BILL NUMBER: AB 1307	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Berg

                        FEBRUARY 22, 2005

   An act to amend Section 9250 of the Welfare and Institutions Code,
relating to long-term care.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1307, as introduced, Berg.   Long-term care.
   Existing law, the Mello-Granlund Older Californians Act,
prescribes programs and services for the benefit of the state's older
population and other populations served by the programs administered
by the California Department of Aging. The act includes provisions
calling for improved coordination and delivery of long-term care
services.
   This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to the
provisions of the act relating to the coordination and delivery of
long-term care services.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 9250 of the  Welfare and Institutions Code  is
amended to read:
   9250.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:(1) Our delivery of long-term care needs to be vastly
improved in order to coordinate services that are appropriate to each
individual's functional needs and financial situation. Care services
should be holistic and address the needs of the entire person,
including the person's mental, physical, social, and emotional needs.

   (2) The coming age wave will bankrupt California if we maintain
the current uncoordinated system of long-term care.
   (3) The new generation of aging Californians will desire, expect,
and demand a much more responsive, coherent, and human-dignified
system of care services.
   (4) Multiple funding streams and varied eligibility criteria have
created "silos" of services, making it difficult for consumers to
move with ease from one service or program to another.
   (5) Separate funding streams and uncoordinated services for older
adults and adults with disabilities have created barriers in services
for these populations. Adults with disabilities often receive
long-term care services designed to support and protect the
institutionalized older population. Instead, services need to be
individualized to empower older adults and persons with disabilities
to live in the community.
   (6) Historically, two delivery systems, referred to as the medical
model and the social model of care, have evolved with little or no
coordination between the two.
   (7) A high percentage of consumers enter the long-term care system
after a hospitalization. Assistance and support following
hospitalization would reduce the number of nursing home placements.
   (8) The Legislature affirms the notion that individuals should be
able to receive care in the least restrictive environment.
   (9) Skilled nursing facilities account for 5 percent of the
long-term care caseload and 52 percent of the long-term care
expenditures. Home and community-based services account for 78
percent of the long-term care caseload, and 13 percent of long-term
care expenditures. It is  ,  therefore  ,
 more cost-effective to connect consumers with services in
the community than to continue to place individuals in institutions.

   (10) A number of counties and programs have developed and
implemented innovative Internet-based information systems. Some of
these systems are designed to help consumers access information
regarding long-term care services, and others are designed to help
providers track client information.
   (11) The California Health and Human Services Agency is developing
the "CalCareNet" Web site, which is designed to help the consumer
find state-licensed providers of health services, social services,
mental health services, alcohol and other drug services, and
disability services, and also to find state-licensed care facilities.

   (b) It the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to do
all of the following:
   (1) Ensure that each consumer is able to connect with the
appropriate services necessary to meet individual needs.
   (2) Better coordinate long-term care delivery, recognizing the
elements that are already in place, and expand the availability of
long-term care.
   (3) Deliver long-term care services in the most cost-effective
manner.
   (4) Access multiple public and private funding streams, without
supplanting existing funding for programs and services.