202 2
SB705
TABLE OF CONTENTS 3
Agenda
4
NASW-PA PACE & Legislative Committee
5
FAQ
6
Talking Points/Messaging
7
Stories from Social Workers
8
NASW-PA 2022 Conference
9
Student Roundtable
Find out more information on the LEAD 2022 Attendee page. You will find resources
Thank you for joining us for Legislative Education and Advocacy Day! If you’ve joined us in past years, welcome back! If this is your first year attending LEAD, you’re in for an exciting day of education and advocacy. We understand that attending legislative meetings and advocating for legislation can be intimidating, especially if this is all new to you. However, there is no reason to worry. Legislators want to hear what their constituents have to say. Your voice matters, and we hope that Legislative Education and Advocacy Day will help you better understand how social workers elevate society! We encourage you to look through the materials in the following pages to familiarize yourself with the bill we are advocating for. If you still have questions, please feel free to find a staff member or volunteer, we are here to help you have a successful day.
as well as a list of advocacy tasks for the day! https://www.nasw-pa.org/ page/LEADAttendee
Share your photos from the day and let the world know how
Students, join our student Facebook group: www.facebook.com/groups/pasws
02
All student members of NASW-PA get a free graduation cord - just pay shipping! Shipping is just $5! https://bit.ly/3r2mjWm
LEAD 2022
AGENDA March 22, 2022 Tuesday, March 22nd - LEAD Day - Zoom 8:00 – 11:00 a.m. Legislative Visits – Meet with your Legislator 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. LEAD Rally Webinar Schedule for the week Program runs from 11:00 am – 12:00 p.m. daily Up to 6 CEUs if CE credit option purchase. Tuesday, March 15th Why (and How) Do We Advocate & LEAD Logistics Wednesday, March 16th Communicating to Reach Advocacy Goals Thursday, March 17th Social Work and Social Action Friday, March 18th Legislative Panel on Mental Health in Pennsylvania Monday, March 21st Deep Dive on SB 705: Telehealth in Pennsylvania
03
NASW-PA PACE Committee The Political Action for Candidate Election (PACE) Committee is the political action committee of NASW, dedicated to advancing social workers’ values and public policy goals in campaigns, elections and building political relationships with elected officials. NASW-PA PACE evaluates Pennsylvania legislative candidates as well as the gubernatorial candidates in respect to social work values and professional issues through several means. NASW-PA PACE uses your contributions to help elect candidates who will advance the profession and advocate for social justice. Interested in becoming involved? Contact Johanna Byrd at jbyrd.naswpa@socialworkers.org – Learn more about NASW-PA PACE Committee online at www.nasw-pa.org/pace
NASW-PA Legislative Committee The NASW-PA Legislative Committee is a new committee that examines NASW-PA’s legislative agenda and evaluates proposed legislation in relation to the interests of professional social work and the clients we serve. The committee recommends to the Board and others to take a position on certain bills of interest, whether it be to support, oppose, or remain neutral. This information is then used by our staff and lobbying team to inform our actions in the legislative arena.
If you have an interest in becoming involved with the Legislative Committee, contact Johanna Byrd at jbyrd.naswpa@socialworkers.org Interested in becoming involved? Contact Johanna Byrd at jbyrd.naswpa@socialworkers.org – Learn more about NASW-PA PACE Committee online at www.nasw-pa.org/pace
04
FAQ · What is the advocacy focus of this year’s LEAD? This year, we will be focusing on our efforts on passing a comprehensive telehealth bill in Pennsylvania. During the pandemic, the efficacy of telehealth in mental health practice has become clear, and it increases accessibility of treatment for those with disabilities, people with certain mental health or physical health conditions, people impacted by mental health stigma, or those in rural areas. With the waivers currently allowing for telehealth expiring March 31st, the time is now to pass a bill to ensure service is not interrupted during this time of crisis. SB 705 has passed the Senate, but has yet to have a committee hearing in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Join us in promoting this bill ensuring mental health access! · What is the history of the bill? Past versions of this bill have been brought up in previous sessions, including passing both the House and the Senate in the 2019-2020 Session. However, although the bill has wide support from Republicans and Democrats, amendments end up getting added in the House that lead to the bill either dying in Senate concurrence or being vetoed by the Governor. The amendment would restrict abortion-related care from being administered via telehealth. While the amendment has not yet been offered this year, it is widely expected to be proposed if the bill reaches the House floor. · What is holding back SB 705 from becoming law? Two main things are holding this bill back – first and foremost, we are hearing reports from our contacts that the members of the General Assembly do not understand the urgency behind the bill because “telehealth is currently being done.” However, it is being done because of the waivers that have been in place since the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020, and we need to convey to our elected officials that allowing the waivers to expire without a comprehensive telehealth bill in place WILL disrupt care, including mental health care, to millions of Pennsylvanians. Second, the amendment mentioned in the question above. · What else do I need to know? In mental health specifically, telehealth has broadened access to care for those who would have been unable to get treatment and has had almost no contraindicators. Telehealth allows more access for those in rural areas, those with transportation/childcare/employment related difficulties, those suffering from specific conditions such as agoraphobia, and/or those impacted by mental health stigma. Additionally, the stories we’ve heard from social workers in the field describe situations where clients who were sick or struggling were able to access treatment when and where they needed it in ways they would not have earlier. · Is this the only issue that NASW-PA is working on? NO! We chose one issue for LEAD in order to make the largest impact, but NASW-PA staff, our lobbying team, and our Legislative Committee advocate for issues that align with our Legislative Agenda and opposes bills that are against what we stand for. View our Legislative Agenda at www.nasw-pa.org. · Can we discuss other issues that I am passionate about during our legislative visits? Yes, however we ask that you complete talking about telehealth first, and that you make a distinction during the meeting that you are speaking personally as an individual and not on behalf of NASW-PA.
05
Talking Points/Messaging OVERALL MESSAGE: 13 million Pennsylvanians have been able to utilize telehealth during the pandemic, including mental health care. For many, this has reduced or eliminated previous barriers to accessing the care they needed. If a telehealth bill is not passed prior to the expiration of the waivers, whether that be March 31st or another future date, it will result in a serious disruption in healthcare for millions of people and in many cases, especially in mental health, clients will no longer receive the care they need. This bill is FAR TOO IMPORTANT to allow anything to get in the way. Please vote yes on SB 705 when it comes to the House floor, and vote no on any amendments. Passing the bill cleanly will allow it to become law before the end of the waivers, which will allow for no disruption of services.
Sen.TALKING Scavello POINTS:
Prime Sponsor, SB 706
• Telehealth allows clients who would not otherwise be able to access services to get needed care. • Barriers to care such as transportation, distance, childcare, time, employment issues like time off work, caregiving, etc. are reduced or eliminated by telehealth. • In mental health, studies have demonstrated virtually no adverse impacts of telehealth versus in person visits. No shows are less when clients are able to access telehealth. • Rural areas have faced a shortage of available therapists for decades. Telehealth allows rural Pennsylvanians to access treatment without long wait lists or driving hours. • Pre-pandemic telehealth meant that some insurance companies reimbursed for telehealth, others did not, and still others reimbursed partially. Allowing the waivers to expire without a telehealth law will return us to that uncertain status. Whenever the waivers are about to expire, practitioners receive letters from insurers stating their intent to no longer reimburse. • Care for millions of Pennsylvanians will be disrupted or terminated entirely if a telehealth bill is not enacted before the waivers expire. • The need for telehealth goes far beyond the pandemic (see examples on the “Stories from Social Workers” page 7). ADVOCACY TIPS FOR MEETINGS: • Be concise and to the point; • Be polite and friendly; • Say “I don’t know” if needed; • Be prepared for anything; • But, most of all, don’t underestimate yourself or your impact!
06
Stories from Social Workers A recent survey of social workers provided several specific examples of how telehealth has helped their clients. Below is a small sampling of the stories provided: · “A client of mine had a child die suddenly and unexpectedly. She was devastated. She was unstable and unable to drive safely. She couldn't leave her house. By using telehealth, we were able to "meet" virtually a couple of times each week.” ·
“We worked with folks who are agoraphobic and would never have accessed care otherwise.”
· “Two clients who have had strokes were able to have sessions with me. They would not have been able to navigate the difficulties of transportation and would have been left alone in this.”
Sen. Scavello
Prime Sponsor, SB 706
· “I have a rural older adult client who would have not had counseling support on several occasions due to bad weather and her vehicle breaking down on multiple occasions if telehealth support wasn’t available.” · “A particular client case that comes to mind is a client I've worked with who presents with significant physical disabilities, including extremely limited mobility, no access to reliable transportation, and a history of SI and inpatient hospitalizations when no psychotherapy services are provided with consistency. Telehealth services have allowed this client to consistently join me from their home, free of worry about the logistics of physically arriving to session, and to receive the services that prevent this client from necessitating more intense intervention with frequency than if telehealth services were not accessible.” · “A client reached out to me with symptoms consistent with a borderline syndrome. She has five children and a history of complex trauma. Due to her childcaring responsibilities and a hesitation to seek therapy (common among people with trauma histories) she requested telehealth. She was able to engage in therapy for the first time because she felt safe in her home and she was able to schedule sessions without interrupting her family life. As a result she has made remarkable progress regarding the healing of the past trauma.” · “A client whose baby died 2 days after birth was suffering from severe grief and depression. She was unable to have in person visits due to lack of transportation and job constraints. As well as caring for her toddler. Telehealth psychotherapy gave her the consistent support and safe space she needed to begin healing from traumatic loss and become a functional mother and worker again. Without telehealth this person would have been admitted to a psychiatric hospital.” · “Recently there was a nasty ice storm that ripped through western PA, and it was not safe to be on the roads. I was still able to see my patients, who were comfortable with being seen virtually, due to having a telehealth option.” · “Telehealth services to help a woman in rural area with psychogenic seizure disorder who cannot drive. She ended up being treated for aggressive breast cancer and is able to participate in treatment even when she is too tired to leave the house due to chemo.” · “I work with several college students that have reached out in crisis that I was able to still support on their PA campuses that I would not have been able to do if they were limited to getting services only in my office.” · “I see children in therapy and at times there is no time to talk to the legal guardians as to how the child is doing. Using a telehealth session I am able to connect with the guardian to learn how the client is doing at home and incorporate that information in my therapy with the child.”
07
2022 Conference Theme & Rationale: Reunite with friends and colleagues. Reignite your passion for the social work profession. Restore your sense of well-being. Reimagine your purpose and reenvision the future. The NASW-PA Conference is back in person this year at the Kalahari Resort and Spa, and we couldn’t be happier to be together again. The Kalahari Resort has excellent safety measures in place, and we are confident that we can provide you with an amazing experience while keeping you safe and healthy!
W H E N: October 23-26, 2022
WH E R E : Kalahari Resort and Spa, Pocono Manor, PA
2022 Conference Student Opportunities: • Volunteer opportunities for student members • Student-focused workshop track • Present a poster at our BSW / MSW / DSW student poster presentations • Network with other students and professionals from around Pennsylvania • Learn about job opportunities and graduate programs at our exhibit hall
LE A R N MORE AND GET UPDATES : www.nasw-pa.org/conference 08
Calling All Students! Join NASW-PA Student Reps for a Student Round Table Discussion Join the NASW-PA in an engaging conversation on issues relevant to social work students. This is a monthly call and we want to hear from you! Come and meet your BSW & MSW Student Reps! The meetings will take place on the 4th Monday of the month at 12:30 PM. The next meeting will take place on Feb 28, 2022 12:30 PM and will be via Zoom platform. All students are welcome to attend you do not need to be a member. Save the date for the next meetings Mar 28, 2022 12:30 PM Apr 25, 2022 12:30 PM May 23, 2022 12:30 PM Register in Advance - https://bit.ly/3rrnQZn 09