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News Report | Policy/Regulation Report | Aging Services Report
News Report
Association Ramps Up Advocacy Efforts on Provider Tax
The California Legislature implemented a federally authorized provider tax on skilled nursing providers in 2005. At that time -- and at the request of Aging Services -- the state exempted skilled nursing care associated with CCRCs and MLRCs from paying the tax, known as a quality assurance fee. The exemption is now threatened, however, as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s proposal for the 2011 California State budget likely will extend the fee to CCRCs and MLRCs. The result would no doubt be an unplanned-for increase in the monthly housing fees paid by elders living in these communities.
Aging Services has implemented an aggressive campaign to spread the word about the potential negative implications of the expected action by the governor. Staff has already started visiting members, making presentations and providing advocacy materials. For a thorough analysis of the fee and what elimination of the exemption could mean for members and their residents, look for the May edition of agenda. In the meantime, additional information on the fee and the association’s outreach campaign is available by contacting Jack Christy at jchristy@aging.org.
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Policy/Regulations Report
New Report Examines Efficacy of Self-Directed Care
A new issue brief from The Commonwealth Fund finds that self-directed care for elders and people with cognitive disabilities has been shown to improve participants’ satisfaction with services, enhance their quality of life and reduce costs when compared with services from an agency. Written by Vidhya Alakeson, a policy analyst at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, International Developments in Self Directed Care examines a range of innovative programs in England, Germany, the Netherlands and the United States.
“Self-directed care has been shown to improve access to home and community-based services by overcoming capacity constraints in traditional delivery systems,” Alakeson notes. “For example, in the first year of the Cash and Counseling demonstration in Arkansas, consumers in the experimental group who chose to direct their own services obtained 100 percent of the paid hours of personal care compared with the control group who received only 70 percent of their authorized hours. Individuals in the experimental group were able to hire family members, friends and neighbors to provide care. Alternatively, control group participants were reliant on traditional homecare agencies that provide services under the Arkansas Medicaid State Plan personal care benefit. These agencies did not have sufficient staff to provide all consumers with their full entitlement.”
The full text of the issue brief is available free as a 12-page PDF on the Commonwealth Fund website.
Changes to Federal Skilled Nursing Requirements
The Center for Mediare and Medicaid Services has delayed for one year the recalculation of Medicare reimbursement for skilled nursing care under the new resource utilization groups system, known as RUGs IV; the implementation is now set for Oct. 1, 2011. Conversely, neither the changes to the concurrent therapy requirements nor the implementation of the new 3.0 version of the Minimum Data Set have been delayed. They will take effect as planned on Oct. 1, 2010.
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Aging Services Report
Last Chance to Register: Aging Services Annual Conference
Aging Services of California invites everyone in the field of housing and services for older adults to look and learn at “Communities: Inside Out,” its 2010 Annual Conference and Exposition, taking place May 3-5, 2010. This year, in addition to the general conference, the association will offer a Certified Nursing Assistants Conference, as well as a Licensed Vocational Nurse Conference organized in collaboration with the California Coalition for Compassionate Care.
Participants in “Communities: Inside Out” will be introduced to leading authorities, trends and resources in marketing, finance, workforce issues, leadership, human resources, home and community-based services, trustee concerns and more. The gathering will take place in Long Beach, Calif., a colorful seaside city that offers an array of opportunities for enjoyment for conference-goers and their families. For more information and to register for the conference, visit the Aging Services website.
Greedy Geezers: Learning More ... and Joining the Debate
The “Greedy Geezers” cover story in the April issue of agenda is sparking lively discussions among members of Aging Services of California. To join the conversation, post your thoughts to one of the association’s new online member forums. For further reading on the assertion that entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare result in older adults claiming more than their fair share of the federal budget, following are links to the opinion columns from The New York Times mentioned in the agenda article, along with details on a thought-provoking collection of essays dealing with the topic:
- David Brooks, “The Geezers’ Crusade,” The New York Times (Feb. 1, 2010): Click here [registration required].
- Paul Krugman, “The Bankruptcy Boys,” The New York Times (Feb. 21, 2010): Click here [registration required].
- Robert B. Hudson (ed.), Boomer Bust? Economic and Political Issues (New York City: Praeger Publishers, 2009), two volumes; $200. For a synopsis and to order from the publisher, click here. (The set also is available for consultation at many university libraries around California and via interlibrary loan.)
What Is Your Community Doing for AAHSA Homecoming Week?
AAHSA launched its Homecoming Week two years ago in an effort to help the residents and providers of older adult communities share their stories. Through hundreds of events ranging from senior proms to Memorial Day barbecues, communities have embraced this opportunity to open their doors and invite their neighbors to see the future of aging services.
Homecoming Week 2010, taking place May 31 through June 4, is a call to action: AAHSA is encouraging participants to let the decision-makers in their cities and counties know what’s important to older adults. Homecoming events can be a platform for helping answer an essential question: What should the future of aging look like in our community?
For those interested in learning more about Homecoming Week and about how to plan an event, a detailed toolkit from AAHSA offers activity ideas, sample invitations and more. To download the toolkit, visit the Aging Services website.
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