House Social Service Committee
Department of Aging Budget
February 18, 2003
Thank you for the opportunity to present testimony today on the Department of Aging budget.
I
am Josie Torrez, and represent the Kansas Association of Centers for
Independent Living (KACIL).
KACIL
represents the 13 Centers for Independent Living (CIL’s) around the State. Our mission is to advocate for the civil
rights of Kansans with disabilities, regardless of age.
CIL’s
are community based, not for profit organizations that have federal and state
requirements that their governing board and a majority of all staff be persons
with disabilities. This concept is
known as consumer control.
We
would ask this committee to support the Governor’s reinstatement of the Senior
Care Act and all of the important programs for Senior’s. We support funding to adequately provide
services for people on the waiting list for the FE waiver. We know that people waiting for this waiver
with no supports will eventually have to enter a nursing facility at a higher
cost than if they could get services in the community.
We
support the Governor’s budget recommendations as a starting point, but please
note by upholding this recommended budget, it by no means comes near addressing
the waiting list that we currently have for community services and the growth
and popularity of these programs that assist people living independently and
cost effectively in their own homes.
We
would also implore that the Level of Care Scores remain at 26.
We
are totally opposed to the policy the Department of Aging has to decrease the
self-directed Personal Assistance Services (PAS) waiver rates by 15% for
persons on the Frail Elderly (FE) Waiver.
This was not part of the allotment – this was in addition to the allotment. There is no change to the rates for non
self-directed services. The reason
given by the Department staff is that the cost of providing those services is
more expensive. That was the same
reason they gave for Home Health Agencies (HHA) getting a higher rate to begin
with, now they are using that same reason to hold HHA harmless from budget
cuts. If rates must be reduced, we ask
for reduction by the same percentage for both self-directed and non self-directed.
The
cost of doing business in a minority owned business such as CIL’s is much
higher. CIL’s provide the same services
as a HHA. Self-directed services is
administered by the centers, and provides the same type of service as a HHA,
such as background checks, health care benefits, workers compensation,
unemployment, etc.
There
are areas in the State where people on the FE Waiver who used to self-direct
their care, are now sending their personal care attendant (PCA) to a HHA that
will in turn, hire that personal care attendant at a higher rate of pay and
send that attendant out to work with the person that used to self-direct their
care. The HHA gets a higher rate
because the person is no longer self-directing and the PCA is getting a higher
rate because they’re going through a HHA.
This is not saving the State any money!
This practice discourages people to self-direct. There was no discussion with the advocates
or providers before this was done.
This
appears to us to be discrimination both to the minority run companies (CIL’s)
who provide a majority of the self-directed payroll services under the FE
Waiver and discrimination to the consumers who want to self direct their
services. With this reduction, people
will be tempted to move to non self-directed services to ensure that their PA’s
get better wages.
We
are totally opposed to this policy and will continue discussions with the
Governor’s office and the Department of Aging.
We hope the legislature will help us to resolve this issue. This proposal will severely limit self-direction. We believe in the opportunity for people to
self-direct their care if they so choose.
KACIL
wants to assist in anyway we can to offer incentives and support to assist
people with disabilities of all ages to achieve the same American dream that we
all have.
Thank
you for the opportunity to present to you today. I would be happy to stand for questions.
Josie
Torrez
KACIL