Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM MAY 23-29, 2018 UCW 11 Some individuals in Cumberland Count y with traumatic brain injur y, also known as TBI, could be getting some assistance. A TBI is classified as an injur y to the brain that has been caused by an external force. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Pre- vention website, "Effects of TBI can include impaired thinking or memor y, movement, sensation (e.g., vision or hearing), or emo- tional functioning (e.g., personalit y chang- es, depression)." e CDC estimates the prevalence rate of TBI to be 2 percent of the population, which is approxi- mately 200,000 North Carolinians. Last November, the Joint Legislative Commit- tee on Health and Human Services introduced an Adult and Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injur y Pilot Program (S.L. 2017-57, Section 11F.9; Senate Bill 582). According to a document prepared by Dave Richard and Mark Benton of the Department of Health and Human Services, "e purpose is to increase compliance with internationally ap- proved evidence-based treatment guidelines. e goals include reduction in patient mortalit y, improve patient level of recover y and reduce long- term care costs." The General Assembly, last fall, approved $450,000 in funding to allow bet ween t hree and f ive hospitals to participate in a TBI pilot pro- gram. Senate Bill 582 indicates t hat $150,000 was committed for t he program in t he 2017-18 state budget w it h $300,000 committed to t he 2018-19 state budget. The funding was appropriated to t he Nort h Carolina Div ision of Mental Healt h, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse. Alliance Behavioral Healthcare was selected by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to administer the pilot waiver for TBI in its four-county service region. Cumberland County is one of the four counties. e other coun- ties Alliance serves are Durham, Johnston and Wake. Medicare and Medicaid Services recently approved the waiver for implementation in late summer 2018. "is waiver is an important milestone in North Carolina's commitment to improving the life and well-being of individuals who experience a trau- matic brain injur y," said DHHS Secretar y Mandy Cohen, M.D. "e waiver includes rehabilitation services such as supported employment, life skills training, cognitive rehabilitation and day supports." e TBI waiver program is designed to provide community-based rehabilitative ser- vices and support to help TBI patients with recovery. TBI patients will need to meet cer- tain eligibility criteria to participate. e TBI will have to have happened on or after their 22nd birthday. ey need to have cognitive, behavioral and physical support needs. e TBI patients will also need to meet certain financial eligibility requirements. A news release from NCDHHS states, "To qualify, the adults must require the level of care for a nursing facility or specialty rehabilitation hospital." is pilot will last three years. In the first year, the waiver will in- clude 49 individuals participating, increasing each year to 107 participants by year three. e TBI pilot program will launch in late summer 2018. If you have questions about eligibility, call Al- liance's 24-hour Access and Information line at 800-510-9132. Alliance is asking that callers please specifically ask for information on the TBI waiver when they call. Callers should expect to experience a brief crisis screening initially. Traumatic brain injury program comes to Cumberland County by CHARLES BOSWORTH NEWS CHARLES BOSWORTH, Reporter. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomingweekly. com. 910-484-6200.