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| [ Engrossed ] | [ House Amendment 001 ] |
92_HB0016
LRB9201018DJgcA
1 AN ACT in relation to disabled persons.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Family Caregiver Support Act.
6 Section 5. Legislative findings. The General Assembly
7 recognizes that:
8 (1) Most care provided for functionally disabled
9 aged adults is delivered by family members or friends who
10 are not compensated for their services. Family
11 involvement is a crucial element for avoiding or
12 postponing institutionalization of the aged disabled
13 adult.
14 (2) Family or other caregivers who provide
15 continuous care in the home are frequently under
16 substantial physical, psychological, and financial
17 stress. The stress, if unrelieved by family or community
18 support to the caregiver, may lead to premature or
19 unnecessary nursing home placement.
20 (3) Respite care and other community-based
21 supportive services for the caregiver and for the aged
22 disabled adult could relieve some of the stresses,
23 maintain and strengthen the family structure, and
24 postpone or prevent institutionalization.
25 (4) With family and friends providing the primary
26 care for the aged disabled adult, supplemented by
27 community health and social services, long-term care may
28 be less costly than if the individual were
29 institutionalized.
30 Section 10. Legislative intent. It is the intent of the
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1 General Assembly to provide a comprehensive program of
2 long-term care information and support, including in-home and
3 out-of-home respite care services, for family and other
4 unpaid caregivers who provide the daily services required
5 when caring for aged adults with functional disabilities.
6 These family caregiver long-term care information and support
7 services shall do the following:
8 (1) Provide information, relief, and support to
9 family or other unpaid caregivers of aged adults with
10 functional disabilities.
11 (2) Encourage family and other unpaid individuals
12 to provide care for aged adults with functional
13 disabilities at home, and thus offer a viable alternative
14 to placement in a long-term care facility.
15 (3) Ensure that respite care is made generally
16 available to eligible participants under the Respite
17 Program Act.
18 (4) Be provided in the least restrictive setting
19 available consistent with the individually assessed needs
20 of the aged adults with functional disabilities.
21 (5) Include services appropriate to the needs of
22 persons caring for aged individuals with dementing
23 illnesses.
24 (6) Provide family and other unpaid caregivers with
25 services that enable them to make informed decisions
26 about current and future care plans, solve day-to-day
27 caregiving problems, learn essential caregiving skills,
28 and locate services that may strengthen their capacity to
29 provide care.
30 Section 15. Definitions. In this Act:
31 "Adult day services" means nonmedical services to persons
32 who live with their families, cannot be left unsupervised,
33 and are at risk of being placed in a 24-hour care facility if
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1 their families do not receive some relief from constant care.
2 "Department" means the Department on Aging.
3 "Eligible participant" means a person eligible for family
4 caregiver long-term care information and support services
5 under this Act who is aged or a senior citizen as defined in
6 the Illinois Act on the Aging and who needs substantially
7 continuous care or supervision by reason of his or her
8 functional disability and may be at risk of placement into a
9 long-term care facility.
10 "Eligible participant for respite care services" means a
11 person eligible for services authorized under the Respite
12 Program Act.
13 "Family caregiver long-term care information and support
14 services" means providing long-term care information and
15 support services to family and other unpaid caregivers of
16 eligible participants with functional disabilities, including
17 but not limited to providing the following:
18 (1) Information about available public and private
19 long-term care support services.
20 (2) Assistance in gaining access to an array of
21 appropriate long-term care family caregiver services.
22 (3) Promotion and implementation of support groups.
23 (4) Benefits counseling and caregiver counseling,
24 and caregiver training to assist the unpaid caregivers in
25 making decisions and solving challenges relating to their
26 caregiving roles.
27 (5) Respite care services.
28 (6) Additional supportive long-term care services
29 that may include but need not be limited to
30 translating/interpreter services, specialized
31 transportation, coordination of health care services,
32 help with purchasing needed supplies, durable goods, home
33 modifications, or equipment, and other forms of
34 information and support necessary to maintain the unpaid
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1 caregiving activity.
2 "Home modification" means reasonable modifications to the
3 structure of a home for the purpose of reducing the
4 caregiving burden, as approved by the Department, such as
5 grab bars, safety devices, and wheelchair ramps, that help
6 the functionally dependent older adult with carrying out
7 activities of daily living.
8 "Respite care services" means services authorized under
9 the Respite Program Act.
10 "Unpaid caregiver" means a spouse, relative, or friend
11 who has primary responsibility for the care of an aged adult
12 with a functional disability and who does not receive
13 financial compensation for the care. To be eligible for
14 respite care and for family caregiver support services, the
15 caregiver is considered the client.
16 Section 20. Administration of Act. The Department shall
17 administer this Act and shall establish rules and standards
18 the Department deems necessary in administering this Act.
19 The Department shall administer this Act in conjunction with
20 Section 4.02 and related provisions of the Illinois Act on
21 the Aging.
22 Section 25. Provision of services. The Department shall
23 contract with area agencies on aging or other appropriate
24 agencies to conduct family caregiver long-term care
25 information and support services to the extent of available
26 funding. The agencies' responsibilities shall include but not
27 be limited to the following:
28 (1) Administering a program of family caregiver
29 long-term care information and support services.
30 (2) Arranging for the delivery of services
31 authorized under the Respite Program Act.
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1 Section 30. Maintaining data. The area agencies on aging
2 administering family caregiver long-term care information and
3 support services shall maintain data that indicates demand
4 for family caregiver long-term care information and support
5 services.
6 Section 35. Health care practitioners and facilities not
7 impaired. Nothing in this Act shall impair the practice of
8 any licensed health care practitioner or licensed health care
9 facility.
10 Section 40. Entitlement not created. Nothing in this Act
11 creates or provides any individual with an entitlement to
12 services or benefits. It is the General Assembly's intent
13 that services under this Act shall be made available only to
14 the extent of the availability and level of appropriations
15 made by the General Assembly.
16 Section 45. National Family Caregiver Support Program.
17 The Department shall seek and secure funding under the
18 National Family Caregiver Support Program to supplement
19 private or other public moneys made available or appropriated
20 for the purposes of this Act.
21 Section 90. The Respite Program Act is amended by
22 changing Section 8 as follows:
23 (320 ILCS 10/8) (from Ch. 23, par. 6208)
24 Sec. 8. Funding. Respite projects authorized under this
25 Act shall be funded only to the extent of available
26 appropriations for such purposes. The Director shall seek
27 and obtain federal funds that may be available to finance
28 grants awarded under Section 6 of this Act, and shall also
29 seek and obtain other non-state resources for which the State
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1 may be eligible. Implementation of projects under this Act
2 shall be contingent upon the availability of federal
3 financial participation. To the extent necessary for
4 implementation of this Act, the Department shall seek
5 appropriate waivers of federal requirements from the U.S.
6 Department of Health and Human Services.
7 (Source: P.A. 87-974.)