February 2018
SOCIAL WORKERS LEADING FOR JUSTICE
Hello,

This Wednesday, February 7, is the deadline for all legislation currently being considered at the State House to be reported out of committee. This means we have just a few hours left to contact our legislators about the bills that matter to us most.

We're fighting to limit retroactive claims denials ("clawbacks"), lift the welfare cap on kids, ban LGBTQ conversation therapy, secure paid family and medical leave, protect confidential access to health care, pass the Safe Communities Act, and more. Click the links in this paragraph to take action on these issues. View our full legislative agenda here.

We're also hard at work planning two big events this April: Symposium 2018 and Legislative Education and Advocacy Day (LEAD). Symposium is the largest gathering of social workers in New England and an incredible opportunity to earn up to 15.5 CEUs over two days. We also look forward to recognizing the outstanding work of 5 social workers at the awards luncheon portion of the event on April 12.

LEAD will gather hundreds of aspiring social workers and newer professionals from across the state to exercise their macro muscle. The day will include a march for social work values across the Boston Common and advocacy panels in the State House.

As always, if you have questions about any of the work we are doing please contact me. I'd love to hear from you.

Best wishes,

Rebekah
Rebekah Gewirtz
Executive Director
617-227-9635 x16
IN THIS ISSUE:

  • Membership Hub
  • Symposium 2018
  • Social Work Action Center
  • Private Practice
  • Notes from the Field
  • Continuing Education
  • Licensing Test Prep
  • National News
MEMBERSHIP HUB
In Your Mailbox: Social Work Voice
Did you receive your copy of Social Work Voice , our new monthly newsletter? The February issue hits your mailbox this week and contains everything you need to know about Symposium 2018, including all workshop descriptions and a registration form.

Do you love Social Work Voice or have ideas for us to make it even better? Let us know. Email your feedback to Communications Director Jamie Klufts: jklufts.naswma@socialworkers.org.



The March/April issue will include :
  • Information about Chapter elections
  • Self-Care: A Call to Action
  • Advocacy and political action critical engagement opportunities
  • Networking: Using Connections as a Job Hunting Tool
  • Details about spring continuing education programming
  • ...and more!
Have an upcoming event, job opening, or other opportunity to share with the social work community? Advertise with us! All ads appear on our website and are published in Social Work Voice. The deadline for the upcoming March/April issue is February 23. Contact Jamie Klufts for more information: jklufts.naswma@socialworkers.org.
The Value of NASW Membership
Our strength is in our numbers. With you by our side we can continue to be a strong advocate for you in your practice and for the clients and communities you serve. This monthly e-newsletter is just one of the many local and national benefits included with your NASW membership. Regular Membership is just $225 annually for benefits that exceed $1,262 in value. If you have questions about membership, please contact the Chapter at chapter.naswma@socialworkers.org.
Join a Committee or Shared Interest Group
Come to a meeting! Click here to see upcoming meeting dates.

Get involved! See a full list of our 30+ member groups and contact information here.
SYMPOSIUM 2018: ON THE FRONT LINES
Symposium 2018: Everything you Need to Know Right Here!
Save the Date: April 12-13, 2018
Register for Symposium 2018 Today!
Earn up to 15.5 CEUs at Symposium 2018: On the Front Lines, featuring Ke ynote Speaker Jackie Woodside, LICSW. The largest gathering of social workers in New England, and the only statewide gathering in Massachusetts, Symposium 2018 will run from April 12-13, 2018, in Framingham, MA. This event will feature 90+ workshops, 100+ speakers, 60+ exhibitors, a free Awards Luncheon, and, new this year, the free-to-attend Networking Night @ Symposium.

See the Symposium 2018 Registration Booklet, with full list of all workshops, here .
Social Work Faculty and Staff: Encourage Your Students to Submit Posters for Symposium 2018
Do you have a micro, mezzo, or macro project, topic, or paper you have already written? Are you working on a project or paper (practice or research) for your internship or a class? If yes, this is your opportunity to spotlight your work! Showcase your work and receive recognition at Symposium 2018 in April.
 

Application Deadline: February 12, 2018

BSW, MSW, and PhD students are welcome to apply!
Exhibit, Advertise, or Sponsor at the Largest Gathering of Social Workers in New England!
Symposium 2018 offers a wide range of promotional packages to accommodate all budgets and is a unique opportunity to:

  • Promote your brand to approximately 800 practicing social workers from all over New England
  • Network with 1,000 professional attendees, vendors, sponsors, and presenters
  • Gain brand awareness with hundreds of influential community members

For more information, email Cassandra Prager, cprager.naswma@socialworkers.org or visit: naswma.org/symposium.
SOCIAL WORK ACTION CENTER
Register (or volunteer) for Legislative Education and Advocacy Day (LEAD) TODAY!
Registration for Legislative Education and Advocacy Day (LEAD) is now open! Visit naswma.org/LEAD to register today! There will be no on-site registration, so pre-registration is the only way to attend.

LEAD 2018 will take place on Monday, April 2, from 9:30 am - 1:30 pm , beginning at Emmanuel Church of Boston and ending at the Massachusetts State House. The day will feature dynamic workshops and speeches from key leaders, advocates, and champions of social work and social justice issues. The plenary session will feature keynote speaker Kathy Lopes, LICSW, Assistant Commissioner for Foster Care, Adoption, and Adolescent Services at the Department of Children and Families. The hundreds of social workers in attendance will show the strength of the profession while marching together through Boston Common to the State House.

We are looking for LEAD 2018 volunteers! Volunteers will play an important role in making sure the day goes off without a hitch! If you’re interested in a behind the scenes look at what it takes to coordinate a lobby day, this is your chance. We have several roles throughout the event so that volunteers can still participate in the day’s activities. Volunteers also receive free admission.

For more information on LEAD or to volunteer at the event, contact our Political Director Sophie Hansen , or LEAD Intern Coordinator Katie O'Leary .
Student Loan Repayment Program for LCSW/LICSWs - coming soon!
As part of the continued workforce development Masshealth DSRIP program, new applications for social worker loan forgiveness will be accepted beginning in March 2018. Applications will be open for LCSW/LICSWs who are interested in working in a community-based setting (CHCs, CMHCs, and ESPs) for a commitment of 4 years. Notices of program applications, procurements, and public meetings will be posted to: www.mass.gov/hhs/masshealth-innovations and sent out over the MassHealth Innovations listserv. To sign up, please email the MassHealth Innovations listserv at MassHealth.innovations@massmail.ma.us.  

If you have questions on the MassHealth transformation project, be in touch with Sophie Hansen or Rebekah Gewirtz.
Did You Know that District Attorneys (DAs) are Elected Officials?
Neither did 60% of super voters! That’s why we have partnered with the ACLU and other organizations to participate in the What a Difference a DA Makes campaign. This campaign is all about increasing voter awareness and engagement when it comes to electing district attorneys – because they directly influence the legal system in Massachusetts and core criminal justice issues.

Learn more here and download the DA Report Card by clicking on the image to the left.

To get involved in the campaign or the NASW-MA Criminal Justice Committee, contact Sophie Hansen, Political Director.
The Fair Share Amendment is Under Attack
In 2017, we fought for our values by joining together with Raise Up Massachusetts to collect over 274,000 signatures for Paid Family and Medical Leave and a $15 Minimum Wage. With your help, we are one step closer to putting these issues on the ballot with the Fair Share Amendment. But the fight is not over. Now, in 2018, we need to work together to defend the Fair Share Amendment, or "Millionaire's Tax," from attack. Details and petition are here: http://action.raiseupma.org/page/s/defend-the-fair-share-amendment 
Advocating for Continuity of Care for State Employee Health Insurance - and getting results!
Earlier in January, the Group Insurance Commission (GIC) made an announcement to remove three popular insurance plans from their offerings to state employees. Like you, we were deeply concerned about the numerous barriers this would have created for over 200,000 employees to continue to see their providers. The legislature responded by holding an oversight hearing relative to the Medical and Behavioral Health Procurement for employee health insurance coverage by the GIC. Our Political Director, Sophie Hansen, testified at this hearing, sharing the Chapter’s concerns about continuity of care, highlighting how difficult it can be for practitioners to join new insurance panels. We also provided suggestions for the GIC to make behavioral health services more accessible for their employees. Read our full testimony here.

We're pleased to inform you the GIC has now backed off their plan to cut these three carriers and they have restored the original options for all GIC members. This is the power of organized action!

To get involved in our legislative advocacy campaigns be in touch with Sophie Hansen.
PRIVATE PRACTICE
NASW National: "An Hour with Private Practice" Schedule
An Hour With Private Practice: Questions & Answers is a free question and answer session for NASW members. The monthly call-in sessions focus on a specific private practice subject and are led by Mirean Coleman, LICSW, Clinical Manager at NASW national. There is no registration and members can join in the discussion, ask questions, and make comments.These sessions provide members with important clinical social work updates impacting the delivery of mental health services.

Details and spring 2018 schedule are available here: https://tinyurl.com/HOPPspring2018
Valuable Member Benefit: Join the NASW MA Private Practice Google Group
The Private Practice Google Group is an exclusive member benefit powered by social work colleagues from across the state and NASW-MA. By signing up you'll receive daily updates from your colleagues about ethics, billing and insurance, and other critical private practice issues. You can also pose your own questions to the group to crowd source answers from colleagues. NASW-MA also uses this platform to send important and timely clinical alerts to members. Lately, we have been discussing the Beacon/Nokomis audit on the listserv and ways clinical social workers can take action.

Sign up to join the group by sending an email to chapter.naswma@socialworkers.org with "Join Google Group" in the subject line.
NOTES FROM THE FIELD
New Gambling Prevention RFP Available
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health and Bureau of Substance Addiction Services announces the opening of a RFP to support and enhance community-level problem gambling prevention services aimed at youth and caregivers in the Plainville/ Southeast Region. This public awareness campaign will be used to engage both youth and caregivers around the issues of problem gambling. Are you interested in being involved or applying? For more information check out this link: https://tinyurl.com/GamblingRFP
What All LICSWs in MA Must Do to Comply with MassHealth
All Licensed Independent Clinical Social Workers (LICSWs) in Massachusetts are required to register with MassHealth as either billing or non-billing providers. This requirement was put in place to ensure that MassHealth is complying with the Affordable Care Act. 

The MA Board of Registration of Social Work REQUIRES ALL LICSWs to meet this requirement by September 30, 2018! Failure to do so could result in the suspension or loss of your license.

If you are a QMB (Qualified Medicare Beneficiary) provider, and can receive payment from MassHealth for the copay for your Medicare clients, you are already registered with MassHealth and do not need to do anything; however, if you are seeing MassHealth beneficiaries and billing their insurance (MBHP, Beacon, THPP, or Celticare), this does NOT make you a MassHealth billing provider. You must complete the form and register as a MassHealth Non-Billing Provider.

Read more and access step-by-step instructions here .
Save the Date: Children's Behavioral Knowledge Center Symposium AND the 2018 Children's Behavioral Health Innovation Awards!
Currently there is an opportunity to apply for a Children’s Behavioral Health Innovation Award ($10,000) in funding from BCBSMA Foundation and MAMH.

Three finalists will be selected to present their innovation at this year's Children's Behavioral Health Knowledge Center Symposium and Gailanne Reeh Lecture on June 1 at the Worcester Recovery Center and Hospital. Symposium attendees will cast their vote for the best of the three and select this year's Award winner! The winner will receive a grant of $10,000 to help take their innovation to the next level.
To learn more and to apply visit:
CONTINUING EDUCATION
Spring Film Series: Angelo Unwritten
3 CEUs Available!
March 18, 2018

Sprin g Film Festival: Angelo Unwritten
The Studio Cinema
376 Trapelo Road
Belmont, MA 02452
2:00 - 5:30 pm

Angelo Unwritten is directed by Alice Stone, who will join us for the event. Through this film we will explore attachment issues and identity formation in adoption. Following the film, there will be a discussion led by the filmmaker, Alice Stone, and Joyce Maguire Pavao, EdD, LCSW, LMFT.
LICENSING TEST PREP
Licensing Test Prep Happening in Your Neighborhood!
NASW-MA Licensing Test Prep courses include:
  • FREE Social Work ASWB Exam Guide
  • Access to online ASWB exam guide portal
  • Full-day Test Prep course (9 am - 4 pm)

Upcoming exam dates and locations:
  • February 24 | Bridgewater
  • March 10 | Springfield
  • April 14 | Worcester
  • May 12 Boston
  • June 16 | Northampton
  • July 20 | Bedford
Save your spot today!
NATIONAL NEWS
Free NASW Code of Ethics Revisions Question and Answer Sessions
Thousands of social workers have already participated in The Official NASW Training on the 2017 Revisions to the Code of Ethics presented by nationally acclaimed social work ethics experts, and  Code of Ethics  Revisions Task Force members, Dr. Allan, Barsky, Dr. Frederic Reamer, and Dawn Hobdy. Have you viewed the webinar?  Still have questions? Join one of three post-course discussions offered during the month of February.  
 
Live Question & Answer Discussions based on The Official NASW Training on the 2017 Revisions to the Code of Ethics
 
 
Registration is free. Space is limited. 250 participants per session will be accepted.  No continuing education credit is available for the Question & Answer sessions.  
NASW National Conference - June 20-23, 2018
The 2018 NASW National Conference will be held June 20-23, 2018, at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C. Mark your calendars now and plan to be a part of the meeting of the profession!