Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Survey Webinar and Slides Posted

LeadingAge NY and other home care associations requested that the Department of Health (DOH) with Mercer, DOH’s actuary, conduct a webinar on the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) survey. The webinar was held on Aug. 17^th, and the recording and slides are available here. As we previously reported, we thought it was vital for everyone to understand the logic behind the survey questions so providers could complete the survey with the accurate information. At the conclusion of the webinar, Mercer fielded over 50 questions from the webinar participants. Some of the questions and responses are outlined below:

Mercer started by explaining that the survey is for any home care provider providing personal care or home care services to Medicaid members enrolled in managed care or fee-for-service. This also includes Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Services (CDPAS).
The survey is due this Friday, Aug. 26^th. The survey is not mandatory, but it is highly recommended that Medicaid providers complete the survey so DOH can accurately incorporate the costs in Managed Long Term Care (MLTC) rates and Medicaid fee-for-service rates.
Only those Medicaid providers of aide service need to complete the survey. If a Certified Home Health Agency (CHHA) contracts with a Licensed Home Care Services Agency (LHCSA) to provide aide service, then only the LHCSA needs to complete the survey, not the CHHA.
Mercer clarified to use the Medicaid Provider ID number; if you have multiple provider ID numbers, then write in box #32 all the provider ID numbers for the survey submission.
In response to a question about submitting the survey anonymously, Mercer stated that it is important to see the impact of the FLSA ruling on small and large providers across the state. Mercer further clarified that all the data will be treated as confidential, and they will share the data with DOH in a summary format.
Aide service through the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Waiver needs to be included in the survey.
LHCSAs need to complete the survey for hospice patients if they are a Medicaid member.
Assisted Living Programs (ALPs) should complete the survey for the LHCSAs, even if the LHCSA serves only ALP residents.
Mercer stated several times that a provider who did not provide the service or did not pay for travel should enter a zero instead of leaving the box blank.
Regarding calculating the travel reimbursement between 2015 and 2016, Mercer suggested to average the IRS reimbursement between the end of 2015 and the beginning of 2016.

There were numerous other questions related to FLSA rule, labor issues, live-in hours, one-time agency expenses versus recurring expenses, and other issues. LeadingAge NY urges members to listen to the recorded webinar; it is our understanding that it will only be posted for a brief time period. We also suggest that members complete the survey so Mercer and DOH can obtain a more accurate view of how the FLSA ruling has impacted members’ operations.

Contact: Cheryl Udell, cudell@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8871