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I received a letter signed by Commissioner Hogan, OMH and
Glenn Liebman, CEO MHANYS asking me to complete a survey. How do
I respond?
Sign onto www. MHANYS.org and follow the HBP Survey icon
to: http://hbp.mhanys.org/HWBP_Survey-Page1.php. Carefully consider
the definition of a Direct Care Worker included on the first page
of the survey (Note: We are no longer collecting completed surveys).
What is HBP?
The Health Care Benefit Program (HBP) was created as to
help mental health service providers improve staff recruitment and
retention efforts by helping workers to address their health care
insurance needs. The Program includes two components:
To develop and issue a Mental Health Providers Health Insurance
Survey Tool to measure the level, cost and existence of health insurance
coverage provided for direct care workers in mental health agencies
statewide., and;
To establish Mental Health Workers’ Assistance Programs (MHWAPs)
as resource centers to serve as resource centers for mental health
employers and their direct care workers. MHWAPs are intended to
help workers access health insurance information such as state and
federal entitlement programs and how to help choose the right health
care insurance option.
What is the purpose of the health care benefits survey?
The Mental Health Association in New York State, Inc. (MHANYS)
under contract arrangement with the New York State Office of Mental
Health (OMH) will conduct a statewide survey of mental health providers
to determine the nature and scope of employee-sponsored health care
benefits available to direct care workers in the mental health field.
Who is a Mental Health Care “Direct Care Worker”?
There is no formal definition of a “direct care worker”
embodied in either the Mental Hygiene Law or the New York Code of
Rules and Regulations. In order to implement the HBP consistent
with legislative provisions and the spirit of the legislation it
became necessary to create an operating definition of a direct care
worker. The definition is:
A Direct Care Employees are:
Employees who work for mental health programs that provide
services to people with psychiatric disabilities and/or substance
abuse disorders, but do not perform management, supervisory, or
licensed clinical functions. Examples of direct care workers could
include such title categories as Mental health Aide, Janitor, Maintenance
Worker, Cook, Kitchen Aide, Office Assistant or secretary (among
possible others)
What kind of information the survey collect?
The survey will, at a minimum, collect the following information:
- Whether or not providers offer their direct care workers health
care insurance benefits;
- Health care insurance plans offered (e.g., the name of HMOs);
- The proportion of the heath care insurance premiums subsidized
by the agency;
- The total cost of the health care insurance premiums under
each plan;
- The covered services under each plan and the amount of co-pay
for each covered service;
- The number of full-time and part-time direct care workers employed
by the provider;
- The number of employees enrolled in health care insurance plans
offered through the provider;
- Reasons why employees decline available health care insurance
benefits;
- The prevalence of agencies offering ancillary health care insurance
benefits such as dental and vision care; and,
- Knowledge about New York State health care insurance programs
such as Family Health Plus and Child Health Plus.
How will the survey data and findings be used?
The data will support a variety of functions. Primarily,
it will facilitate public policy decisions aimed at improving providers’
ability to recruit and retain a quality direct care workforce. The
data and subsequent analysis will help to inform the Governor and
the Legislature about the nature of this issue because the findings
are required to be issued to them in a report. A Report is due to
the Governor and the Legislature no later than March 1, 2009 MHANYS.
The report will also help inform the establishment of Mental Health
Workers’ Assistance Programs (MHWAPs).
Will the data I submit in the survey be confidential?
All information received from the survey will be strictly
confidential. MHANYS report to the Governor and the Legislature
will only present data in aggregate format. No provider’s
name will be included in the report.
What is the Mental Health Worker Assistance Program (MHWAP)
MHWAPs represent another feature of the Health Care Benefits
Project. Regional mental health services agencies, grant-funded
to establish and maintain a mental health workers assistance program,
serve as a resource for mental health direct care worker employers
and their direct care workers, to educate and counsel them in accessing
various health insurance and employment incentive programs. Under
the grant, MHANYS will train the MHWAP Directors and function as
an MHWAP for un-served regions of the state.
Who do I contact if I encounter technical problems or have
about completing the survey?
Call or email John Richter, Director of Public Policy with
any questions:
Phone: (518) 434-0439, ext. 229, or Email: jrichter@mhanys.org.
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