Bill Text: DE HCR57 | 2013-2014 | 147th General Assembly | Draft


Bill Title: Establishing The Family Caregiving Task Force To Study And Make Findings And Recommendations Regarding The Support Necessary For Family Caregivers Assisting The Aging And Adults With Disabilities.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2014-06-05 - Passed by Senate. Votes: Passed 18 YES 0 NO 0 NOT VOTING 3 ABSENT 0 VACANT [HCR57 Detail]

Download: Delaware-2013-HCR57-Draft.html


SPONSOR:

Rep. Longhurst & Rep. Barbieri & Sen. Hall-Long

 

Reps. Dukes, Gray, Heffernan, Jaques, Ramone, Smyk, K. Williams; Sens. Lavelle, Lopez, Poore, Townsend, Venables

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

147th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 57

ESTABLISHING THE FAMILY CAREGIVING TASK FORCE TO STUDY AND MAKE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING THE SUPPORT NECESSARY FOR FAMILY CAREGIVERS ASSISTING THE AGING AND ADULTS WITH DISABILITIES.



WHEREAS, the population of the state that is 85 years of age or older and most likely to need caregiving assistance was 15,744 in 2010; and

WHEREAS, almost all older adults who need assistance with activities of daily living want to remain in their homes and communities; and

WHEREAS, providing services and supports to older adults in their homes and communities is generally much less expensive than nursing home care; and

WHEREAS, older adults who receive services from caregivers in their homes are much less likely to need public assistance; and

WHEREAS, almost three-fourths of the aging community who received personal assistance relied exclusively on unpaid caregivers for assistance; and

WHEREAS, an estimated 202,000 adults in the state provide care to aging adult relatives or friends, which equates to an estimated 132 million hours a year and an estimated value of $1.5 billion each year; and

WHEREAS, nationally 70 percent of people with Alzheimer's disease or a related disorder live at home and need assistance with activities of daily living; and

WHEREAS, to successfully address the surging population of aging adults who have significant needs for long-term services and supports, the state must develop methods to both encourage and support families to assist their aging relatives and develop ways to recruit and retain a qualified, responsive in-home care workforce;

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the 147th General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the Senate concurring therein, that the Family Caregiving Task Force ("Task Force") be established to study and make findings and recommendations regarding the support necessary for family caregivers assisting the aging and adults with disabilities.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Task Force shall be composed of the following members:

1.       A representative of the Department of Health & Social Services, appointed by the Secretary of the Department to serve as co-chair;

2.       A representative of the AARP, appointed by the Director of AARP Delaware to serve as co-chair;

3.       A member of the House of Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House; 

4.       A member of the Senate, appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate;

5.       A representative of the Developmental Disabilities Council, appointed by the Chair of the Developmental Disabilities Council;

6.       A representative of the State Council for Persons with Disabilities, appointed by the Director of the State Council for Persons with Disabilities;

7.       A representative of the Center for Disabilities Studies of the University of Delaware, appointed by the Director of Center for Disabilities Studies of the University of Delaware;

8.       A representative of the Delaware Aging Network, appointed by the Director of the Delaware Aging Network;

9.       A representative of the Delaware Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, appointed by the President of the Delaware Association of Rehabilitation Facilities;

10.    A representative of the Easter Seals Delaware, appointed by the President/CEO of the Easter Seals Delaware;

11.    A representative of the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, appointed by the President of the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce;

12.    A representative of the Delaware Healthcare Association, appointed by the President/CEO of the Healthcare Association;

13.    A representative of the Brandywine Village Network, appointed by the Director of the Brandywine Village Network;

14.    A representative of the United Way of Delaware, appointed by the President/CEO of the United Way of Delaware;

15.    A representative of the Alzheimer's Association Delaware Valley Chapter, appointed by thePresident/CEO of the Alzheimer's Association Delaware Valley Chapter;

16.    6 members of the public appointed by the Governor. The Governor is encouraged to appoint public members representing the following categories, an adult day service provider, an adult caregiver an adult care recipient, a large business representative, a small business owner, a representative of a home health agency;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the co-chairs of the Task Force be responsible for guiding the administration of the Task Force, by at a minimum:

1.       coordinating the appointments to the task force to ensure the members are assembledin a timely manner;

2.       setting a date, time, and place for the initial organizational meeting;

3.supervising the preparation and distribution of meeting notices, agendas, minutes, correspondence, and reports of the Task Force;

3.sending, after the first meeting of the Task Force, a list of the members of the Task Force and the person who appointed them and providing meeting notices, agendas, and minutes to the Director of the Division of Research of Legislative Council; and

4.directing the study of policies, resources, and programs available for family caregivers and encourage additional innovative and creative means to support family caregivers to continue to provide needed in-home support for older adults, for distance caregivers, caregivers from special populations, and caregivers in the workplace;

5.organizing the taking of testimony on the needs for family caregivers including designation of caregivers, training, respite services, employment leave policies, delegation of tasks to non-medical aides, and other policies;

6.overseeing theprocess of compiling an inventory of the resources available to family caregivers;

7.ensuring that the final report of the Task Force is submitted to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, with a copy to the Governor and Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services, and to the Director and the librarian of the Division of Research of Legislative Council and to the Delaware Public Archives.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health and Social Services will be responsible for providing reasonable and necessary support staff and materials for the Task Force.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Task Force shall report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly by May 31, 2015.


SYNOPSIS

This concurrent resolution establishes the Family Caregiving Task Force to study and make findings and recommendations regarding the support necessary for family caregivers assisting the aging and adults with disabilities.

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