WGIUPD GENERAL INFORMATION SYSTEM 4/13/11
DIVISION: Office of Long Term Care
PAGE 1
GIS 11 OLTC/004

TO: Local District Commissioners, Medicaid Directors

FROM: Mark Kissinger, Deputy Commissioner, Office of Long Term Care

SUBJECT: Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) Services Provided Out of State

EFFECTIVE DATE: Immediately

CONTACT PERSON: Local District Liaison, (518)474-5888

This GIS message is to clarify the Department’s policy on the use of CDPAP services by consumers when traveling outside New York State.

It is the policy of the Department that the CDPAP consumer is not prohibited from traveling out of state for a temporary absence and having the CDPAP personal assistant accompany the consumer to provide assistance with the approved tasks listed on the consumer’s CDPAP plan of care.

Travel out of state should be brief or short-term. Examples of travel out of state may include the following: a vacation, family events or attending a conference. The consumer must inform the local department of social services (LDSS) and the fiscal intermediary (FI) when out of state travel will occur to assure that the agencies are aware of the planned absence. This notification will serve to ensure that the consumer, the FI and the LDSS are able to meet their ongoing responsibilities in a timely manner.

In the event that the consumer is not self-directing, the LDSS must determine how the self-directing other may fulfill his or her responsibility to supervise and direct the personal assistant when travel out of state occurs and whether it is sufficient to assure, to the extent reasonably possible, a safe care plan. The specific types of contact, whether on-site or via telephone or other means that are appropriate, may vary depending upon the specific circumstances of each particular case. For clarification of appropriate types of contact, please refer to GIS 08 OLTC/005, Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program: Clarification of 06 OMM/LCM-1, “Questions and Answers Related to Administration of the CDPAP”.

Districts are reminded that the hours of CDPAP service are not increased when travel out of state occurs and that any expense related to the cost of travel for the personal assistant is the responsibility of the consumer.

Please address any questions to the district’s liaison at (518) 474-5888.