SLS 15RS-3599 ORIGINAL
2015 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 191
BY SENATOR BROWN
HEALTH/HOSPITALS DEPT. Requests DHH to create a study committee and to report
to the Senate on provider issues regarding the provision of home-based care and services.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To urge and request the Department of Health and Hospitals to establish a study committee
3 on family caregiving and long-term supports and services which shall report
4 recommendations for legislative and administrative actions regarding support for
5 family caregivers and other long-term care providers to the Senate Committee on
6 Health and Welfare.
7 WHEREAS, the number of people in Louisiana who are age eighty-five and older
8 and are most likely to require caregiving assistance as they age is projected to surpass one
9 hundred and twenty-six thousand by the year 2030; and
10 WHEREAS, the majority of older adults who are in need of assistance with activities
11 of daily living prefer to remain in their own homes and communities as they age; and
12 WHEREAS, providing services and supports to these older adults in their homes and
13 communities is generally less expensive than nursing home care; and
14 WHEREAS, of these older adults living in the community who receive personal
15 assistance, statistics indicate that nearly three-fourths of these citizens rely exclusively on
16 unpaid caregivers for this assistance; and
17 WHEREAS, to successfully accommodate the surging population of older adults who
18 have significant needs for long-term services and supports, this state must implement
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SLS 15RS-3599 ORIGINAL
1 policies to encourage and support families in assisting their aging relatives and institute best
2 practices for recruiting and retaining a qualified, responsive in-home care workforce.
3 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
4 does hereby urge and request the Department of Health and Hospitals to establish a study
5 committee on family caregiving and long-term supports and services within the department
6 and staffed by the department.
7 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall be composed of the
8 following members:
9 (1) One member representing AARP Louisiana.
10 (2) One member representing the Southern University Department of Social Work.
11 (3) One member representing the Louisiana Councils on Aging.
12 (4) One member representing the governor's office of elderly affairs.
13 (5) One member representing the Advocacy Center.
14 (6) One member appointed by the president of the Senate.
15 (7) One member appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives.
16 (8) Two members appointed by the secretary of the Department of Health and
17 Hospitals, one who works within the office for citizens with developmental disabilities and
18 one who works within the office of aging and adult services.
19 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the appointing entities shall submit the names
20 of study committee members to the secretary of the Department of Health and Hospitals no
21 later than October 1, 2015, and the members of the committee shall serve without pay or per
22 diem.
23 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the secretary of the Department of Health and
24 Hospitals shall call the first meeting of the study committee on or before November 1, 2015.
25 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that at the first meeting of the study committee, the
26 members shall elect a chairman and other officers deemed necessary from the study
27 committee membership.
28 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall review options for
29 decreasing the waiting list for waiver services presently offered by the Department of Health
30 and Hospitals and investigate any efficiencies in the provision of long-term care and
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1 supports as well as families assisting their aging relatives to remain in their homes and
2 communities.
3 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall explore the impact of
4 the reduction of rates for home and community-based services and the difficulties in
5 providing these vital services for an increasing population.
6 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall explore and research
7 the numerous policies that may result in duplicative, excessive, and conflicting responses
8 from providers in the process of the administration of home and community-based services.
9 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall include in its inquiry
10 decisions by the department regarding providers of in-home services and any trends
11 indicated by these decisions that might negatively impact these providers.
12 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall explore strategies that
13 would result in the rate of pay to providers of these services that is more reflective of the
14 administrative requirements of the service providers.
15 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall examine the numbers
16 of providers of home and community based services who have left the industry over the last
17 decade and determine how to ensure that, going forward, a sufficient number of providers
18 are available to provide these vital services to Louisiana's aging population.
19 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study committee shall submit a written
20 report of its findings, including any recommendations for legislation or administrative
21 action, to the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare on or before March 1, 2016, at which
22 time the study committee shall be abolished.
23 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
24 secretary of the Department of Health and Hospitals, AARP of Louisiana, the Southern
25 University Department of Social Work, the Louisiana Councils on Aging, the governor's
26 office of elderly affairs, the speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Advocacy
27 Center.
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SLS 15RS-3599 ORIGINAL
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Mary Dozier O'Brien.
DIGEST
SR 191 Original 2015 Regular Session Brown
Requests the Department of Health and Hospitals to establish a study committee on family
caregiving and long-term supports and services to study and report recommendations for
legislative and administrative actions to the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare.
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