Call your Senators and Congressional Representative and tell them to support S.2897/H.R.5912
The 21st Century CURES Act mandates that all Personal Care Service (PCS) providers use Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) to track the time and location of those delivering personal care and home health services, including CDPA, by January 1st, 2019. Legislation has been introduced in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to delay the deadline by one year, to January 1st, 2020. We urge you to contact Senators Schumer and Gillibrand, as well as your Congressional Representative, and ask them to support this bill.
A January 1st, 2019 deadline is too soon to make sure that EVV is rolled out in a way that meaningfully involves consumers.
CDPAANYS spoke at length with consumers, personal assistants (PAs), and fiscal intermediaries (FIs) about their EVV concerns. Our Consumer Advocacy workgroup just this week released a report, Electronic Visit Verification and Self-Direction: A Consumer Perspective, that shares consumers’ views on what is important to them about the forthcoming rules for EVV. Their findings include a desire to be included in their FIs’ system selection process, choice over what type of system is used, and accessibility for all disability types.
As you can see, EVV is too important to rush and more time is needed to make sure we get it right, so reach contact your legislators now to make sure this bill is acted on.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services published its best practices recommendations in May, less than eight months before the January 1st, 2019 deadline. New York State still has not issued its rules. A one year delay is necessary if FIs are to ask their consumers for input, choose a system, and train consumers and PAs on the systems they buy. There is simply not enough time to properly implement an EVV system that is consumer friendly without causing large disruption to the system.
This legislation has bipartisan support, but your voice is needed to make sure it is successful. The House of Representatives version is co-sponsored by New York Representatives Yvette Clarke (D-9) and Sean Patrick Maloney (D-18). The senate bill does not yet have any New York co-sponsors.
The January 1st, 2019 EVV deadline will not be extended by one year unless this bill becomes a law.
Please call, email, and write New York’s Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, and let them know why this legislation is import to you. Also contact your congressional representative and tell them the same. The use of EVV will be required in the future; let’s work together to make sure it’s done the right way.
https://www.votervoice.net/mobile/CDPAANYS/Campaigns/59320/Respond
