Implement Employment First Recommendations

Medicaid - supported employment services for persons with disabilities - provider training requirement - reimbursement of vendors - discovery process - appropriation. The act requires the department of labor and employment and the state medical services board in the department of health care policy and financing to promulgate rules that require all providers of supported employment services for persons with disabilities to obtain a nationally recognized supported employment training certificate or earn a nationally recognized supported employment certification relating to supported employment services. The rules must specify time frames for completion of the training or certification. The time frames must provide for training to be completed over a 5-year period, subject to appropriations for reimbursement of vendors. The state medical services board shall adopt rules for administering the reimbursements to vendors, which must be $300 for each certification exam and $1,200 for each training program certificate and which includes reimbursement for both the cost of training and wages paid to employees during training.

The act requires that the department of labor and employment's fee schedule for rehabilitation services include the discovery process as an alternative comprehensive assessment if appropriate for persons with disabilities.

The act lists annual employment data, reported by county, that the department of health care policy and financing must collect.

The act corrects the repeal provision language for the employment first advisory partnership and its duties.

For the 2018-19 state fiscal year, the act appropriates:

• $27,675 of general fund to the department of health care policy and financing, and .04 FTE to implement the act;
• $2,131 of general fund to the department of labor and employment to purchase legal services from the department of law, and reappropriates that amount to the department of law.
  (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)