BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
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38 (Brown)
As Amended September 2, 2015
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: | |(May 7, 2015) |SENATE: |40-0 |(September 8, |
| | | | | |2015) |
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(adopted by unanimous consent)
Original Committee Reference: AGING & L.T.C.
SUMMARY: Establishes by resolution, the California Task Force
on Family Caregiving to meet and report to the Legislature
findings by January 1 of 2018, on challenges faced by family
caregivers, opportunities to improve caregiver support, and to
review the current network and the services and supports
available to caregivers. Specifically, this resolution:
1)Identifies caregivers as people who provide a wide range of
assistance to those with chronic disabling needs;
2)Declares that three-quarters of older people living in a
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community setting rely solely upon unpaid caregiving;
3)Describes the lack of resources for the state's 5.8 million
caregivers who provide 3.9 billion hours of care estimated to
be worth about $47 billion;
4)Describes the value of family support as a key-driver in
permitting an individual to choose a home setting, though the
physical, emotional and financial costs can be substantial;
5)Describes strategies undertaken by families of diverse ethnic
or cultural origin may provide clues which could relieve
caregiver stress, broadly;
6)Describes the critical need for state leadership to compile
inventories of resources, identify barriers, and coordinate
consistent access using the most efficient and up-to-date
technologies; and,
7)Calls for a 12-member task force of experts to meet without
compensation, under open-meeting standards, consult with
stake-holders, partner with the California Commission on
Aging, and report to the Legislature and the Governor by
January 1, 2017, and January 1, 2018.
The Senate amendments:
1)Remove the resolution specifying monthly meetings;
2)Specifically acknowledges disability rights community
interests;
3)Reduces the number of participants from 20 to 12; six
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appointed by the Senate Rules Committee and six appointed by
the Speaker of the Assembly; and,
4)Conditions convening of the council upon appointment of the
members, and the agreement to administer the council by a
"non-state" organization.
Background: After the veto of AB 1744 (Brown) of 2014, Assembly
Member Brown, a caregiver herself, resolved to see the
establishment of a broadly recognized essential strategy to
advance and secure adequate support and recognition of
caregivers within the state's developing patch-work of services
and supports. With 1,000 people turning 65 per day, (on
average) for the next 13 years, an expanding population of older
people and the corresponding increase in disability within our
communities, demands a strategic plan to support the unpaid
caregivers who care for them. Citing families as the major
provider of long-term care, the author points to research that
shows that caregiving exacts a heavy emotional, physical and
financial toll. Many caregivers who work and provide care
experience conflicts between their responsibilities. Twenty-two
percent of caregivers are assisting two individuals, while 8%
are caring for three or more. Almost half of all caregivers are
over age 50, making them more vulnerable to a decline in their
own health, and one-third describe their own health as fair to
poor.
Women make up the majority of the unpaid caregiver workforce,
often interrupting work careers to take on the burden of caring
for a relative. Caregiving women face uncertain economic
futures due to breaks from employment and the corresponding
reductions to retirement plans and the Social Security system.
Analysis Prepared by:
Robert MacLaughlin / AGING & L.T.C. / (916)
319-3990
FN: 0001988
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