Category: Government Actions

CMS Provides Toolkit for Schools Explaining the ‘Unwinding’ of Medicaid Services (August 19, 2023)

It is estimated that 536,400 children have lost access to Medicaid and CHIP insurance since automatic renewals ended in April. As a result, a toolkit from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) titled Medicaid and CHIP Renewals: Reaching Children and Families in School-Based and Early Education and Care Settings has been made available. It urges K-12 and early childhood educators, administrators, staff and parent-teacher associations to help families be aware of the change in public health policy through letters, robocalls, text messages, social media and other communications.

In addition, The School Superintendents Association (AASA) advises that raising awareness about continuous coverage also benefits school systems that rely on Medicaid reimbursements for school-based health services. In fact, keeping students enrolled in Medicaid will be especially important for the fiscal health of those districts, since Medicaid reimbursements for school-based services is the third- or fourth-largest federal revenue stream for school systems. 

To access the toolkit Medicaid and CHIP Renewals: Reaching Children and Families in School-Based and Early Education and Care Settings, click here.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

DHS Sends CHIP Notice to LEAs (August 17, 2023)

On August 17, 2023, the PA Department of Human Services (DHS) sent a PennLink to all LEAs that contained a letter from PA Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Executive Director Nicole M. Harris. The letter states:

The Pennsylvania ACT 84 of 2015 requires that public and nonpublic schools receive electronic notice of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) on an annual basis no later than August 15. A flyer has been created and is to be shared with every parent or guardian of every student enrolled in the district during the school year.
CHIP covers uninsured kids and teens up to age 19. With more than 128,000 uninsured children in Pennsylvania, this is great news for families!
CHIP provides quality, comprehensive health insurance for routine doctor visits, prescriptions, dental, eye care, eyeglasses, mental health and much more. CHIP covers uninsured kids who are not eligible for Medical Assistance. For most families, CHIP is free – for others, it is low cost.
School Superintendents and Chief Administrators are advised to forward the CHIP flyer to each school under their jurisdiction at the beginning of the school year. The flyer can be sent directly through email, posted to a school website with a link distributed to students’ families, printed or distributed with other information that is being sent as caregiver packets, or prepared for students to take home.

The flyer in English can be accessed at https://papsa-web.org/wp-content/uploads/CHIP-School-Flyer-2023-English.pdf.

The letter in Spanish can be accessed at https://papsa-web.org/wp-content/uploads/CHIP-School-Flyer-2023-Spanish.pdf.

Additional information can be found on the CHIP website at www.CHIPcoversPAkids.com, under CHIP Resources.

PDE Awards Disability Inclusive Curriculum Grant Funding To 10 Schools (August 13, 2023)

On August 11, 2023, the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) announced that 10 schools have received grant funding under the Disability Inclusive Curriculum Pilot Program to instruct K-12 students on the political, economic, and social contributions of individuals with disabilities. 

“This funding will allow schools across the Commonwealth to better serve all learners by creating or expanding disability inclusive programming that reduces stigma and builds belonging,” said Secretary of Education Dr. Khalid N. Mumin. “The program was developed in collaboration with vested partners and subject matter experts, and this important curriculum will support Pennsylvania’s educators, students, and communities as a whole.”

The awardees are as follows:

  • California Academy Charter School, Washington County
  • Dunmore School District, Lackawanna County
  • East Stroudsburg Area School District, Monroe County
  • Greater Johnstown School District, Cambria County
  • Hampton Township School District, Allegheny County
  • New Foundations Charter School, Philadelphia County
  • North Penn School District, Montgomery County
  • South Park School District, Allegheny County
  • South Fayette Township School District, Allegheny County 
  • Wellsboro Area School District, Tioga County

The Disability Inclusive Curriculum Pilot Program promotes topics and subject matter for instruction to all students, will help learners understand that disability is a natural part of the human condition, and will emphasize the critical contributions of individuals with disabilities. 

Funding will be granted for a three-year period from the date of the award through June 30, 2026. A maximum of $10,000 per year is available to each school entity. The program will impact the overall culture and environment of schools by reducing the stigma of disability by including disability as a part of a school-wide strategic plan.

Additionally, a disability inclusion toolkit will be housed on the PDE SAS portal to help support school entities across the state to infuse disability inclusive curriculum into their existing curricula. The toolkit resources are inclusive of all age/grade levels and include sample lesson plans, professional development offerings/opportunities, ideas for implementing a disability inclusive curriculum, disability-led organizational contacts, and other resources.

DHS Announces MFP Program for CMS Funding (August 9, 2023)

Late last month, the PA Department of Human Services (DHS) announced that Pennsylvania is receiving an estimated $42 million in federal funding from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) through the Money Follows the Person (MFP) Program to continue existing and support new activities that make serving individuals in the community possible.

The MFP program allows states to leverage federal dollars to help Medicaid beneficiaries who live in institutions to instead receive services they need in a community. The MFP program provides the state with the financial flexibility to allow services to “follow the person” as older Pennsylvanians or those with a disability transition from an institutional setting back into the community. Two such programs are:

Capacity Building for the Dual Diagnosis Population and Individuals Under 21
The Capacity Building Institute (CBI) Strategy educates, informs, and trains staff to identify and work with individuals who have a dual diagnosis. CBI offers high level education with focus on best practices in supporting individuals with complex needs. Funding also supports education and training to build capacity of the multiple systems involved in serving individuals under 21 with developmental and intellectual disabilities with complex needs transitioning from Residential Treatment Facilities (RTFs.)

START PA
The START (Systemic, Therapeutic, Assessment, Resources, and Treatment) PA Program is a community-based program that assists individuals with an intellectual disability or autism and have a co-occurring mental illness. These individuals are at a higher risk for inpatient hospitalizations when they experience crisis and require a high level of specialized skill in assessment and treatment approaches. START PA builds upon local resources, works to close current gaps in the systems of care, and provides crisis intervention and response services and supports for these individuals in the community instead of in State Hospitals or State Centers.

USDE and White House Attack K-12 Cybersecurity (August 8, 2023)

On August 7, 2023 the U.S. Department of Eduction (USDE), in partnership with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), released the K-12 Digital Infrastructure Brief: Defensible and Resilient to highlight cybersecurity recommendations and promising practices from states and school districts across the country.

According to CISA Director Jen Easterly, “The product released today from the Department of Education and CISA provides K-12 school districts across our communities a starting place to understand the importance of securing our digital infrastructure, and provides steps schools can take today to keep their systems safe.”

Later that day, the White House announced new actions and private commitments to bolster the nation’s cyber defense at schools. In a statement titled Biden-⁠Harris Administration Launches New Efforts to Strengthen America’s K-12 Schools’ Cybersecurity, the White House said that administration leaders, school administrators, educators, and education technology providers will convene at the White House to discuss how to strengthen the nation’s schools’ cybersecurity amidst growing ransomware attacks.

To access the White House statement, click here.
To access K-12 Digital Infrastructure Brief: Defensible and Resilient, click here.

Additional K-12 Digital Infrastructure Briefs
K-12 Digital Infrastructure: Adequate and Future Proof
K-12 Digital Infrastructure: Privacy Enhancing, Interoperable, and Useful