§ 15-1204

(a) (1) The Department shall establish standardized procedures for the administration of the Advisory Group and make the procedures available to the public on a dedicated page of the Department’s website.

(2) The dedicated page on the Department’s website shall also include:

(i) A list of current Advisory Group members;

(ii) The application process and selection criteria for Advisory Group members;

(iii) The location, date, and time of each Advisory Group meeting with at least 30 calendar days’ advance notice;

(iv) Options for virtual participation in meetings of the Advisory Group;

(v) Procedures to ensure meaningful participation for individuals with disabilities and limited English proficiency;

(vi) A notation of at which meetings the general public will have an opportunity to testify or make comments; and

(vii) In accordance with the Open Meetings Act, the agenda and meeting minutes of the previous meeting of the Advisory Group, including a list of meeting attendees.

(b) The Department shall provide sufficient data and resources at least 30 days in advance of a meeting to support informed participation in Advisory Group discussions, including:

(1) Current and proposed payment rates;

(2) Federally required information, including:

(i) Home– and community–based services payment transparency reports;

(ii) Payment adequacy reports as required under 42 C.F.R. § 441.311(e); and

(iii) Access–to–care data, as required under 42 C.F.R. § 441.311(d)(2);

(3) Bureau of Labor Statistics publicly available wage data and other labor market and workforce data;

(4) Benchmarking and rate studies for home– and community–based services conducted by the Department;

(5) Rate information from neighboring or similarly situated states; and

(6) Access–to–care metrics, including:

(i) The number of consumers receiving applicable services; and

(ii) The number of utilization hours for applicable service categories.