Help to Enhance Services for Consumers & Families Report from - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Family/Consumer Perspectives How the Rate Setting Project Might Help to Enhance Services for Consumers & Families

Report from Family Meeting  June 11, 2013  26 family members and people with disabilities  Families and consumers responded to the question: “ What ways would you change services to make them better?”

Responses that related to Funding: Rate Policy Licensure Legislative Construction Issue Issue Issue Issue  Create Rate and Wage Sufficiency  Create Budget Sufficiency   Create Flexibility in Using Funds  Create Equity in Money between Institutions and Community Programs

Responses that related to Investing in Consumers and Families: Rate Policy Licensure Legislative Construction Issue Issue Issue Issue    Strengthen and Ensure Person and Family - Centeredness  Ensure Consumer and Family Driven Staff Training  Strengthen Consumer and Family Engagement with the System   Be more Transparent with Consumers and Families to Ultimately Solve Problems Collectively

Responses that related to Being Creative and Flexible: Rate Policy Licensure Legislative Construction Issue Issue Issue Issue    Community Integration of Employment and Reward Success with Paid Job    More Housing Options  Streamline Access to Information and Services    Increase Availability and Flexibility of Transportation    More Variety of Choices    More Flexibility to Use Funds    More Flexibility in Service Delivery

DISCUSSION

SUMMARY *Due to a technical problem, the webinar audio was not recorded. Discussion of the above slides is summarized below: The JVGA rate-setting group reviewed the ideas that the families and consumers generated during the June 11, 2013 meeting to make services better. Their ideas were divided into the following categories: • Ideas related to FUNDING • Ideas related to INVESTING IN FAMILIES • Ideas related to BEING CREATIVE AND FLEXIBLE The ideas were then specifically identified as they pertained to one or more of the following Issues: • RATE CONSTRUCTION • POLICY • LICENSURE • LEGISLATIVE

The Rate Setting project is limited in scope and only pertains to the Rate Construction Issue. The ideas that might pertain to a Rate Setting Project were: creating flexibility in using funds, strengthening and ensuring family- centeredness, community integration, increase availability and flexibility of transportation, more variety of choices, and more flexibility in service delivery. It was apparent from the discussion of the webinar and questions that many participants were most interested in two primary areas: having enough funds AND being flexible and creative in the use of funds. JVGA explained that by having rates as a result of this project, the system will be transparent and straight forward. In another state it was actually used by the community as an advocacy instrument. The rate setting might be a tool to help launch folks into the “sufficiency of funds” issue. It also highlights policy implications that NJ DDD can address to maximize the benefits of rates. The Family/Consumer group will reconvene in September to further discuss how the rate setting process might proceed to address and compliment the sufficiency issue, flexibility in using funds and developing creative services.