RSB/1/20
Sponsored by Becca Sharman of Franklin High School
This legislation was filed in the Human Services category
Presented as part of the YIG Volunteer 2024 conference
| 1 | BE IT ENACTED BY THE TENNESSEE YMCA YOUTH LEGISLATURE |
| 2 | |
| 3 | Section 1) Terms in this act shall be defined as follows; |
| 4 | a) Primary Caregiver: a person with the duty of taking care of a friend or loved one who is no |
| 5 | longer able to care for themselves (the beneficiary); often without pay |
| 6 | b) Beneficiary: the person being cared for by the caregiver |
| 7 | c) Respite Care: a service where short-term relief is provided for primary caregivers, giving them |
| 8 | time to rest, travel, or spend time with other family and friends |
| 9 | d) Respite Care Providers: workers who are certified as per section 2 of this act to provide respite |
| 10 | care (b) |
| 11 | e) Respite Care Provider Training: a series of free courses for those interested in providing respite |
| 12 | care as a career, a part-time job, or even a volunteer activity to individuals with varying |
| 13 | disabilities and ages |
| 14 | f) Tennessee Respite Provider Registry: a list of names and official contact information for those |
| 15 | who provide services of respite care |
| 16 | g) CHOICES: a TennCare program designed to provide older adults (age 65 and older) & adults |
| 17 | with physical disabilities (age 21 and older) who are eligible for necessary long-term services and |
| 18 | support in the home/community setting or in a nursing facility |
| 19 | h) In-home Respite Care: short-term care where a respite provider spends time in a private home |
| 20 | to assist in caring for the patient, providing short-term relief for the primary caregiver. |
| 21 | i) Commercial Respite Care Provider: a respite care provider who works with a private citizen-run |
| 22 | organization that is not a non-profit nor is associated with the state. |
| 23 | j) In-patient Respite Care: care where the patient is in a hospital or other facility for a small |
| 24 | period, giving the primary caregiver short-term relief |
| 25 | k) National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP): a national service funded by Congress |
| 26 | provides grants to states and territories to fund various supports that help family and informal |
| 27 | caregivers care for older adults in their homes for as long as possible. |
| 28 | l) Federal Poverty Line: A measure of income issued every year by the Department of Health and |
| 29 | Human Services (HHS) used to determine your eligibility for certain programs and benefits |
| 30 | |
| 31 | Section 2) A Respite Care Provider Training will be created and freely available on the Tennessee |
| 32 | government website through collaboration with non-profit organizations such as the Tennessee |
| 33 | Respite Coalition, wherein the curriculum will include: |
| 34 | i) What Respite Care Is |
| 35 | ii) Disability Basics for Respite Providers |
| 36 | iii) Client Care for Respite Providers |
| 37 | iv) Medication Awareness for Respite Providers |
| 38 | v) Safety Procedures for Respite Providers |
| 39 | |
| 40 | vii) Wellness, Household, and Respite Activities |
| 41 | viii) Professional Ethics and Interpersonal Skills for Respite Providers |
| 42 | ix) Meeting with the Caregiver and Care Recipient |
| 43 | x) Next Steps in Becoming a Respite Provider |
| 44 | Additional courses will be provided on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) services. At the end of |
| 45 | each module, there will be an evaluation, and at the end of the course, there will be an |
| 46 | assessment. The prospective provider must earn an 85% or above to be deemed certified. They |
| 47 | will then be allowed to register in conjunction with section 3. They will also be allowed to apply for |
| 48 | the Coalition of Respite Care Providers, created in accordance with section 4 |
| 49 | |
| 50 | Section 3) A Tennessee Respite Provider Registry will be created, to be accessed through the |
| 51 | Tennessee government website. Respite providers wanting to be certified in the eyes of the state |
| 52 | must submit proof of employment from a commercial agency or complete a certification through |
| 53 | the Respite Care Provider Training. They will provide contact information for potential caregiver |
| 54 | clients to consult with them through. The respite care provider would indicate whether they are |
| 55 | commercially associated or working under the state through the CRCP. |
| 56 | |
| 57 | Section 4) The Coalition of Respite Care Providers (CRCP) will be created, being the entity of all |
| 58 | state-employed respite care providers, in order to provide a stable and certified avenue in which to |
| 59 | gain access to respite care providers as well as to work as a respite care provider. Employees will |
| 60 | have access to all government employee benefits and will earn a salary of $34,500 yearly. In |
| 61 | accordance with TN Code TCA 8-23-202 (2021), employees of the state will get paid semi- |
| 62 | monthly, therefore getting paid $1437.50 per pay period. If the number of employees in this |
| 63 | program exceeds the funding allocated to the Coalition, hiring will be suspended until this act is |
| 64 | revisited in a years’ time. If the funding has not been utilized fully by the end of the year, the |
| 65 | funds will roll over into the next year if the act is renewed: if not, the money not provided by the |
| 66 | NFCSP grant will be absorbed into the general state fund. |
| 67 | |
| 68 | Section 5) This act accounts for the creation of 20 new positions in the CRCP. When not providing |
| 69 | respite services, they will be in the employ of CHOICES for whatever position is deemed a best fit |
| 70 | in accordance with their capabilities. This does not impact their certification as a respite provider, |
| 71 | nor does it impact their position as part of the CRCP. |
| 72 | |
| 73 | Section 6) These new programs will work in conjunction with and in the service of CHOICES, |
| 74 | wherein the Coalition of Respite Care Providers will be another service plan provided through |
| 75 | CHOICES or be available should the participant choose consumer direction. |
| 76 | |
| 77 | Section 7): If a caregiver requests the services of a respite care provider through the CRCP, the |
| 78 | cost of the services will be differentiated by a sliding scale based on the income of the beneficiary. |
| 79 | Those who qualify for TennCare will not pay anything for respite services through the CRCP. Those |
| 80 | who do not qualify for TennCare but fall at or below 200% of the federal poverty line will pay a |
| 81 | reduced rate of $8 an hour. Those who are above 200% of the poverty line will pay $16 dollars per |
| 82 | hour for respite care. That money will be directly paid to the state, where it will become part of the |
| 83 | state general fund for paying state employees. |
| 84 | |
| 85 | Section 8) The CRCP sliding scale of pay will only apply to in-home respite care and will not |
| 86 | provide for services such as in-patient care. |
| 87 | |
| 88 | Section 9) If a beneficiary has commercial insurance that partially or fully covers respite care, they |
| 89 | are still eligible to receive services from the CRCP; however, they will have to pay out-of-pocket |
| 90 | the difference between what insurance covers and the cost of care. |
| 91 | |
| 92 | Section 10) These provisions shall not prohibit the use of vouchers on commercial respite care |
| 93 | providers nor on state respite care providers. These provisions will not in any way alter the system |
| 94 | or requirements in which vouchers are subject to. |
| 95 | |
| 96 | Section 11) This act will be revisited in a years’ time from time of enactment in order to assess the |
| 97 | effectiveness of the provisions and to repeal or renew as necessary. |
| 98 | |
| 99 | Section 12) Funds from the NFCSP grant will be delineated to the CHOICES program for the fiscal |
| 100 | support of these new provisions. |
| 101 | |
| 102 | Section 13) All laws or parts of laws in conflict with this are hereby repealed. |
| 103 | |
| 104 | Section 14) This act will hereby set aside $840,000, funded through the Department of Health and |
| 105 | Social Services, in addition to any funding received from the NFCSP and profits from CRCP |
| 106 | services, for the hiring of employees and any additional cost incurred in the implementation of the |
| 107 | provisions in this act. |
| 108 | |
| 109 | Section 15) This act shall take effect January 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it. |
| 110 |