Desperate Times Call for Immediate Action
We need YOU to help us ensure adequate funding for the services we provide, which are crucial to people living healthy and full lives in their community!
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PROBLEM #1—Only a 2% Increase for DDA Services
Again this year the Governor failed to include the full mandated increase for DDA services in his budget. This 4% increase is essential for keeping our staff above minimum wage, and yet the Governor only included a 2% increase. Meanwhile, the Maryland minimum wage increased by 9% to this January and will increase another 7% next January. A 2% increase in the DDA reimbursement for wages will not keep pace with the increases in minimum wage.
Unlike other employers, DDA-funded providers are not allowed to pass on cost increases to the people they support. They also have a legal obligation to protect the health and safety of the people receiving support services, even if the cost of providing services exceeds what the provider receives from DDA. The lack of adequate funding for DDA services, compounded by the rising Montgomery County minimum wage, is already creating millions of dollars in provider shortfalls right here in our community.
This lack of adequate funding puts people with disabilities at risk, because Direct Support Professionals can make more working for big box retailers. Who will take these stressful, complex, challenging jobs only to earn minimum wage, when there are many other options? Half of all providers have a DSP vacancy rate of 16%, which means they don’t have enough staff to deliver support services. Low wages for DSPs leads to a “revolving door syndrome” of employees and poor quality of care for people with disabilities. Without the vital DSP workforce, services for people with disabilities and their families simply will not exist.
Call, write to, or visit these Montgomery County legislators and committee chairs and ask to reinstate the full 4% increase in DDA funding to the budget and ensure it is available to providers on July 1 of this year (no cuts or delays)! Tell them your story and how important DDA services and supports are to you or your loved one.
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| House Appropriations Committee | Senate Budget & Taxation Committee | | Maggie McIntosh, Chair (District 13, Baltimore City) | Guy Guzzone, Chair (District 13, Howard) | | Michael Jackson, Vice-Chair (District 27B, PG/Calvert) | Jim Rosapepe, Vice-Chair (District 21, PG/Anne Arundel) | | Gabriel Acevero (District 39, Montgomery) | Nancy King (District 39, Montgomery) | | Marc Korman (District 16, Montgomery) | Craig Zucker (District 14, Montgomery) | | Kirill Reznik (District 39, Montgomery) | | | Jared Solomon (District 18, Montgomery) | | | House Health & Social Services Subcommittee | Senate Health & Human Services Subcommittee | | Kirill Reznik, Chair (District 39, Montgomery) | Melony Griffith, Chair (District 25, PG) | | Geraldine Valentino-Smith, Vice-Chair (District 23A, PG) | |
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PROBLEM #2—Timeline for Implementing Program Changes
Maryland’s DDA is moving forward with MAJOR systems changes that will impact all aspects of community supports, including service definitions, funding, person centered planning, billing and payment, and regulations. While many of the proposed changes are positive, the July 1, 2020 implementation date is not realistic and is likely to cause harm to both people supported and providers.
Stakeholders have identified multiple issues related to the proposed new rate system, new payment system, and new service definitions. The small pilot sample (less than 1%) has raised numerous concerns that must be addressed if a smooth transition is to occur. Thousands of DSPs throughout Maryland will have to be trained on an entirely new system, which is not completely finished, in three months or less…and all of that extra work will be placed on providers who already don’t have enough resources.
In addition, providers must implement EVV (Electronic Visit Verification) for some services on July 1 of this year, which is another training and implementation hurdle for DSPs. Finally, providers still do not have the final results of DDA’s rate study, so they do not know the rates of payment for services rendered beginning July 1. Imagine trying to budget for costs when you don’t know the amount of income you will receive!
Call, write or visit your legislators and ask them to delay implementation of DDA’s program changes until July 1, 2021 to ensure people supported and providers are not adversely impacted!
Click here to learn who represents you and to find their contact information.
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PROBLEM #3—Unfunded Mandates
Unfunded mandates are things providers like The Arc must do to keep their license to provide DDA services, but which are not reimbursed to them by DDA. This includes nursing care and transportation, among other costs.
HB839 (SB539), while promising and well-intended, has several components that would create hardships for some people with disabilities and all DDA providers in the state. One such component is creation of a mandatory benefit insurance plan to which both the employer and employee would be required to contribute, without increased DDA provider funding to support the change.
DDA providers are Medicaid providers and cannot pass on any of the costs of doing business on to people who receive their services. They rely on state funding for their operations and for the state to provide increased funding for any statewide increases to minimum wage or new benefit programs that require an employer's contribution. Implementation of this bill will cost The Arc Montgomery County almost $250,000 each year! Any new mandate for employer contributions to leave programs like the one created through this bill, without an accompanying mandate for an increase in annual funding for medicaid providers, may further destabilize the DDA support system. Most Direct Support Professionals receive low wages already for their important work and the mandated employee contribution may also impact the finances of the Direct Support Professional workforce.
Call, write or visit members of the House Economic Matters Committee and ask them to vote AGAINST the Time to Care Act, because it will cost Maryland employers millions of dollars and further destabilize DDA provider services!
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House Economic Matters Committee
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Lily Qi (District 15, Montgomery County)
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Please take action today to support adequate funding for DDA services!
We need YOU to help us ensure adequate funding for the services we provide, which are critical to people living healthy and full lives in their community!
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