DSP Wage Increase Plan Notice

In the Division of Disability and Rehabilitative Services announcements of June 28, 2021, and July 8, 2021, the Bureau of Developmental Disabilities Services announced a legislated 14% rate increase to go toward wages and benefits paid to eligible direct support professionals delivering the following services:
• Respite
• Extended services
• Day habilitation – Individual and group small, medium and large
• Transportation services – Level 1, 2 and 3
• Participant assistance and care
• Residential habilitation and support (daily & hourly)

For DSP’s providing the above listed services will be increasing the base wages By 10%-40% effective June 27, 2021.  95% of the 14% will go into increasing wages and 5% will go toward payroll tax Liabilities.
Additionally, we will be paying bonuses to eligible employees if there is a surplus of funds from rate increase. The bonus will be calculated based upon longevity and hours of services provided in the fiscal year.

Thanks to All our Valued and Dedicated DSP’s

As we look at re-opening; here is our safety plan:

- Temperature will be checked 3 times a day (upon entrance, at lunch, upon leaving for the day) and documented for both staff and individuals served. The person screening will be required to wear gloves and a mask during this process. Screening is to be completed in privacy as much as possible. At this same time a COVID questionnaire will need to be completed that shows all the positive results. If someone would refuse to allow staff to complete the screening - they will be turned away immediately without the ability to gain access to our facility. Masks will need to be present with each person and documented upon entry. No mask – no entry

- Social distancing measures will be maintained as best as we can by adding additional square footage for programming and opening more locations for individuals to enjoy breaks and lunch

- Handwashing will continue to be added into programming throughout the day as well as during breaks and lunch. Additional portable hand washing stations have been purchased and will be placed in areas where distance to water might cause someone to not wash as often.

- Face masks must be worn while in the building

- Visitors to our building will be restricted to only essential day-to-day personnel and anyone needed to maintain the safety of the facility. All visitors must sign in and out and have a temp check before proceeding. Anyone that is not considered essential but feels they need to gain access to the building will need to be pre-approved by the CEO and this will be EXTREMELY limited.

- All food will need to be brought in ready to eat (already prepared and cut into proper portions) in disposable packaging (ex. Sandwich in zip lock bag and lunch in brown paper bag) – NO MICROWAVES and REFRIGERATORS WILL BE AVAILABLE UNTIL AT THE EARLIEST 9/8/20

- Staff will be trained on everything from hand washing to social distancing and tons of things in between.

- If someone would develop symptoms of COVID-19 during programming hours; individuals served- will be isolated in the med room until a ride home can be found (cleaning in the areas of their workstation/restrooms would immediately happen), staff – sent home immediately (cleaning in the areas of their workstation/restrooms would immediately happen)

- Staff will continue to sanitize high touch surfaces throughout the day along with our overnight janitorial staff deep cleaning following EPA guidelines, after hours to be able to use hospital grade chemicals to clean our facility.

- Signage will be posted at all points of entry to review guidelines in preparation for entrance in to the building.

- ASI will hold the right to shelter in place again in the future if the case numbers increase to what is deemed unsafe levels.

NO date to re-open has been confirmed. We will reopen in phases in order to maintain the health, safety, and welfare of the individuals we serve, our staff, and their families!

Each family will receive a phone call from the QIDP and they will review our safety plan, answer a series of questions and based on the answers, a return date will be assigned. That return date could change based on information gathered during the wait period.

Please be patient while we work to make calls to all families. This is a marathon, not a sprint so we will work to do this slow and methodical so as not to put anyone in jeopardy.

ASI director issues call to action

Posted Monday, May 4, 2020 1:15 am, Journal Review

As you know — it’s tough, we are all fighting our own battles and each day brings new challenges. That is nothing new for Abilities Services Inc. Our priority, as always, is keeping clients and staff safe, healthy and happy. This sounds easy —until this public health crisis began.

ASI is an agency that assists individuals with developmental and physical disabilities to live and work within our community. We have been providing this service right here in Montgomery County since December 1971.

During this crisis, finding personal protective equipment has become close to impossible. When we do find it — the price is generally four times the amount we were paying just a couple months ago. On Thursday, we had to pay $56 for a gallon of hand sanitizer. Donations have all but dried up. To date we have already spent greater than $10,000 in PPE, cleaning supplies and items that will be needed to re-open. That $10,000 was not in our budget.

Even though we had to idle our day program and temporarily sunset our transportation to ensure the safety of our individuals, we are still providing services to those we serve —24 hours a day seven days a week in their homes. Our job coaches are still meeting with high school and middle school students (albeit via zoom and conference calls) helping them map out their future. Our vocational rehabilitation department is continuing to electronically meet with clients and work towards job placement. Our nursing staff is busier than ever making wellness visits, conducting telehealth appointments and checking in on our individuals’ health and wellbeing. If you could peel back the layers of ASI, you would see that we are busier now more than ever. All this shift in business, requires more staff than we currently have. We are desperately looking to hire 20-plus members of the community to help support our individuals. We have added “hero pay” to all front-line employees working directly with (non-family) individuals. Unfortunately, job applications and new hires have all but come to a standstill. Like other businesses, we are plagued by having more than ten employees who for various reasons, cannot or are not comfortable, working at this time —this a loss of 400 required service hours we cannot provide.

Although the federal government has designated money through the CARES Act for Medicaid service providers like ASI, the state has not passed that money through to agencies like ours. Congress approved a 6% increase in Medicaid dollars (Federal Medical Assistance Percentages), but at this time, Gov. Eric Holcomb has not approved any funding for our industry. Much of the additional work we are doing is a requirement of the state to ensure the health and safety of those who we are entrusted, and ASI is not being paid for those services. Once again — this is one more thing that is not in the budget.  stream to provide some stability. It is important to note that with the massive financial loss to the State of Indiana’s budget, not to mention the rainy-day fund, we have already been warned that cuts to Medicaid budgets are eminent. Once again, that 6% increase is vital for the future solvency of our programs. With budget cuts looming and not receiving the increased Medicaid dollars that were intended for services to individuals with I/DD, agencies like ours will have to make difficult choices to find ways to even keep the lights on — let alone provide the services families so urgently need in our community.

No one is stepping up to help, even though ASI is a front line agency helping our vulnerable population. Please help us by taking a minute to reach out to Gov. Holcomb (317-232-4567), Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, State Rep. Tim Brown (317-232-9651) and State Sen. Phil Boots (317-232-9400). Encourage them to pass along the Medicaid funds as was intended when it was appropriated by Congress to help ensure that agencies like ASI will be able to provide these vital services for our community long after this National Health Emergency is over.

Michelle Leonard-Smith
CEO/Executive Director
Abilities Services Inc.

National Day of Giving is Tuesday December 3nd

GivingTuesday is a global generosity movement, unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and their world. GivingTuesday will kick off the generosity season this year by inspiring people to give back on December 3rd, and throughout the year.

GivingTuesday was launched in 2012 as a simple idea:  to create a day that encourages people to do good. Over the past seven years, this idea has grown into a global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity.

People demonstrate generosity in many ways on GivingTuesday. Whether it’s helping a neighbor or stranger out, showing up for an issue or people we care about, or giving to causes we care about, every act of generosity counts.

GivingTuesday inspires people all around the world to embrace their power to drive progress around the causes they care about, not just on one day but throughout the year.

Every donations counts, even just a $1 , help make a difference in the lives around you and build a stronger community.

Thanks,

Michelle Smith, CEO