July 9, 2015 - Illinois Interagency Council on Early Intervention

Audience

Open to the general public.

Time

10:00 am to 1:00 pm

Locations

Council meetings will be held via Video Conference at the following locations:

Agenda

1. Call to order
2. Introduction Of Council Members
3. Approval Of April 2, 2015 Draft Meeting Report
4. Budget And Legislative Update
5. Payment Update
6. Bureau Staff Update
7. SSIP Update
8. IFSP Workgroup Update
9. Service Delivery Approaches Workgroup
10. Early Learning Council Update
11. Council Membership 
12. Adjournment

Meeting Report

Present

• J. Diane Adams-Alsberry, CALM, Inc.
• Bob Cammarata, ICG Health Care Services
• Gerri Clark, Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC)
• Brenda Devito, CFC #6 Manager
• Ginger Mullin, IL Department of Public Health
•  Margaret Harkness, IL Council on Developmental Disabilities
• Beatrice Nichols, IICEI Chairperson, Head Start
• Deanna Pratscher, parent, Thornton
•  Pam Reising-Rechner, IL State Board of Education
• Kathy Schrock, Easter Seals DuPage and Fox Valley
• Ann Freiburg, Division of Family and Community Services
• Therese Wehman, Elmhurst College
• Amy Zimmerman, Health & Disabilities Advocates

Absent

• Karen Berman, IL Early Learning Council Designee
• Julie Doetsch, IL Dept of Healthcare and Family Services
• Mary Petersen, Department of Insurance
• Gina Ruther, DHS, Bureau of Child Care and Development
• Connie Sims, DHS, Division of Developmental Disabilities
• Angel Williams, Department of Child and Family Services
• Constance Williams, PhD, DHS/Division of Mental Health
• Susan Tromley, IL Department of Children and Family Services

 Call to Order

The Illinois Interagency Council on Early Intervention (IICEI) was convened by Bea Nichols at 10:05 a.m.

Introduction of Council Members

All Council Members were introduced.

Approval of April 2, 2015 Meeting Report

Bob Cammarata made a motion to approve the April 2, 2015 meeting report, Kathy Schrock seconded. Meeting report was approved.

Budget and Legislative Update - Ann Freiburg

• There is not yet a FY16 budget for Illinois; DHS is proceeding with the preparation of contracts for issuance, but no funds can be obligated until the budget is in place.
• No legislation was introduced to change EI eligibility.
• Federal application requires certain assurances that cannot be provided without all CFCs operating. No federal money can be spent until state budget is approved.
• Part C funding is only used for direct services.
• Provider claims are being processed by CBO.
• A plan is being developed by the Bureau to continue providing services even if CFC is closed (CFCs and Bureau are unable to access files from other CFCs).
• All CFCs have returned their CSAs to DHS and are awaiting signatures. There is an intention to fund CFCs back to July 1st which is why signatures from CFCs were requested by July 1st. The only Medicaid claimable service by CFCs is service coordination.
• No Part C funds are spent on training.
• EITP has temporarily ceased face to face training, but Provider Connections is proceeding with business as usual.
• Due to IMPACT (streamlined provider enrollment system) changes, new providers cannot enroll in our system at this time (expected to be live on August 3rd when current providers will need to validate information and new providers will need to enroll).

Amy Zimmerman made a motion to have the Council write a letter to legislators to request EI's inclusion in any and all discussions and negotiations about budget (temporary and final) and a speedy budget resolution. Brenda Devito seconded the motion. Motion approved.

Bob Cammarata reminded the Council that a thorough review of current spending and efficiencies needs to be conducted.

Amy Zimmerman asked for the figures regarding the amount of money collected through family fees, how much we spend on evaluations, and the percent of children referred, found ineligible and lost to contact. ) 

Payment Update - Ann Freiburg

All contracts paid through May 2015; provider payments through June 10th; should be able to pay next two June provider payments soon. Service dates for July 1st and beyond can only be paid when budget is passed. 

 Bureau Staff Update - Ann Freiburg

Bureau Chief, Data Manager and Public Service Administrator are still pending vacancies.

Recent hires, include: Claudia Fabián, will focus on outreach and EI partners, and Nick Marsters (Certified Public Accountant) is the Bureau's Fiscal Manager.

State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP) Update - Tahney Fletcher

Phase I plan was sent to OSEP in April of 2015 and positive feedback was received on June 24, 2015. Phase II is due on April 1, 2016 and includes infrastructure development to better support system change related to our State-identified Measurable Result (SiMR - children's acquisition and use of knowledge and skills) and evaluation, which is tied to the theory of action and successful implementation of strategies.

Claudia, Tahney and Chelsea attended Interactive Institute in Chicago to support Phase II work.

Kickoff for Phase II will occur on August 13, 2015 with EI Partners, TA representative, DHS evaluator and IZ reps. "Scale up" beyond IZs, is an expected part of planning.

Amy Zimmerman mentioned that the proposed special education legislation (Part 226) - which includes the importance of screening, is due by August 17, 2015. Due to changes in childcare funding, children with special needs are being prioritized for childcare assistance. Early intervention documentation of eligibility will be important to this process.

IFSP Workgroup Update - Tahney Fletcher

The workgroup included more white space and better use of tables on the document to make it more user/family friendly. A couple of pieces are still being developed: how child outcomes will print (a statement rather than a single word rating) and natural environment's justification as a popup.

A few CFCs agreed to pilot the pages which are not in Cornerstone before final approval (4A, 4B, &7).

Section 5 is being sent back to workgroup as well as a distinction between the 'IFSP start date' and the 'Authorization begin date'.

Referral source will be a part of an EI-specific Cornerstone screen in the future.

 Service Delivery Approaches Workgroup Update - Chelsea Guillen &Therese Wehman

The Workgroup's "Final Report and Recommendations" document was discussed at length.

Eighteen recommendations were made and the following overarching needs were identified: web-based data system, revision of incentive/penalty system to support desired system change, revision of monitoring processes, training to support recommendations, and revision of policies and procedures to support implementation.

Implementation won't be linear; some of the recommendations could become effective simultaneously.

The workgroup was not charged with identifying cost-cutting or cost-saving recommendations; it is often very difficult to associate money with recommendations until pieces are implemented.

The Council must determine the process from here forward and include the decision on how to share the information with stakeholders and how the full discussion might occur.

An extensive discussion took place about the timing to release this report to the public, the need for transparency, the public worries about current budget constraints, and the importance of acting on the recommendations sooner rather than later while allowing Council's members to discuss it in more detail.

The next Council meeting will be devoted to this discussion so the Bureau's regular updates to the Council will be provided in writing. Questions about the document can be sent to Chelsea and Therese between now and September before the next Council meeting which is scheduled for October 1, 2015.

Bureau will review the report and identify the items that could be implemented in the near future in time for the next Council meeting.

 Early Learning Council (ELC) Update

The SIAC Health Subcommittee developed recommendations on how to incorporate health into all aspects of the early learning system. These recommendations have been adopted by the Executive Committee and can be found on the ELC's website.

The Special Education Subcommittee has worked on MOUs for CFCs to use with child care programs.

The last ELC meeting was on June 22nd and new leadership was introduced.

Bob Cammarata reported on the work of the Innovation Zone in Cicero which is focused on Latino families' enrollment in early childhood programs. This group is also looking at homelessness of young children.

Council Membership ¬- Claudia Fabián

The Bureau has identified a person at the Governor's Office to work on Council membership. Individuals who previously submitted packets of interest to the Governor's office may need to resubmit. Inform Bureau staff of your interest or recommendations.

Other

OSEP has approved our Policies and Procedures Manual and most suggested changes were incorporated. The plan to release the Manual will be determined by an implementation group.

 Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 1:01 p.m. Motion to adjourn by Diane Adams-Alsberry, seconded by Dee Pratscher. Motion approved.

Contact Information

Jenni Grissom
IDHS - Bureau of Early Intervention
823 East Monroe
Springfield, IL 62701

Ph: 217/524-1596

email: jennifer.grissom@illinois.gov