Waiver Reimagine Advisory Committee Meeting 1 summary

Committee member present: Don Barnes, Val Barnes, Kathryn Barton, Annie Braun, Tricia Brisbine, Cathy Chavers, Jennifer Drganc, Rosalie Eisenreich, Lisa Evert, Mary Fenske, Kelly Friesen, Abigail Gertken, Zahnia Harut, Lisa Harvey, Dr. Katrina Jirik, Ali Kofiro, Susan Mackert, Meredith McKinnon, Julie Morrison, Danielle Otto, Polly Owens, Rijuta Pathre, Sherri Pickthorn, Phyllis Reller, Kathy Rogers, Bud Rosenfield, Saudade SammuelSon, Elizabeth Scheel-Keita, Lauren Thompson, Chad Wilson, Pat Wright

Committee members not present: Dr. Arbdella Hudson, Wa Xiong

DHS staff present: Leah Zoladkiewicz, Hannah Lamb, Curtis Buhman, Emmanuel Nwala, Meghan Lindblom, Maria Trueblood, Matt Knutson, Elliott Rankin, Sarah Sinderbrand, Becky Melang, Christina Samion

Meeting notes

Facilitator welcomed members and went over how to use WebEx mute, unmute, chat.

Introductions

· Waiver Reimagine Advisory Committee members introduced themselves, including their names, affiliated agency and their hopes and concerns for the Waiver Reimagine project.

· A full list of members and their member categories can found at the Waiver Reimagine Advisory Committee page on the Secretary of State’s website.

· DHS staff introduced themselves and their individual roles in the project.

Opening remarks

· Rebecca (Becky) Melang, deputy director the Disability Services Division, discussed the vision and goals for Waiver Reimagine.

· The group reviewed the committee charter and values. Before the meeting, the group had provided thoughts on the charter. Discussion continued during the meeting.

· Several people requested the presentation materials be sent ahead of time in order for them to prepare for the meetings. DHS agreed to send the PowerPoint and other materials ahead of each meeting as well as posting on our public website.

· Other members asked about agenda setting during the discussion. DHS invited members to provide ideas for future agenda topics. The next few meetings will be laying a deeper foundation for understanding of Waiver Reimagine.

Waiver Reimagine status overview

DHS staff members presented a high-level overview of the Waiver Reimagine project including the simplified service menu, waiver consolidation and individualized budgets.

Ongoing meeting schedule

· The committee reviewed and discussed the meeting schedule. The WRAC will meet every other month through the implementation of Waiver Reimagine.

· Many of the committee members expressed interest in meeting more often than every other month or for longer times. DHS will work on setting up ways to connect between official meeting times.

· Members asked how public meeting laws apply to the WRAC. DHS will address this at future meetings.

Hopes and concerns

WRAC members shared hopes and concerns in their introduction as well as in the chat of the WebEx.

Some of the concerns included:

· Change fatigue/change management

· Impact changes will have on workforce

· Limits to service/waiver access, creating institutional bias

· The future of Consumer Directed Community Support budgets

· Children’s budget and support ranges

· Home modifications under individual budgets

· Context for decision making for the WRAC – what decisions are or are not within the control of the WRAC, DHS, the state legislature, or the federal government?

· System disruption

· What is considered out of scope when there are many issues that are critical to the disability community?

Some of the hopes included:

· to expand Simpler system that is easier to understand and navigate

· Input from the WRAC and the broader disability community will be heard and incorporated into policy decisions

· Transition planning to new waivers and budgets will be discussed and understood

· Self-direction continues and people have greater flexibility and control over their lives.

Adjourn

The meeting was adjourned. The next meeting of the WRAC will be Thursday, April 28, from 10 a.m. to noon on WebEx.