N.Y. Elder Law § 208: Respite program

§ 208. Respite program. 1. The director is hereby authorized to

establish and monitor respite projects for the purposes of encouraging

the initiation and expansion of respite, evaluating the effectiveness of

respite in deterring and/or delaying institutionalization, evaluating

the demand for respite and of the cost of utilization of different

service modes.

2. For the purposes of this section:

(a) "Respite" shall mean the provision of infrequent and temporary

substitute care or supervision of frail or disabled adults on behalf of

and in the absence of the care-giver, for the purpose of providing

relief from the stresses or responsibilities concomitant with providing

care, so as to enable the care-giver to maintain a normal routine.

Respite shall not exceed one hundred days in any calendar year for any

individual. Respite may be provided by any service or combination of

services supplied by individuals, a public agency, a public corporation

or a private not-for-profit corporation or any proprietary provider.

(b) "Care-giver" shall mean the family member or other natural person

who normally provides the daily care or supervision of a frail or

disabled adult. Such care-giver may, but need not, reside in the same

household as the frail or disabled adult.

(c) "Provider" shall mean any entity enumerated in paragraph (a) of

this subdivision which is the supplier of services providing respite.

(d) "Sponsor" shall mean the provider, public agency or community

group approved by the director which establishes a contractual

relationship with the office for the purposes of a project pursuant to

this section, and which is responsible for the recruitment of providers,

the coordination and arrangement of provider services in a manner which

meets client needs, the general supervision of the local program, and

the submission of such information or reports as may be required by the

director.

(e) "Frail or disabled adult" shall mean any adult who is unable to

attend to his or her daily needs without the assistance or regular

supervision of a care-giver due to mental or physical impairment and who

is otherwise eligible for services on the basis of his or her level of

impairment. Priority shall be given in all cases to frail or disabled

adults sixty years of age or older.

3. (a) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law to the

contrary, entities qualifying as providers or sponsors pursuant to the

provisions of paragraphs (a), (c) and (d) of subdivision two of this

section are hereby authorized to conduct or participate in respite

projects as approved and extended by the director.

(b) The director shall publicize the existence of, and make available,

application forms for such projects seeking the advice and counsel of

the advisory committee for the aging established pursuant to section two

hundred ten of this title.

(c) Such application forms shall require the submission of such

information as the director deems necessary for the evaluation of such

proposed projects. This information shall include, but not be limited

to:

(1) the identity and qualifications of the sponsor;

(2) the identity and qualifications of the provider or providers and a

plan for the coordination of their services;

(3) an assessment of the community need for respite services including

documentation;

(4) plans for the coordination and arrangement of provider services in

a manner which meets client needs;

(5) a fiscal plan, including specific provisions for the utilization

of existing reimbursement and funding sources and the development of

local financial support;

(6) plans for publicizing the purpose of the project and the services

to be provided, including the identities, services and charges of each

participating provider;

(7) indications of broad-based community support and participation;

and

(8) identification of the unserved or underserved population to be

served.

(d) The director shall review, require any necessary modifications,

and upon such modification, approve a number of applications and, within

the amounts appropriated therefor, award grants for the operation of

respite projects. Such an approved application shall constitute a plan

of service which may be rendered only in the manner and for the period

for which such plan has been approved or from time to time extended by

the director. The director shall ensure that each such plan of service

is coordinated with the "designated agency" as defined in section two

hundred fourteen of this title, the local social services district or

districts, and the local public health agency or agencies in which the

services are to be provided in order to help ensure that every effort

will be made to utilize existing funding sources for eligible

individuals and to avoid unnecessary duplication of services.

(e) Within the amounts appropriated therefor, the director shall give

first priority to the six existing respite projects established under

the provisions of the respite demonstration program authorized pursuant

to chapter seven hundred sixty-seven of the laws of nineteen hundred

eighty-one.

(f) Further consideration shall be given to proposals that:

(1) develop new or expand existing respite care projects/programs to

provide care to one or more target populations that are currently

unserved or underserved in the community;

(2) provide for respite in a geographical area of the state that is

currently without community-based respite care services;

(3) provide services that are responsive to the individual's needs and

circumstances in the targeted area;

(4) show utilization of existing services, coordination of services

with other agencies/resources; and utilization of various service

components, such as personal emergency response systems, adult day

services, and nutrition services, where appropriate.

4. (a) The director in consultation with the commissioner of the

office of children and family services may apply for the appropriate

waivers under federal law and regulation and may, subject to the

approval of the director of the budget, waive any provision of the

social services law or regulation of the office of children and family

services as may be necessary to make funds which are available pursuant

to the provisions of title XIX or XX of the federal social security act,

the emergency assistance for families program or the emergency

assistance for adults program available to eligible providers if the

recipients of such services are otherwise eligible to receive benefits

or services pursuant to the provisions of such programs.

(b) In the event that waivers under federal law and regulation are not

received, nothing contained in this section shall be construed to

require the expenditure of funds by the state or any locality in an

amount greater than if such waivers had been received.

5. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to limit,

modify or otherwise affect the provision of care and services of a

long-term home health care program pursuant to article thirty-six of the

public health law.

6. For purposes of determining the eligibility for benefits pursuant

to this chapter, when applicable, only the financial eligibility of the

frail or disabled adult shall be taken into consideration.

7. In addition, the director, within appropriations provided, may

establish a training program for respite workers. The six existing

respite projects established pursuant to chapter seven hundred

sixty-seven of the laws of nineteen hundred eighty-one shall, insofar as

they are able, assist in providing such a training program.

The director may also enter into contracts with boards of cooperative

educational services pursuant to sections nineteen hundred fifty and

forty-six hundred two of the education law to provide courses in

training for respite care workers. This training program shall be

optional for existing programs.

8. Every two years beginning on January first, two thousand five, the

director shall submit a report to the governor, the temporary president

of the senate and the speaker of the assembly which shall include, but

not be limited to:

(a) A financial report for each project;

(b) A qualitative and quantitative profile of sponsors, providers,

care-givers, and frail or disabled adults participating in the project;

(c) A comparative assessment of the costs and effectiveness of each

type of service or combinations of services provided;

(d) An assessment of the nature and extent of the demand for services

which provide respite and an evaluation of the success of such projects

in meeting this demand;

(e) Specific identification of any factors which significantly enhance

or inhibit the successful provision of respite;

(f) A review of the extent to which priority has been given to persons

aged sixty and over;

(g) The coordination of the projects with other agencies, facilities

and institutions providing similar services as well as the utilization

and networking with case management programs;

(h) The ability of the projects to provide service at various economic

levels;

(i) The adherence of the program to its original or amended respite

proposal; and

(j) An assessment of the extent of the demand for the services the

project provides.