Helping Missouri Seniors Stay At Home: Structured Family Caregiving
This week, the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and Health conducted a hearing on Senate Bill 922, legislation that I sponsored to add Structured Family Caregiving to the available programs covered by MO HealthNet for those receiving home and community-based care.
The goal of SB 922 is to establish a covered program that would provide for the elderly and disabled that need full-time care but are not ready to move to a nursing home or long-term care facility. It is the desire of many Missourians to remain at home with loved ones to help care for them rather than leave their homes and neighbors to live in a care facility.
Structured Family Caregiving would allow a consumer to select a family member or friend to be a full time caregiver. That caregiver would be trained and credentialed to provide adequate care to their family member, in addition the home where the care is given would also be certified to meet state rules. The consumer and caregiver would be supported by a professional medical team that would check in at the home on a regular basis based on needs, and to supervise the daily care. Caregivers are also required to make daily reports on the family member they are assisting and services they completed such as medicine they are taking, bathing, cleaning, etc. For providing this care, the caregiver will receive a stipend.
My Senate bill lays out certain defined rights for those choosing this new care method. These rights include allowing the participant to choose qualified caregivers, including family, allowing the participant to choose the setting in which they would receive their care such as their home or the home of the caregiver, and requiring all organizations serving as caregiving agencies to be accountable for quality, professionalism and daily patient updates.
Many of us know someone who is responsible for taking care of a family member’s wellbeing, and my legislation will ensure that the patient gets the best care possible from their loved one, and the caregiver will be compensated for their services. This legislation would expand access to in-home and structured family health care for those who need it throughout Missouri on a fulltime basis, but are not ready to move to a long-term care facility. Senate Bill 922 would make it easier for our sick, disabled and elderly citizens to receive the care they need in the settings they prefer that are most appropriate for them.
Suspending the Clean Power Plan
I would also like to bring to your attention a recent positive U.S. Supreme Court decision that could herald great news for the future of Missouri workers and consumers. Last week, the Supreme Court granted stay in a case that could ultimately end up stopping the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) aggressive, job-destroying plan to limit carbon emissions, which would have cost consumers billions and resulted in massive job losses.
The EPA had recently introduced new guidelines for American power plants in an attempt to cut their carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2030. This expensive plan would cost billions to implement at the expense of consumers and American businesses, and would take money out of the economy, stall spending, halt innovation, decrease investment and slow job growth.
The EPA as a sweeping federal organization should not be the one to decide what is best for Missouri’s energy agenda. Missouri is already a clean coal state, and as state legislators, it should be up to the members of the General Assembly to find the correct balance for our state’s industrial and environmental future. We can find cleaner options and lower emissions without raising prices drastically. We can minimize the financial impact on our hard-working families and keep jobs in our state.
Budget leaders in the Senate and House have already announced their commitment to put language in the appropriations bills to prevent funding of the EPA Clean Power Plan. Other senators are looking at ways we can further prohibit the expensive implementation of the federal emissions rule. One option is Senate Bill 858. The measure would halt all implementation of the Clean Power Plan until the stay is lifted. Missouri would then ask for a two year extension before we would have to comply with the emission rules.
We have a commitment to Missourians to minimize the financial impact on our hard-working families and keep jobs in our state. We intend to focus on policies that stimulate economic growth and create more private sector jobs.
It is an honor to be your State Senator and my door is always open to your concerns, questions or comments. Please feel free to contact me at (573) 751-2757 or visit my web page at www.senate.mo.gov/riddle.