The revision has added the following language to the return-to-work guidance (underlined):

“Providers may allow clinical and direct support professionals or other facility staff who have been exposed to a confirmed case of COVID-19, or who have traveled internationally in the past 14 days, or who have entered New York from a state that is not a contiguous state or from a CDC Level 2 or 3 Travel Health Notice country, to return to work if all of the following conditions are met…”

The provisions following this clause are unchanged.

Read the full revised guidance at Health Advisory: Revised Protocols for Personnel in Clinical and Direct Care Settings to Return to Work Following COVID-19 Exposure or Infection

The Governor noted today that the positive testing rate in all focus areas under the state's Micro-Cluster strategy is 4.19%, and outside the focus zone areas is 2.50 percent. Statewide, the rate is 2.8%.

Within the focus areas, 22,117 test results were reported yesterday, yielding 927 positives. In the remainder of the state, not counting these focus areas, 102,448 test results were reported, yielding 2,563 positives.

Materials are available from the November 9 OPWDD Webex on IRMA Entry Guidance and Proactive Testing:

COVID-19 Reporting and IRMA Entry Guidance and Proactive Testing powerpoint, dated 11/09/2020, and the Revised-IRMA Entry of Proactive COVID-19 Testing Data, dated 10/30/2020.

In addition, here are links to the OPWDD Interim COVID-19 Guidance: Designated Cluster Mitigation and Oversight and to the Cluster Action Initiative.

The HCBS Waiver is the Medicaid program that provides opportunities for over 88,000 adults and children with intellectual and developmental disabilities to receive services in their own home or community. Click here to read the full text of the waiver.

Written comments will be accepted from November 10, 2020 through December 18, 2020 and may be submitted by mail to: OPWDD, Division of Policy and Program Development, 44 Holland Ave., Albany, NY 12229 or by e-mail to: peoplefirstwaiver@opwdd.ny.gov. 

For more information, including a summary and previous versions of the waiver, click here.

OPWDD’s Revenue Support Field Operations continues to offer trainings designed to provide information on personal allowance and financial benefits to help support individuals with developmental disabilities in New York State. Enrollment for several courses (Medicaid, Medicare, Supplemental Security Income and Social Security) is currently open. To register for trainings, log onto the New York Statewide Learning Management System (SLMS) and search by the title of the course or by the category of “Care Coordination”. Please continue to check SLMS on a frequent basis for new offerings.