This is the first year that the COL planning committee has issued a call for presentations. In the past, all presentations and speakers were decided by the COL Planning Committee. This year, the COL Planning Committee is looking forward to hearing from individuals and organizations that are new at presenting at Circles of Life, and reading proposals on new topic areas, or frequently-appearing topics presented with a new twist. Please go to the Circles of Life web site at: www.wfv.org/circle/2005index.html to download further information on the Call for Presentations and to download the application form. If you have any questions, please contact Linda Rowley at: Rowley@waisman.wisc.edu 5. REVISED MEDICAL HOME TRAINING CURRICULUM AVAILABLE Announcing the release of the newly revised Every Child Deserves a Medical Home training curriculum. The Every Child Deserves A Medical Home training curriculum, originally developed in 1996 through a partnership between the American Academy of Pediatrics and Shriners Hospitals for Children, contains seven components that offer strategies and resources to provide care for children in a changing health care environment. All seven components now provide a more practical framework for creating medical home implementation awareness. -Brand new to the curriculum is the Medical Home & Transitions component offering two case studies that follow a CYSHCN and their family from point of diagnosis through the transition to adulthood. Transition care plans; insurance fact sheets and portable medical summaries are among the several appendix items included in the component. - The Comprehensive, Coordinated, Collaborative Care component focuses on chronic care management within the primary care setting, as well as outlining strategies to collaborate with community partners. - State and Local Advocacy, now provides tools for developing a political action map, communication strategies, and tips for having a successful legislative visit. - Family & Professional Partnership provides resources to assist communication between family and primary care provider regarding diagnosis and disease-management. Also includes tools to gage stress and response of = family members caring for CYSHCN. - The Surveillance & Screening component discusses the importance of = surveillance and the proper methods of screening within the medical home = as well as identifies recommended tools and resources to assist in = integrating screening into practice. Suggested proper follow-up strategies = after screening tests are performed are given. - Practices, Policies & Procedures develops significance for why EVERY primary care provider needs to consider implications for provision of comprehensive care for CYSHCN in his/her practice and discusses quality improvement methodology and how to best utilize assessment. - Common Elements develops the statistical, financial and psycho-social reality for families and CYSHCN in the United States and includes the family perspective on caring for a CYSHCN. To obtain your complimentary copy of the Every Child Deserves a Medical Home curriculum please contact the National Center at 800/433-9016 ext 708, email at hnoteboom@aap.org or download the materials at the National Center Web site at: http://www.medicalhomenfo.org/training/materials.html 6. HeathWatch Updates and Contacts If you are interested in joining your regional HealthWatch committee, or want more information about their work, please contact the following people: Southern Region: Barbara Katz, ABC for Health, Inc., 608.261.6939 ext 207, barbk@safetyweb.org Southeastern Region: Brad Holman, Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, 414.266.3189,bholman@chw.org, or Brad Montgomery, 414.449.4777, opwindows@aol.com Southeastern Region September/October events: "Care in the Community" Conference – Friday, September 24, from 8-3:30pm@ the Country Inn – Waukesha, WI. RN and SW CEUs available. "Working with Children with Special Health Care Needs" Conference – Thursday, October 7, from 8:30-4:00pm @ Country Inn – Waukesha, WI. Target audience is contracted agencies with the SE CSHCN Regional Center, CPLs, Public Health and Social Service Agencies. Contact the SE CSHCN Regional Center @ 800-234-5437 for more information. Northern Region: Deb Blackstone, Family Resource Connection, 715.365.8030,dblacks@shsmh.org Northeastern Region: Steve Gerczak, St. Vincent Hospital, 920.433.8154,sgerczak@stvgb.org Western Region: Rose Marsh, Chippewa County Dept of Public Health, 1-800-400-3678, rmarsh@co.chippewa.wi.us ____________________________________________________________________ 7. SUGGESTIONS OR TIPS FOR THE UPDATE? CONTACT US! We need your help to develop content and tips for our CKSN Update. Please let us know about your ideas or success stories. Email your suggestions to barbk@safetyweb.org The CKSN Update is a bi-weekly electronic newsletter of the Covering Kids with Special Needs project that ABC for Health, Inc. is implementing with its partners, the Title V Children with Special Needs Regional Centers and Family Voices – Wisconsin. If you would like to submit news and information in future CKSN Updates, please send it to the attention of Barbara Katz. All submissions should be limited to 150 words. _____________________________________________________________________ 8. WHERE WILL YOU BE ON OCTOBER 14? Save the date! ABC for Health will celebrate 10 years of advocacy and legal services on Thursday evening October 14, at the Great Hall of the Memorial Union in Madison. Please join us to celebrate our 10th anniversary as Wisconsin's premier public interest law firm dedicated to helping families’ secure adequate health care coverage and services! Watch for more information on this event in the near future. _____________________________________________________________________ 9. ABC for HEALTH SILENT AUCTION NEEDS ITEMS SHHHH! Our October 14 includes a silent auction. If you have an item or service to contribute to our tempting array of silent auction items, please contact maureenf@safetyweb.org ABC for Health is a Wisconsin-based, nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to linking children and families, particularly those with special health care needs, to health care benefits and services. ABC for Health's mission is to provide information, advocacy tools, legal services and expert support needed to obtain, maintain and finance health care coverage and services. Barbara Katz, moderator Parent Consultant ABC for Health, Inc. 608.261.6939 ext. 207 barbk@safetyweb.org