On July 4, 2023, Governor Mike DeWine signed the Ohio Fiscal Year SFY 2024-2025 operating budget bill into law. House Bill 33 includes new statutory requirements for new and currently licensed and/or certified community behavioral health services providers, private psychiatric hospitals, and residential Class 1, 2, and 3 facilities. Below is a summary of the new statutory requirements: 

• Beginning Oct. 3, 2023, all community behavioral health services providers, subject to two exceptions in pre-existing law, must be certified by OhioMHAS. The pre-existing exceptions apply to Ohio-licensed health care professionals whose authorization to practice that health care profession includes an OhioMHAS-certified service (regardless of whether performed as part of a sole proprietorship, partnership, or group practice) and individuals who provide an OhioMHAS certified service as part of an employment or contractual relationship with an accredited hospital outpatient clinic.
• Beginning Oct. 3, 2023 – New community behavioral health services providers seeking initial certification of services must hold national accreditation for the services that OhioMHAS determines have national accreditation standards.
• Beginning Oct.1, 2025 – Current community behavioral health services providers seeking renewal certification of services must hold national accreditation for the services that OhioMHAS determines have national accreditation standards.
• New requirement for all licensed and/or certified providers to have adequate staffing and equipment to operate.
• New requirement for new and currently licensed and/or certified providers to have not been the subject of an adverse action during the three-year period immediately preceding the date of application (includes out of state adverse action).

Find complete details for the Revised Code changes on the OhioMHAS website. Updates will be provided via NewsNow and on the OhioMHAS Licensure and Certification page as they are available. Please reach out to liccert@mha.ohio.gov with any questions or concerns you have about how these new rules will impact your organization.

Overview Webinar Planned for Aug. 28 at 11:00 a.m.
OhioMHAS staff will provide an overview of changes on Monday, Aug. 28 at 11:00 a.m. Click HERE to join the webinar.

To learn more about the current OhioMHAS recognized national accrediting bodies: 

• The Joint Commission (TJC)
• Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF)
• Council on Accreditation

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced 299 grantees have been awarded federal funding for the 21st Century Community Learning Center (21st CCLC) program to provide enrichment opportunities for students as they prepare to head back to school. The program creates or expands community learning centers that provide academic enrichment and youth development programs for students who attend predominantly high-poverty and low-performing schools. Quality after-school and summer programming is an important part of Future Forward Ohio, the state’s strategic priorities for helping students recover from the impact of the pandemic.  

National Council on Problem Gambling Agility Grants offer funding to nonprofit organizations across the country for problem gambling prevention programs. The goal of these grants is to fill in gaps for areas that currently have no such services, as well as bolster promising efforts in existing programs. To support equitable access to this grant funding, NCPG will provide assistance to interested applicants who seek to better understand the requirements for applying for an Agility Grant. Click HERE to make an appointment for a 30-minute one-on-one consultation time to ask questions regarding the application process. The deadline to apply for funding is 11:59 p.m. ET on Aug. 22.

The OhioRISE program launched one year ago on July 1, 2022, as Ohio’s first-ever highly specialized program to help youth who have complex behavioral health and multisystem needs. The Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM) is excited to introduce a new OhioRISE newsletter, which will replace the launch reports published during the program's first year. OhioRISE’s newsletter is designed to raise awareness of OhioRISE, its offerings, and how to enroll; to reinforce the positive impact the program has on young people, their caregivers, and state and local child-serving entities; and to educate readers on OhioRISE services, policies, and enhancements.

Featured articles you’ll find in each issue include:

• In My Own Words – OhioRISE members share their personal experiences in the program, sharing how they got involved or giving words of support and hope to other members and families.
• Care Coordination Corner – readers will learn about OhioRISE care coordinators and the creative ways these heroes and the care management entities support young people and their families/caregivers.
• Care Management Entity (CME) Spotlight – each month one of the 18 OhioRISE care management entities will be profiled to give you a look at the services, partnerships, and successes within their communities.
• OhioRISE Champions – this piece will highlight an OhioRISE community partner, child-serving agency, provider, or advocate who is passionate about the work we do and is making a difference in how we strengthen the program.

Governor Mike DeWine, ODM, state partner agencies, Aetna, and our network of Care Management Entities (CMEs), are committed to giving every Ohio young person the opportunity to live up to their full potential. Spreading the word about the OhioRISE program is the key to reaching every eligible child or youth statewide.

Subscribe to the OhioRISE mailing list to receive the new OhioRISE monthly newsletter directly. View the inaugural OhioRISE newsletter and past OhioRISE launch reports by visiting the OhioRISE website. If you have an idea for a newsletter story or featured article, we want to hear it. Send it to OhioRISE@medicaid.ohio.gov.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) this week announced the release of a new resource — Connecting Communities to Substance Use Services: Practical Approaches for First Responders. This new guide provides practical, evidence-based information that first responder agencies, their partners, and communities can use to implement or expand practices and programs for linking people to substance use services.

In recognition of September as FASD Awareness and Prevention Month, the Ohio Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Steering Committee will host the Seventh Annual FASD Forum on Sept. 15 at the Renaissance Columbus Westerville-Polaris. This year’s theme is FASD is a Family and Community Matter. Registration is free. Click HERE to view the draft agenda and register.

Ohio Citizen Advocates for Addiction Recovery (OCAAR) has announced that it will host the inaugural Ohio Recovery Convention on Sept. 29 at the Crowne Plaza Columbus North in Worthington. The theme will be, "Nothing About Us, Without Us." 

This convention will serve as a space for Ohio's recovery community to gather and set the agenda for recovery-oriented policy in the state. This will be an interactive day filled with policy and advocacy panels. All recovery advocates are welcome, you do not need any prior advocacy experience to attend.  

The Ohio Adult Care Facilities Association, in partnership with NAMI Ohio, will host its 2023 Conference on Oct. 16-18 at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Columbus-Dublin. Conference participants will have the chance to learn from industry experts who will share their knowledge and insights on various topics related to adult care facilities and the residents they serve. Gain valuable tips and strategies that you can implement in your own organization and network with fellow professionals in the field and exchange ideas and experiences.

The Cleveland Hearing & Speech Center, with support from OhioMHAS and the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities, has announced its 2023-24 schedule for its free, two-part, virtual Developing Competency in Mental Health Treatment for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals: Approaches and Considerations for Culturally Affiirmative Care training. ASL interpreters and Zoom captioning will be provided. For more information and to register, visit: www.chsc.org/training. 

Part 1: (6.5 CEUs) will be offered on the following dates: Sept. 29, Jan. 26, and April 15. This training equips Ohio clinicians with knowledge and insight into the Deaf & Hard of Hearing Community, a cultural and linguistic minority with very limited access to mental health care. As mental health professionals increase their awareness of the differences between deaf and hearing people and learn to adapt their treatment approaches, they will become more skilled in treating deaf patients who suffer from mental illness and substance use disorder. Most importantly, participants will learn how to effectively work with a sign language interpreter in their work. 

Part 2: (6.5 CEUs) will be offered on the following dates: Oct. 16, Feb. 26, and May 17. Clinicians will deepen their knowledge of the deaf and hard of hearing communities and learn to apply this knowledge to clinical practice through the review of case examples, guided discussion and instructive videos. Participants will gain additional information and increase their understanding of the role of the ASL interpreter on the treatment team. The full-day training will allow participants to build their area of expertise in the field of Mental Health and Deafness, ultimately leading to an increase in therapeutic successes with deaf and hard of hearing clients.