All States/Territories

This Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on HCBS focuses on person-centered service delivery and outcomes measurement that inform the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of federal and state home and community-based programs, policies, and interventions.

NASHP has published an Appendix K interactive map, supported by The John A. Hartford Foundation, to track each state’s new flexibilities in modified 1915 (c) and 1115 waivers. States are using these waivers and amendments to ensure that their older adults and family caregivers are receiveing the LTSS services they need during the pandemic.

The wave of federal funding from programs like the American Rescue Plan and Consolidated Appropriations acts can be overwhelming to comprehend. Many state leaders are wondering how best to invest these funds while keeping future needs in mind. This panel of state-level experts will provide considerations for funding topics including: • Understanding current funding initiatives • Considering the range of options states have to use funds • Implementing innovations like private-pay programs

The Center for Health Care Strategies, with support from the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health, conducted a 50-state survey and a set of interviews to gauge the broad range of engagement strategies being used by Medicaid agencies. This report highlights key findings from the survey, including engagement themes, challenges, and recommendations for Medicaid agencies that can have lasting impact on outcomes, quality, equity, and cost.

CMS Office of Minority Health has added a new resource to their Improving Access to Care for People with Disabilities webpage. The resource, Modernizing Health Care to Improve Physical Accessibility: A Primer for Providers, is intended to help staff in health care settings improve quality, satisfaction, and physical accessibility for people with disabilities.

In this episode of the Medicaid Leadership Exchange podcast series, Ivory Banks, chief of staff at the Department of Medical Assistance Services, Commonwealth of Virginia, and Marlia Mattke, assistant administrator at the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, share their successes and challenges in pursuing diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts that better support staff of color in Medicaid agencies.

Funded by ACL, this resource library collects digital materials from the Older Adults' Equity Collaborative member organizations to provide tools and guidance to the aging services network, providers, older adults and family caregivers. The resources included cover topics of social isolation and mental health, Alzheimer's and Dementia, disabilities, caregiving, retirement income and security, and emergency planning.

NADTC has released it's 2020 Annual Trends Report, highlighting challenges in transportation over the past year and solutions being immplemented across the United States. Topics include: Volunteer Driver Programs in the Age of COVID-19, Transportation for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, A Fixed-Route Response to Assisting Communities During a Pandemic, Meeting the Transportation Needs of Diverse Older Adults and People with Disabilities, and more.

ACL has annouced a redesign of their Nutrition and Aging Resource Center website. Content has been reorganized into key sections, including training and tools, success stories, and data and evaluation. A broad range of subsections further organize content into categories such as innovative models and events.

NCOA and the Leading Age LTSS Center at UMass Boston released two issue briefs exploring the effects of pandemic-related food insecurity among older adults. The findings highlight the positive impact of SNAP in reducing food insecurity and call on the need for SNAP benefits provided by the American Rescue Plan to be permanent and consider increased food costs moving forward.