BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1797|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1797
Author: Lackey (R) and Weber (D), et al.
Amended: 8/1/16 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE: 4-0, 6/14/16
AYES: McGuire, Hancock, Liu, Nguyen
NO VOTE RECORDED: Berryhill
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 4/21/16 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: In-home supportive services: application
SOURCE: Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organizations
DIGEST: This bill requires the county, upon receipt of an
application for in-home supportive services (IHSS), to provide
the applicant a confirmation number, as specified.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Establishes the IHSS program to provide defined supportive
services for aged, blind, or disabled persons who are unable
to perform the tasks themselves and who cannot safely remain
in their homes unless such services are provided. Those
supportive services include, but are not limited to, domestic
services, heavy cleaning, personal care services, and
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accompaniment during travel to health-related appointments or
to alternative resource sites, yard hazard abatement,
protective supervision, and paramedical services, as defined.
(WIC 12300 et seq.)
2)Provides that a recipient who is authorized to receive IHSS
supportive services shall direct those authorized services,
and the authorized services shall be performed by a provider
or providers within a workweek and in a manner that complies
with the requirements, as specified. (WIC 12300.4)
3)Establishes county authority to contract with a nonprofit
consortium or a public authority for the delivery of IHSS
supportive services. Requires those nonprofit consortia and
public authorities to establish a registry in order to assist
IHSS recipients with hiring providers, and to investigate the
background and qualifications of potential providers, as
specified. (WIC 12301.6)
4)Requires that the application for IHSS services shall contain
a notice to the recipient that his or her provider or
providers will be given written notice of the recipient's
authorized services and full number of services hours allotted
to the recipient. The application shall inform recipients of
the Medi-Cal toll-free telephone fraud hotline and Internet
Web site for reporting suspected fraud or abuse. (WIC
12301.15)
This bill:
1)Requires that, upon receipt of an application for IHSS
services, the county must provide the applicant a confirmation
number to serve as documentation that the application was
filed.
2)Permits the county to use the applicant's case number as the
required confirmation number.
Background
According to the author, many IHSS applications that are filed
telephonically have been getting lost in the system, and
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applicants are not told how to best track their applications.
The author states that AB 1797 provides that any person who
needs in-home services to avoid being placed in a nursing home
shall receive a confirmation number for the application when
applying by phone. AB 1797 allows the counties to use the
currently issued case number as a confirmation number.
IHSS. The IHSS program, which is administered by the California
Department of Social Services (CDSS) provides in-home services
for low-income aged, blind and disabled individuals who are
unable to perform the tasks themselves and who cannot safely
remain in their homes unless these services are provided. IHSS
recipients need those services in order to avoid out-of-home
care.
IHSS services may include domestic and related services, like
housework, meal preparation, laundry and shopping; personal care
services; accompaniment to medical appointments; protective
supervision for the mentally-impaired recipients who may place
themselves at risk for injury; and hazard or accident and
paramedical services when directed by a physician.
Potential IHSS recipients must apply for IHSS services with the
county in which they reside. Often, these applications are
initiated over the phone, but they can be completed in person at
a county IHSS office. Either way, county workers assist with
completing the application and enter information directly into
the Case Management, Information and Payrolling System (CMIPS),
which tracks case information and processes payments for IHSS.
CMIPS generates a case number.
After the initial application is completed, a county social
worker conducts a home visit to determine the type of services
needed and the number of hours for each service. The county
considers medical condition, living arrangement, and any
resources that may already be available. The applicant also
must submit a Health Care Certification Form, which is completed
by the applicant's doctor, and certifies the need for IHSS. This
form must be completed before services can be authorized.
Once approved, the county notifies the IHSS recipient which
services have been approved, how much time is authorized for
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each service, and how many total monthly hours have been
approved. IHSS recipients are responsible for hiring, firing,
directing and supervising their IHSS provider. These
responsibilities include some administrative duties, such as
scheduling and signing timesheets. However, the state handles
payroll via CMIPS.
Providers must complete an enrollment process, including
submitting fingerprints for a criminal background screening and
participating in an orientation prior to receiving payment for
services.
Approximately 464,000 Californians receive IHSS and about 99
percent of recipients receive IHSS as a Medicaid benefit. There
are currently about 433,400 IHSS providers in the state.
Approximately 69 percent are relatives and about 50 percent are
live-in providers.
Related/Prior Legislation
AB 19 (Evans, Chapter 17, Statutes of 2009), a human services
budget trailer bill, included a requirement that applications
for IHSS shall provide written notice of the recipient's
authorized services and full number of service hours allotted to
the recipient, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
SUPPORT: (Verified 8/2/16)
Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organizations (source)
AARP
Bet Tzedek Legal services
California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform
California Commission on Aging
California Council of the Blind
California In-Home Supportive Services Consumer Alliance
Disability Rights California
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Law Foundation of Silicon Valley
Personal Assistance Services Council, the Los Angeles County
Public Authority
Senior and Disability Action
The Arc & United Cerebral Palsy California Collaboration
UDW/AFSCME Local 3930
OPPOSITION: (Verified 8/2/16)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the sponsor, in order to
receive the IHSS services an elderly, disabled or blind person
must make an application for IHSS. Just about every county
requires that the application be done telephonically.
Sometimes, an application gets lost in the system. This has been
a major issue for advocates representing IHSS recipients
throughout the state for several years.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 4/21/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,
Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke,
Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley,
Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth
Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto,
Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper,
Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim,
Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis,
Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte,
O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Quirk, Rodriguez, Salas,
Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
NO VOTE RECORDED: Ridley-Thomas
Prepared by:Taryn Smith / HUMAN S. / (916) 651-1524
8/3/16 18:54:23
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