The Illinois Council on Aging met June 15 to announce that all state agencies signed a memorandum of understanding for data sharing.
Here are the meeting's minutes, as provided by the council:
1 MINUTES ILLINOIS COUNCIL ON AGING MEETING TELECONFERENCE ONE NATURAL RESOURCES WAY – ROCK RIVER CONFERENCE ROOM SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS 160 NORTH LASALLE, SUITE N-700 CHICAGO, ILLINOIS WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15TH 2016 9:00 A.M. – Noon MEMBERS ON TELEPHONE: Anthany Frazier, Betty Martz, Dana Rosenzweig, Diane Adams-Alsberry, Eugene Verdu, Mary Jane Angelis, John Hosteny, Margaret Huyck, Mubarak Mirjat, Phyllis Mitzen, Talat Khan, Lee Moriarty, Anna Oestreich MEMBERS ABSENT: Steve Wolf, Charles Crowder, Ram Gajjela, Rev. Melvin Grimes, Paulette Hamlin, Robert O’Connor, Bernarda Wong, Sen. Julie Morrison, Sen. Sam McCann, Sen. Mattie Hunter, Rep. Dwight Kay, Rep. Ron Sandack VISITORS: None DEPARTMENT ON AGING STAFF: Jean Bohnhoff, Director Matt Ryan, Chief of Staff Elizabeth Delheimer, Manager – Div. of Community Relations & Outreach, Council Liaison Jose Jimenez, Manager – Div. of Home & Community Based Services Betsy Creamer, Home & Community Based Services Lora McCurdy, Manager – Div. of Planning, Research & Development Jodi Becker, Manager – Div. of Finance & Administration Brent Ellis, Legislative Liaison Jessica Blood, Administrative Assistant Janet Dobrinsky, Executive Office Eli Bernardoni, Home & Community Based Services Phyllis Roate, Home & Community Based Services Rebecca Damery, Home & Community Based Services Steve Milburn, Legal Veronica Vera, Communications DEPARTMENT ON AGING STAFF ON TELEPHONE: Alex Burke, Legislative Liaison 2 SUMMARY Opening: The meeting was called to order by John Hosteny, Chairman at 9:01am. The roll call was taken by Secretary Steve Wolf and it was determined that a quorum was present. Staff members from the Department on Aging introduced themselves. OLD BUSINESS Approval of Minutes: Chairman Hosteny requested a motion to approve the minutes from the March 16th, 2016 meeting. Eugene Verdu made the motion to approve the minutes with no corrections; Betty Martz seconded the motion. All members voted aye; the motion carried. Member Contact Information: Chairman Hosteny requested that the members of the Council update their mailing address, county of residence, daytime phone numbers, email addresses, etc. with the Department on Aging. Elizabeth Delheimer requested that Council members check the list she had emailed out this morning and respond to her or Jessica Blood with any corrections or additions. Required Training: Chairman Hosteny reiterated to the members of the Council that Ethics training and Open Meetings Act training are requirements of participating on the Council. He stated that members who have not turned in certificates for either of these trainings would not be allowed to participate as members of the Council until their training was complete. Public Comment: Chairman Hosteny opened the meeting for public comment. No public comment was offered. Department Updates: Director Bohnhoff offered the following updates: ? HHS Transformation Meetings ? These are a requirement of all State Agencies ? Next HHS Transformation Town Hall is tomorrow, June 16th in the Howlett building in Springfield ? All 13 State Agencies signed a memorandum of understanding for data sharing for a better understanding of program participants ? Behavioral Health identified as the main issue of focus for the transformation o Initiative that starts with the very young and also serves the aging population o Working on getting 1115 waiver approved by Federal CMS that would include behavioral health for all populations 3 o Indiana had similar memorandum of understanding; waiver took 16 months to process o Illinois from start date to finalization of waiver process has been around 6 months ? Community Reinvestment Program (CRP) ? Still alive; gaining momentum ? Director, Deputy Director, Fiscal and IT staff touring the state to discuss the program and its benefits ? CCP is the foundation of the program – 3 core services; flexible services in CRP will compliment CCP ? Draft rules shared with stakeholders; working to incorporate answers to their comments and questions into the rules ? Working on finalizing answers to the rules questions and hope to get them out to stakeholders this week ? Department on Aging appreciates the dedication and hard work of all the providers during such a hard time; continuing to work with legislators on a solution ? Stop-Gap bill ? Fully funds senior services for six months ? Includes federal pass through dollars ? I4A Alert – will be sending a copy to Council members today ? Today is APS Elder Abuse Awareness Day ? Silent program; many are afraid of reaching out due to retaliation from abusers who are oftentimes family ? Theme – Enough is Enough ? Philanthropic Foundation in AAAs ? Janet Dobrinsky contacted the AAAs to find out if they had foundations of their own: o PSA 7 – sole purpose of their foundation to hold title for their building o PSA 8 – Illinois Aging Services; focus on wellness programs and has been successful so far ? Director Bohnhoff stated that she believed there are many benefits of such a foundation for not-for-profits and suggested that the Council have a strong conversation regarding the formation of a foundation and decide how to move forward. ? Opened up to questions from Council members ? Steve Wolf stated that funding needed to be discussed; Director Bohnhoff replied with the following: o Vouchers were being sent from providers and that they should be receiving their monthly Medicaid payments today o Only Medicaid, court ordered and consent decree payments are currently being paid o No appropriation without a balanced budget o No one has lost services yet due to the budget impasse ? Phyllis Mitzen inquired how many providers have gone under and how many clients have been affected. 4 o Jose Jimenez stated that 12 or 13 have turned back contracts; he agreed to send the information after the meeting. o Jose also stated that some providers are reducing their areas of service, while new providers are absorbing clients. o Director Bohnhoff stated that there are several providers requesting to expand their service areas. ? Phyllis Mitzen inquired if Director Bohnhoff could give more detail on the I4A Alert sent out this morning. o Alert was regarding the intersect between the federal budget ending September 30th and the State budget and whether Illinois would receive federal match for Medicaid clients. o Director Bohnhoff stated that the stop-gap bill would include federal pass through dollars and fully fund senior services for six months. ? Anna Oestreich inquired what would happen in the event that a budget isn’t passed; Director Bohnhoff replied: o The network and legislators are having conversations with the Governor’s office to encourage passage of the bill o Legislative liaisons continue to advocate daily for a balanced budget o Department is open to suggestions on what else could be done ? Chairman Hosteny inquired what the reductions would be if there was a balanced budget passed; Director Bohnhoff responded with the following: o She did not have an answer for that at the moment, but would get with fiscal and share the information received o CRP has been included in the budget o Minimum wage bill for the City of Chicago adds $1.1 billion over the next four years ? Chairman Hosteny stated that with the Lessie Bates closures, 117 clients had to apply for additional services from the state and inquired as to the financial impact of these requests. o Jose Jimenez stated that there was a seamless transition for all clients to comparable services with different providers. ? Steve Wolf asked what the projections were for AAAs if a budget is not passed. o Betsy Creamer stated that this would depend on where the cuts would occur; some state agencies could have more cuts than others. o Betsy added that any cuts or potential new revenues would also depend on guidance given by the Governor’s Office and the Office of Management and Budget. ? Steve Wolf then inquired if there was anything the Council on Aging members could do with regards to getting a budget passed. o Director Bohnhoff stated that they could continue their advocacy efforts and reaching out to their legislators and encourage them to pass a balanced budget; she added that HB 6585/SB 3435 needed to be passed and requested advocacy effort on that as well. ? Chairman Hosteny asked Jose why no one had picked up the reduction in home delivered meals from Senior Services of Central Illinois. 5 o Director Bohnhoff stated that they are only delivering three days per week but are also delivering frozen meals for the remainder of the week. ? Chairman Hosteny stated that sometimes the last meal is being eaten in the same day and in these cases the seniors wouldn’t have a meal one day. ? Jose Jimenez replied that this may not necessarily be a budget related issue, but would be happy to follow up if he could be given the provider information. ? Jose added that additional training could be provided if necessary. ? Betsy Creamer stated that this demonstrates the need for additional federal funding to support the home delivered meals program. ? Jose stated that the Governor is introducing an increase in funding for home delivered meals; in some cases these are the only healthy meals that seniors receive. ? Betsy added that many communities have come forward to fill in the gaps with regards to senior nutrition. ? Anna Oestreich stated that in Area 8, only 4 meals per week were being paid for, with no extra frozen meals provided and that funding for senior transportation had been reduced; added that she is not sure where these services are being supplemented. ? Director Bohnhoff stated that transportation services had been changed in her previous area from all hours to business hours; added that she is looking into why this has changed. ? Press conference at 1:30 today at Capitol – HB6585/SB3435 to fully fund senior services for six months ? Chairman Hosteny inquired if the Council members had any advice for Governor Rauner. o Dana Rosenzweig stated that Governor Rauner needs to sign SB2046 to provide bridge funding for the first six month of the FY; Brent Ellis stated that this bill had already been vetoed. o Phyllis Mitzen stated that there needs to be compromise on both sides; the safety net is being frayed and communities cannot take over the role of government. o Diane Adams-Alsberry concurred with Phyllis. ? Director Bohnhoff stated that she would like to see a fix for the whole state; encouraged everyone to reach out to legislators and encourage them to compromise with Governor Rauner; added that the Department on Aging would continue in their efforts as well. NEW BUSINESS 6 FY2017 – FY2019 State Plan on Aging Public Hearing: Betsy Creamer presented the following PowerPoint presentation to the members of the Council: Betsy added the following information with regards to the State Plan: ? One role of the Council on Aging is to give input and recommendations on the State Plan on Aging ? Public hearings had taken place to seek input from the aging network and consumers of the services provided by the Department ? Plan had previously primarily focused on federal Older American’s Act dollars; in recent years, due to guidance from the Administration for Community living, the Department had attempted to incorporate other initiatives such as rebalancing long term care services into the planning document. ? State Plan serves several functions: 7 ? Must be submitted to draw down federal dollars received from the Administration on Aging ? Creates the direction in which Older Americans Act services and long term care services are moving ? Addresses the needs and desires of the rapidly growing generation of long term care consumers to be served in their homes and communities ? Addresses the budgetary challenges and competing priorities within the state 8 9 10 Betsy added the following information regarding the State Plan: ? DoA is actively involved in the Balancing Incentive Program (BIP); moving to Uniform Assessment Tool for Level 1 screening ? DoA received grant from AoA – 3 year No Wrong Door plan; will present draft plan to CoA for comment ? Nursing Home Deflection Pilot funded though BIP - making pre-screening process more successful in deflecting people from placement in long term care facilities ? Major initiatives to get more public transportation systems to rural areas; increase in funding and collaboration of resources to have more effective system ? Database is part of criteria from ACL for fully functioning No Wrong Door system ? Enhanced Services Program (ESP) Software company went out of business; working on additional funding to restore sitting data ? In recent years, DoA has funded 2 Alzheimer’s chapters and CLESE to conduct Savvy Caregiver, which provides training programs for family caregivers ? In process of submitting another grant request to ACL – Dementia Capable Illinois 11 ? Initiative developed by APS and Ombudsman staff ? Collaboration with Attorney General’s office and Illinois family violence coordinating councils ? Enhancing assessment tool ? Focusing on professional development and continued training ? New initiative - Home and Community Based Ombudsman program ? Involved in bills having an impact on long term care facility residents ? Developing Consumer Rights website with focus on training and professional development of staff within the Long Term Care Ombudsman program 12 ? Major initiative for Department on Aging and all state agencies ? Jose Jimenez added that the Department is sending CCUs a list of redeterminations due for Medicaid eligibility ?working to identify individuals with income/asset levels to qualify for Medicaid ?several thousand that qualify; working with HFS and DHS to get these individuals applied for Medicaid ?working to coordinate Medicaid redeterminations with CCU redetermination visits ?ABE system level 2 update expected later this year ? New funding opportunities from Administration on Aging for No Wrong Door initiatives to improve service delivery system ? Working with Lewin Group – developing training ?will be the first of many building blocks of training ?training will start in the fall 13 ? Elizabeth Delheimer added that the Department is asking SHIP and SHAP sites to continue with Benefit Access Application questions, Medicare questions and assistance with prescription insurance plan coverage during open enrollment ? Benefits Access Program – trying to make more effective through increased automation of the process; goal by next filing year – minimal amount of paperwork required by claimant 14 15 16 ? Program will be administered by the Department and the 13 Area Agencies on Aging ? Role of CCUs will not change ? Minimum DoN Score/asset level requirements will remain the same 17 ? Covered primarily by Title IIID federal funds for health promotion from ACL 18 ? Mandated use of uniform forms for grant applications, more detailed budget forms ? Will include financial, administrative and programmatic risk assessments 19 ? Betsy stated that the Department will develop a summary of public comments and determine possible changes to draft State Plan 20 Chairman Hosteny asked if this was how the Council would want the Department on Aging to move forward for the next three years. ? Eugene Verdu voted in favor of the presented State Plan. ? Margaret Huyck asked Betsy what the most difficult aspect of implementing the state plan would be. ? Betsy responded that not knowing what resources would be available is the most difficult aspect; some services are mandated and the Department has to determine how to fund these. ? Jose stated that not knowing the stability of the aging network going forward would also be a difficult aspect. ? Betsy stated that once the Department knows what funding it will be getting, an amendment can be sent to the ACL. ? Steve Wolf asked how the plan would be accomplished, even with a full budget. ? Betsy stated that the Department would have to evaluate activities vs. metrics and may have to eliminate some things. ? Chairman Hosteny inquired about the reaction from ACL; Betsy stated that ACL would like to see more information on: ? Person Centered Planning ? Training ? Managed Care initiative background ? Caregiving and Ombudsman initiatives ? Review of PSA disaster plans; though the AAAs currently work very well in disasters, review hasn’t been done in almost ten years ? Anna Oestreich asked how the Department factors in Medicaid case projections when doing projections of service need. ? Jose responded that the Department has to renew the waiver every 5 years and has to project the amount of individuals that will be added to the population. ? Department over-projected the last 2 years because13,000 individuals didn’t transition to Managed Care – communicated to Federal CMS; hope to transfer in early fall. ? Phyllis Mitzen asked if there was any comparison to nursing home figures in terms of impact of Medicaid eligible people going to nursing homes. ? Jose stated that the Department is working with other agencies with regards to data sharing and keeping better track of people after leaving Department on Aging programs. ? Chairman Hosteny asked how the assessment of the current plan informed the new plan. ? Betsy Creamer stated that the Department evaluated which initiatives had been completed, which had not been completed and which will continue as a guide for the new plan. ? Chairman Hosteny asked for specifics with regards to certain priorities and what was learned from the current plan that informed the priority. ? As a potential example, Betsy stated that the former abuse and neglect program under the current plan was expanded by law to include individuals under 60 with disabilities; APS staff would evaluate the activities, evaluate what had 21 actually occurred and develop strategies to address additional needs i.e. additional training. Betsy requested that the members of the Council submit recommendations and comments to the Department within the next five days for consideration in the State Plan. Role of the Council Chairman Hosteny then asked the Council members to discuss what their model was to serve their purpose stated in the By-Laws and if their current method was effective. Phyllis Mitzen stated that with the current model the members meet quarterly, receive documents and then have a dialogue with the Department. Anna Oestreich stated that the conversations historically held were mostly reactive to the Department staff. She added that while the Department encourages Council members to attend various hearings, the opportunities for planning input of the Council have not been fully utilized. Anthany Frazier stated that the Council is doing an effective job of being ambassadors on behalf of the Department to the constituency of Illinois. He added that the quarterly meetings provide Council members with information to continue their outreach to their respective communities. Chairman Hosteny replied that while being ambassadors is an important role for all of the members of the Council, it is not actually a duty of the Council by statute. Lee Moriarty stated that she agreed that the Council was more of another layer that needed to be informed about what is happening within the Department rather than playing a more proactive role. Phyllis Mitzen added the following with regards to the By-Laws: ? She didn’t believe the Council had ever prepared and submitted an annual report evaluating the level of all programs, services and facilities provided to the aging to the Director, Governor and General Assembly during her term on the Council ? The Council had reviewed and commented on the comprehensive State Plan in the current meeting ? The Council has recommended candidates for membership to the Governor ? There had been no meetings, besides the quarterly scheduled meetings of the Council as a whole, to consult with the Director of Aging regarding the operations of the Department; Phyllis added that she didn’t think this was the most effective way of addressing the depth of work that the powers and duties of the Council imply Chairman Hosteny stated that in a previous meeting with Elizabeth Delheimer, it was suggested that members who sit on multiple councils might provide reports instead of the Department on Aging feeding reports to members of various councils. Eugene Verdu stated that the role of the Council has been a discussion for many years and suggested the following for more effective use of the Council: 22 ? Each member of the Council needed to understand their role and then discuss how the Council might accomplish its role ? Have committees for different segments of the Council’s role regularly meet with the Director, go through the materials which the Council is supposed to comment upon and then present to the Council as a whole Chairman Hosteny stated that a review of the Act on Aging and By-Laws might be helpful in finding a way moving forward; Eugene added that the Department on Aging staff needed to initiate involvement of the Council. Steve Wolf stated that meetings in person and with providers in communities would be helpful in Council members being better prepared to offer suggestions at subsequent meetings. Eugene Verdu added that the Council had been more involved in public hearings in the past, but are no longer involved and he believes this should be changed. Chairman Hosteny added that the following would be good ways to change the way the Council does business: ? Monthly meetings with Director ? More face to face meetings ? Continue discussion on what has worked in the past and what can be done in the future to make the Council more effective Terms of Members Chairman Hosteny brought the Council members’ attention to the Council membership list and opened up the meeting for discussion on terms. Chairman Hosteny acknowledged Section IV Membership C, stating that ‘citizen members shall continue to serve on the Council until a replacement is appointed.’ Chairman Hosteny stated that he would not be resigning today and welcomed comments from the Council members. Anna Oestreich stated that there were only two Council members whose terms are current. Chairman Hosteny agreed and stated that there haven’t been many appointments coming from the Governor’s office. Anna asked if there was anything the Council members could do with regards to expressing the need of new appointments. Elizabeth Delheimer stated that she would look into it and that Alex Burke was working on various council memberships as well. She added that she would share the information with the Council members as well as find out what members need to do to voice that they are not interested in reappointment. Anna Oestreich stated that she thought it would be helpful for Council members to be afforded the opportunity of being able to state if there was a particular aspect of the Department that they would be willing to commit more time to in anticipation of committees being created on the Council. Elizabeth Delheimer mentioned Eugene Verdu’s comment regarding committees on the Council. She inquired if the Department’s other advisory councils had already been developed 23 during that time. Eugene stated that the other councils had developed after the Council on Aging. Talat Khan stated that the submission of an annual report seemed very involved and asked if the Council members’ had any idea as to how to accomplish it; Chairman Hosteny stated that the Department on Aging staff had always submitted the report in the past and stated that having a committee for the annual report might be an option. Chairman Hosteny summarized the discussion on how to make the Council on Aging more effective: ? More opportunity to offer input ? Members attending hearings and events ? Sit down with Director for planning session regarding ambassadorship to community ? Having face to face meetings ? Development of committees ? Expanding reach ? Meet with AAAs and other service providers Anna Oestreich stated that Department staffing is tight with a lot of responsibility; she added that the Council may be looked at as a necessary evil rather than a helpful opportunity and would like input from the Department on Aging as to what would be the most helpful means of receiving input. Jane Angelis concurred and added that with each new administration, there are new needs to address. Chairman Hosteny asked to hold this conversation so the Department staff might be able to come up with a thoughtful response. Good of the Council Jane Angelis – age friendly endeavors that some agencies are doing are pulling generations together; this is always beneficial to everyone. Anthany Frazier – agreed with Jane Angelis regarding intergenerational approach toward the challenges of helping to improve the quality of life for elders; he added that the resources of the Department are on track in addressing that goal. Talat Khan – working every day to provide services to South Asian community and working to raise funds to meet the demands to serve them. Mubarak Mirjat – Council is not fulfilling its role properly, needs to get more organized; he added that the Council members needed to go to AAAs to see how they can be more effective in promoting fitness and also get help from the community for these types of programs. Lee Moriarty – challenge in serving older adults is making sure they have information to get needs fulfilled; would like more information on how to increase communication. Anna Oestreich – senior population not feeling confident about the future; is concerned about people dealing with serious issues. 24 ? Change from CCP to CRP – designed to meet as many needs as possible within budget restrictions; wants to achieve stability for the aging population as much as possible. Eugene Verdu – concurs with Anna Oestreich but also realizes that everyone will have to face reality of doing things differently in the future with regards to getting services to seniors. He added that sometimes the basic need to be needed is overlooked. Volunteer programs should be more of a focus to help these individuals. Steve Wolf – Council should be more involved with initiatives, be solicited for ideas to put in the State Plan and be involved in and sought out for advice in the early stages of the legislative process. He added that addressing the needs of the elderly is a societal problem and providing education about these needs is very important. Meeting Summary Chairman Hosteny summarized the meeting with the following reminders to the members of the Council: ? Review the contact information list and provide accurate information to Jessica Blood and Elizabeth Delheimer. ? Continue conversation about model of the Council and terms. ? IDoA will send information about reappointment/resignation process. ? IDoA will answer the question of how the Council will operate and function to meet the needs of the people it serves. ? Next meeting of the Council will be September 14th. Motion to Adjourn Chairman Hosteny entertained a motion to adjourn the meeting. Anna Oestreich made the motion to adjourn. Jane Angelis seconded the motion. All members voted aye. The meeting was adjourned at 11:38am. ________s/Steve Wolf____________________ Steve Wolf, Secretary Illinois Council on Aging
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