As of today (May 22) we have no definate word - one way or the other - about whether the needed slots in the PCA waiver will be added in the final state budget, which must be wrapped up within the next two weeks (by June 6). Over 80 people are now on the waiting list, and another 200 at one stage or another in the application process. Legislative contacts are needed now, this week, more than ever.
Background: funding for additional slots was not included in the Governor’s proposed Budget, nor is there funding for slots in the budget passed by the Appropriations Committee. Budget differences are being resolved this week and next, so advocates MUST follow up with legislators NOW and ask for the needed slots to be added (250 over the next two years)! This will not be easy.
Notes on Money Follows the Person: It is important to remember that although Money Follows the Person (MFP) will bring new supports and services to Connecticut, it will only be for individuals eligible for MFP (Medicaid eligible and in a qualifying institution for 6 months or more). There are a significant number of individuals who are ready to leave facilities now, or who do not meet these eligibility standards. Without legislative action or other intervention now, people will continue to wait long periods of time for services, languishing at home or in a nursing facility, or choose to leave nursing facilities and try to manage without adequate supports.
Key people to contact:
Ask what progress is being made toward funding the additional slots needed for the PCA Waiver. If they do not know or them to find out and get back to you.
Governor Rell - Mailing Address: Office of the Governor -State Capitol -- 210 Capitol Avenue - Hartford, Connecticut 06106; Telephone: Greater Hartford:
(860) 566-4840; Toll-Free: (800) 406-1527; TDD:(860) 524-7397
Co-Chairs of Appropriations Committee - Toni Harp - (from New Haven) harp@senatedems.ct.gov ) – Denise Merrill (from Mansfield and Chaplin) – denise.merrill@cga.ct.gov
Key Appropriations Committee member – Edith Prague (from Columbia) – prague@senatedems.ct.gov
Co-Chair of Human Services Committee – Jonathan Harris (from West Hartford) – harris@senatedems.ct.gov
Leaders in the State Senate – Donald Williams (from Brooklyn and other small towns in eastern CT) – President Pro Tem - williams@senatedems.ct.gov – and Martin Looney (New Haven and Hamden) – Majority Leader - looney@senatedems.ct.gov
Leaders in the House of Representatives – James Amann (from Milford) – Speaker of the House - jim.amann@cga.ct.gov – and Christopher Donovan (from Meriden) – Majority Leader - christopher.donovan@cga.ct.gov
BACKGROUND INFO:
Critical State Budget Issue! Slots Need to be Added to the PCA Waiver! The Personal Care Assistance (PCA) Waiver in DSS is capped! People with personal assistance needs may be forced to go into a nursing facility to get supports they need! This is a counter-productive public policy! 250 Waiver slots need to be added to the DSS budget!
FACT: Average annual cost of individuals using services under the PCA waiver - $24,756
FACT: Average cost of one year in a nursing facility - $109,000
FACT: 75 individuals currently on PCA waiver waiting list, and over 190 individuals in the pipeline
FACT: 35 high school students will graduate this year who will need PCA support to remain independent
FACT: 250 new slots over the next two years is needed to address waiting list
FACT: between 1999-2006 there was a 24% increase in the number of nursing facility residents under 65!
FACT: Money Follows the Person (MFP) requires individuals to be in a nursing facility at least six months to be eligible, and it will not provide services for people already living in the community.
It is estimated that $6.25 million is needed over the next two years to address the problem, half of which is reimbursable through Medicaid.
CALL YOUR LEGISLATORS TODAY!
For more information contact the CT Association of Centers for Independent Living at 860-656-0430 or gwaterhouse@cacil.net
Supporters:
AARP CTAdvocacy UnlimitedArc of ConnecticutBrain Injury Association of Connecticut City of New Haven Department of Services to People with DisabilitiesCity of Hartford Commission on Disability IssuesCommunitasConnecticut Association of Area Agencies on AgingConnecticut Association of Centers for Independent LivingCenter for Disability Rights (West Haven)Disability Resource Center of Fairfield CountyIndependence Northwest (Naugatuck)Independence Unlimited (Hartford)Disabilities Network of Eastern Connecticut (Norwich)Connecticut Council on Developmental DisabilitiesConnecticut Disability Advocacy CollaborativeConnecticut Commission on AgingConnecticut Legal Rights ProjectCorporation for Independent LivingCT - KASA (Kids As Self Advocates)Keep the Promise CoalitionLong Term Care OmbudsmanNAMI/CT (National Alliance on Mental Illness)NASW/CT ChapterNational Spinal Cord Injury Association/CT ChapterPolio Outreach of ConnecticutRegional Advocacy Network of North Central ConnecticutState Independent Living CouncilUnited Cerebral Palsy of Eastern Connecticut