03/17/1994 09:45 AM Senate FIN

  SCSHB 3(JUD):  An   Act  relating   to   public  home   care                 
                 providers;  and  providing  for an  effective                 
                 date.                                                         
                                                                               
                 David  Gray,  aide  to  Representative  Jerry                 
                 Mackie, sponsor of HB 3, testified in support                 
                 of  the bill.   Pat O'Brien,  Social Services                 
                 Program Director, Division  of Family & Youth                 
                 Services,  Department  of  Health   &  Social                 
                 Services, spoke to the Department's concerns.                 
                 Discussion was had between  Senators Kerttula                 
                 and Rieger regarding home  care providers and                 
                 the  vulnerability  of  some elderly  people.                 
                 Fran  Jamison,  Older   Alaskans  Commission,                 
                 Division  of  Senior Services,  Department of                 
                 Health & Social Services, spoke in support of                 
                 HB 3.   HB  3 was  REPORTED OUT  of committee                 
                 with a "do pass," with a  fiscal note for the                 
                 Department of Health & Social Services  #0259                 
                 for $15.0,  and zero  fiscal notes  for   the                 
                                                                               
                                                                               
                 Department of Health & Social Services #1629,                 
                 Department of Safety #1190, and Department of                 
                 Administration #1981.                                         
                                                                               
  SENATE CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 3(JUD):                                         
                                                                               
       An  Act  relating to  public  home care  providers; and                 
       providing for an effective date.                                        
                                                                               
  Co-chair Pearce  invited David Gray, aide  to Representative                 
  Mackie, sponsor of HB 3 and HB 4, to join the members at the                 
  table and speak to the bill.                                                 
                                                                               
  DAVID GRAY said HB 3 had been around for awhile and  had not                 
  changed too much.  The bill originated after a senior passed                 
  away  who  had  a  health  care  provider and  there  was  a                 
  complaint  from the family that the estate had been misused.                 
  In response, Representative Mackie looked at the home health                 
  care provider situation  and how dependent the  senior could                 
  become on this person.  It could involve handling a senior's                 
  money  and  other matters.    The bill's  main  effect would                 
  prohibit  home care  providers  to  be  the  sole  power  of                 
  attorney,  and  anyone  who  was  using  public  moneys  was                 
  required   to    have   a    criminal   background    check.                 
  Representative  Mackie also felt this bill  was in tune with                 
  the administration's  efforts to  turn to  more home  health                 
                                                                               
                                                                               
  care service for seniors.                                                    
                                                                               
  Senator  Kerttula stated this  bill was  related to  his own                 
  personal concerns.   He supported a  system where more  than                 
  one  person  would   be  involved,  and  also   supported  a                 
  background check.                                                            
                                                                               
  In  answer to  Senator  Rieger, Mr.  Gray said  the statutes                 
  defined when the state  would pay for a home  care provider.                 
  Mr. Gray said  definitions of different  kinds of care  were                 
  scattered throughout the  statutes.  He said  the effort was                 
  to have a broader and  more consistent definition throughout                 
  all parts of the  statutes that dealt with the  programs and                 
  protection of the elderly.                                                   
                                                                               
  PAT  O'BRIEN, Social Services  Program Director, Division of                 
  Family  &  Youth  Services, Department  of  Health  & Social                 
  Services, said she had been following HB 3 and HB 4 for four                 
  years.    She  said  in  order   for  the  division  to  put                 
  regulations in place  by March 15,  1995, a fiscal note  was                 
  needed.  She  went on to say  that if the  vulnerable adults                 
  bill  passed,  there  would  be  a  collaboration  with  the                 
  Division  of Senior Services  to develop  those regulations.                 
  In response to Mr. Gray's prior statement, she said a public                 
  home care provider was not currently defined in statute.                     
                                                                               
  In answer to  Senator Kerttula, Ms. O'Brien said  that there                 
  was more detail than listed on the fiscal note.  In order to                 
  implement this bill,  regulations must be implemented.   She                 
  said regulations would  address due  process.  In  addition,                 
  procedures must be revised in the workers' manuals and  some                 
  changes in reporting must be made.  She said the residential                 
  child care regulations were more than  ten years old.  There                 
  was  a  backlog of  very important  sets of  regulations and                 
  prioritizing this bill in front of other regulations was not                 
  something the  department  wanted  to  do.    She  said  the                 
  department  would   contract   out  the   writing   of   the                 
  regulations.    In  her  experience,   she  had  found  that                 
  regulations often take a year, and sometimes longer.                         
                                                                               
  Senator Kerttula understood that there  was not enough money                 
  to  handle the  many  problems the  Department  of Health  &                 
  Social Services faced, but  it was discouraging to  him that                 
  it would take a year to implement regulations.                               
                                                                               
  Senator Rieger asked if the person  who was the recipient of                 
  home care services under the circumstances of HB 3, ever was                 
  a ward of the state.   Ms. O'Brien said that  children would                 
  be the only case, or children  in foster homes where respite                 
  care would  be provided.   Adults  were never  wards of  the                 
  state.                                                                       
                                                                               
  Again, in  answer to Senator  Rieger, Ms. O'Brien  said this                 
  was  easiest  to talk  about  in  regard to  a  very elderly                 
                                                                               
                                                                               
  person.  The  home care provider  who went into the  elderly                 
  person's home might  be the only individual  that the person                 
  sees and the two might develop a close bond.  There had been                 
  cases of abuse  where the elderly  person felt dependent  on                 
  the  individual for  emotional support.   In that  case, the                 
  elderly person would not  be strong enough to take  steps to                 
  protect him/herself.   She  said someone  could report  this                 
  matter to  the department  and in  some cases,  it would  be                 
  necessary for  the department  to ask the  individual to  be                 
  removed.                                                                     
                                                                               
  In answer to another question by Senator Rieger, Ms. O'Brien                 
  said in licensing outside contractors, the Department of Law                 
  had  advised  the statement  regarding  removal in  order to                 
  provide for due process.   Senator Rieger voiced his concern                 
  that the state was creating another way to leave itself open                 
  to lawsuits where none existed before.                                       
                                                                               
  FRANK JAMISON, Older Alaskans Commission, Division of Senior                 
  Services, Department of  Health & Social Services,  said the                 
  Commission was in  support of HB 3.   She added  that people                 
  hired  to become  home care providers  would be  required to                 
  have a  criminal record check.  The incident that instigated                 
  this bill was a person that had a record  in California, and                 
  because  no record check  was done here,  no one knew.   She                 
  stated it was an important bill for vulnerable adults.                       
                                                                               
  In answer to Co-chair Pearce, Mr.  Gray said that he did not                 
  know how the testimony had gone in Senate Judiciary.  He did                 
  know that due process was key to this situation.                             
                                                                               
  Senator Kerttula made a statement  that elderly adults could                 
  be very vulnerable and family may not be close by.  He cited                 
  another situation  where a  parent had  Alzheimer's and  its                 
  problems.                                                                    
                                                                               
  Senator Kerttula MOVED  for passage of  HB 3 from  committee                 
  with individual recommendations.   No objection being heard,                 
  it was  REPORTED OUT  of committee  with a  "do pass,"  zero                 
  fiscal notes for the Department of Health & Social Services-                 
  Administration,  and  a fiscal  note  for the  Department of                 
  Health & Social Services-#2059 for  $15.0.  Co-chairs Pearce                 
  and Frank, Senators  Rieger, Kerttula, and Jacko  signed "do                 
  pass."