Article
3. Dignity at Home and Fall Prevention Act
9675.
This article shall be known and may be cited as the Dignity at Home and Fall Prevention Act.9676.
The Dignity at Home and Fall Prevention Program is hereby established. Under the program, the department shall provide grants to area agencies on aging for injury prevention information, education, and services pursuant to this article for the purpose of enabling older adults and persons with disabilities to live independently in the home environment for as long as possible.9677.
(a) A participating area agency on aging with grant funds provided pursuant to this article shall provide all of the following:(1) Information and education on injury prevention to older adults and persons with disabilities living in the community.
(2) Referral-related resources and services in the community.
(3) Home environmental assessments and assessments of individual injury prevention needs, including instruction on behavioral, physical, and environmental aspects of injury prevention.
(b) In carrying out the responsibilities of a grant provided
pursuant to this article, a participating area agency on aging shall partner with local public and private nonprofit agencies that are experienced in injury prevention services, including, but not limited to, medical providers and hospital systems, fire departments, independent living centers, and home modification providers.
9678.
(a) The Dignity at Home and Fall Prevention Program shall include funding for injury prevention needs, including injury prevention equipment, services, materials, and labor costs for homeowners and renters meeting income requirements established pursuant to subdivision (c). A participating area agency on aging shall comply with all of the requirements of this section in implementing the program.(b) Equipment and services covered under the program shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(1) Grab bars, nonskid surfaces, toilet seat risers, shower seats, and transfer benches.
(2) Indoor and outdoor handrails and threshold modifications.
(3) Reconfiguration of furniture and other elements of the physical home environment to reduce hazards.
(4) Wearable medical alert devices.
(c) Eligibility for equipment and services, as described in this section, shall be limited to older adults and persons with disabilities who meet both of the following requirements:
(1) The older adult or person with a disability has an adjusted household income that does not exceed 80 percent of the area median income.
(2) The older
adult or person with a disability has fallen, is at risk for falling, or is at risk for institutionalization, and is otherwise unable to afford the equipment or services to be provided by the program.
(d) All other potential funding sources for these equipment and services shall be exhausted before funds appropriated for purposes of this article may be used.
9679.
The department, in consultation with experts knowledgeable in injury prevention for older adults and persons with disabilities, including, but not limited to, the Fall Prevention Center of Excellence at the University of Southern California, local fall prevention coalitions, and local public health agencies, shall develop and compile training materials and program standards for implementation of this article.9680.
(a) The director, in consultation with the entities described in Section 9679, shall establish an application process and a selection methodology for grants authorized pursuant to this article.(b) The department, as part of the grant application process established pursuant to this section, shall require an applicant to submit a plan that details how the area agency on aging will provide injury prevention education, assessment services, equipment, and activities in an effective and cost-appropriate manner. The plan shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following information:
(1) The projected
number of clients to be served.
(2) A description of the local population to be served.
(3) The geographic locations at which services will be provided.
(4) The array of services that will be offered.
(5) The ability of the area agency on aging to administer an effective service program.
(6) The ability of the area agency on aging to collaborate with local entities, including, but not limited to, public and private nonprofit agencies that are experienced in injury prevention services, home modification services, home safety services, and services for seniors and persons with disabilities, for purposes of program
coordination.
(7) The ability of the area agency on aging to gather and utilize other resources to supplant funding provided by the department and whether any local funding match is available.
(c) The grant funding awarded to participating area agencies on aging pursuant to this article shall, to the extent provided in subdivision (b) of Section 9682, be sufficient to provide injury prevention education, assessment services, equipment, and activities necessary for injury prevention in the home.
(d) The director, in consultation with the entities described in Section 9679, shall identify specific performance measures for grant recipients to include in the report required by Section 9681. These performance measures shall
include, but not be limited to, both of the following:
(1) The number of people served.
(2) The types of services received by program participants.
9681.
An area agency on aging that receives a grant pursuant to this article shall submit a report to the department and to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of each house of the Legislature that includes the specific performance measures identified by the department pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 9680. The report shall also provide information on the administrative costs incurred by the agency in carrying out the program and any barriers to service that the agency encountered. A report submitted pursuant to this section shall comply with Section 9795 of the Government Code.9682.
(a) Funding of grants pursuant to this article shall be subject to the appropriation of funds by the Legislature in the Budget Act or another statute.(b) Appropriations made pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be expended to fund grants to eligible area agencies on aging in an amount not to exceed one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000) each.