Ethical Advocacy for Autistic Beneficiaries: 

TRICARE Challenges and Solutions

Original Air Date: June 6, 2022

Short Title: Ethical Advocacy: TRICARE Challenges and Solutions

CEU offered: 1.0 Ethics CEU

Webinar Duration: 60 minutes

CE Instructors:

  • Rebecca Womack, MS, BCBA, LBA
  • Judith Ursitti


Learning Objectives:

  1. Attendees will understand ethical principles that apply to advocacy on behalf of caregivers and clients.
  2. Attendees will understand ethical standards that apply to activities related to advocacy.


Abstract:

Significant changes to the TRICARE Operations Manual (TOM), Chapter 18, Section 4, policies pertaining to the Autism Care Demonstration (ACD) program occurred in early 2021. For example, there are limited billable activities permitted for code 97155, service settings are restricted to homes and clinics, and adaptive daily living skills are excluded from being treatment targets by providers. Furthermore, an average decrease of 3% in the reimbursement rate for code 97153 was implemented on May 1, 2022.

The Council of Autism Service Providers (CASP) will provide an overview of the current advocacy strategies in place to support providers, discuss current requests being shared with key legislative stakeholders, and provide a framework for grassroots advocacy efforts. Through strategic collaboration, provider concerns can be systematically scaled and through aligned messaging. Attendees will be equipped with information to share with their state and federal offices and guidance on ways to ethically engage with TRICARE policymakers.


Instructor(s)

Rebecca Womack, MS, BCBA, LBA

Rebecca has been privileged to serve adults and children using applied behavior analysis (ABA) in settings such as facility-based care, group homes, day centers, clinics, and family homes both across the United States and overseas. In addition to her clinical experience, Rebecca is passionate about ABA service delivery aligning with generally accepted standards of care. With an expertise in applying health care documentation requirements and systems of compliance, she recently was the author of a chapter on documentation guidelines for ABA services. Rebecca is co-chair of the Documentation Special Interest Group (SIG) for the Council of Autism Service Providers (CASP), a co-leader for the AI/ML Workgroup, an appointed Subject Matter Expert for the Association of Professional Behavior Analysts, and a Member of the Board of Directors for the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB). Rebecca also has extensive experience with public policy work. Not only is she an experienced presenter at national conferences, she has also won national awards for her role as an advocate and work to support ABA organizations in delivering quality services. Rebecca formed RAW Consulting Solutions as a way to provide education and consultation services to ABA organizations, professionals, and providers of ABA services. Whatever the role, her ultimate goal is to make a significant impact through effective and efficient services utilizing the science of behavior analysis.