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91_HB2203
LRB9104774PTpk
1 AN ACT in relation to family caregivers.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Family Caregiver Support Act.
6 Section 5. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to
7 establish a comprehensive caregiver program that will marshal
8 and integrate available resources and services to provide
9 support and services to caregivers of chronically dependent
10 adults. This Act exists to coordinate assistance and
11 maximize available services while maintaining and supporting
12 existing services for caregivers. The assistance may
13 include:
14 (a) Coordination and integration of information and
15 services to caregivers in Illinois, including, but not
16 limited to, insurance and benefits counseling, respite
17 services available under the Respite Program Act and
18 Community Services Act, adult daycare for persons suffering
19 Alzheimer's disease or a disease of a related type at
20 specialized Alzheimer's Day Care Resource centers, or the
21 federal Older Americans Act of 1965, as amended, and
22 coordination with educational and other services offered by
23 the caregiver resource center;
24 (b) Assistance to the caregiver to assure that supports
25 to the functionally dependent older adult or adult suffering
26 from dementia are adequate and appropriate to maintain these
27 individuals in the home;
28 (c) Intermittent, planned, or emergency relief to the
29 caregiver, either directly or through use of other available
30 resources and services;
31 (d) Restoration or maintenance of the caregiver's
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1 well-being;
2 (e) Preservation of the caregiver's informal supports
3 such as family and friends;
4 (f) Supportive social services to the caregiver; and
5 (g) Affordable services through a cost-sharing mechanism
6 developed by the Department on Aging for those families whose
7 household incomes do not exceed 400% of the federal poverty
8 level.
9 Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
10 "Adult" means a person 18 years or older residing within
11 the State of Illinois who is a functionally dependent older
12 adult or who is suffering from dementia, such as Alzheimer's
13 disease.
14 "Area agency on aging" means the single local agency
15 designated by the Department on Aging within each planning
16 and service area to administer the delivery of a
17 comprehensive and coordinated plan of social or other
18 services and activities in the planning and service area.
19 "Dementia" means: (A) an irreversible global loss of
20 cognitive function causing evident intellectual impairment
21 that always includes memory loss, without alteration of state
22 of consciousness, and diagnosed by a physician, and is severe
23 enough to interfere with work or social activities, or both,
24 and to require continuous care or supervision; or (B) the
25 comatose state of an adult resulting from any head injury.
26 "Department" means the Department on Aging.
27 "Functionally dependent older adult" means a person 60
28 years of age or older residing within the State of Illinois
29 who, because of his or her inability to perform tasks
30 required for daily living, as defined by the Department and
31 as may be assessed through an area agency on aging or
32 community care assessment team, needs continuous care and
33 supervision.
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1 "Home modification" means reasonable modifications to the
2 structure of a home for the purpose of reducing the
3 caregiving burden of the caregiver, as approved by the
4 Department, but does not include repairs and payment for the
5 repairs.
6 "Household income" means the income of all members of a
7 household with the exception of a minor or dependent student.
8 "Income" means all income, from whatever source derived,
9 including, but not limited to, wages, salaries, social
10 security or railroad retirement income, public assistance
11 income, realized capital gains, and workers' compensation.
12 The Department shall determine income amounts and inclusions
13 for the purposes of this Act through rule.
14 "Primary caregiver" means the one identified relative or
15 other person in a relationship of responsibility, such as an
16 agent under a valid durable power of attorney for health care
17 created under Article IV of the Illinois Power of Attorney
18 Act, who has assumed the primary responsibility for the
19 provision of care needed to maintain the physical or mental
20 health of a functionally dependent older adult or other adult
21 suffering from dementia, who lives in the same residence with
22 that individual, and who does not receive financial
23 compensation for the care provided. A substantiated case of
24 abuse or neglect as defined in the Elder Abuse and Neglect
25 Act or under any other civil or criminal statute regarding an
26 older adult, shall prohibit a primary caregiver from
27 receiving benefits under this Act unless authorized by the
28 Department to prevent further abuse.
29 "Relative" means a spouse, parent, child, stepparent,
30 stepchild, grandparent, grandchild, brother, sister,
31 half-brother, half-sister, aunt, uncle, grant aunt, great
32 uncle, niece, or nephew by blood, marriage, or adoption.
33 "Respite care service" means a regular, intermittent, or
34 emergency service that provides the primary caregiver of a
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1 functionally dependent older adult or other adult suffering
2 from dementia with relief from normal caregiving duties and
3 responsibilities.
4 Section 15. Persons covered by Act.
5 (a) The persons to be served under this Act are primary
6 caregivers who provide continuous care to a functionally
7 dependent older adult or other adult suffering from dementia,
8 such as Alzheimer's disease.
9 (b) The Department shall develop operating procedures
10 and guidelines and shall contract with or through area
11 agencies on aging to provide benefits set forth in this Act.
12 The Department may also contract with other support centers
13 or service providers directly, when this service is provided
14 on a state-wide basis or when necessary or appropriate. The
15 Department shall have the authority to develop criteria
16 through rule relating to eligibility for primary caregivers
17 to receive assistance under this Act.
18 (c) The Department shall identify supportive services
19 that are directly related to the provision of care to a
20 functionally dependent older adult or other adult suffering
21 from dementia. Supportive services include, but are not
22 limited to:
23 (1) Benefits counseling and caregiver counseling,
24 education, and training;
25 (2) Reimbursement to primary caregivers whose
26 households financially qualify for assistance under
27 Section 20 and as developed by rules of the Department
28 for expenses incurred in obtaining day or night respite
29 care services, transportation to respite care service
30 locations, or other supportive services defined by rule,
31 and consumable supplies such as incontinence pads; and
32 (3) Reimbursement to primary caregivers whose
33 households financially qualify for assistance under
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1 Section 20 and as developed by rule for expenses incurred
2 in obtaining home modifications or assistive devices, as
3 approved by the Department, such as grab bars, safety
4 devices, and wheelchair ramps, that help the functionally
5 dependent older adult or adult suffering from dementia to
6 carry out tasks required for daily living.
7 Section 20. Grants.
8 (a) The Department, through contracts with or through
9 area agencies on aging and other appropriate entities, shall
10 provide the services described in paragraph (1) of subsection
11 (c) of Section 15 and shall reimburse qualified primary
12 caregivers for purchase of approved services, equipment, and
13 supplies described in paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection
14 (c) of Section 15.
15 (b) (1) The maximum amount available to a qualified
16 primary caregiver whose household income is under 200
17 percent of the federal poverty level shall be established
18 by Department rule. The Department shall be responsible
19 for developing allowable cost ranges for services and
20 supplies under paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (c)
21 of Section 15, including the development of maximum
22 amounts available per month to a caregiver, where
23 necessary.
24 (2) The maximum amount available to a qualified
25 caregiver whose household income is under 200 percent of
26 federal poverty level shall be established by Department
27 rule but shall not exceed $2,000 for the entire duration
28 of the case for expenses incurred for home modifications
29 or assistive devices as described in paragraph (3) of
30 subsection (c) Section 15.
31 (3) A sliding benefits scale shall be established
32 by the Department by rule to ensure that caregivers who
33 qualify under this Act and whose household income exceeds
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1 200% of the federal poverty level shall pay some portions
2 of the out-of-pocket expenses for services, equipment,
3 and supplies described in subsection (c) of Section 15.
4 In no event shall persons whose household income exceeds
5 400% of the federal poverty level be considered eligible
6 for state funded services, equipment, or supplies under
7 this Act but the persons may purchase those services
8 through this program by paying the entire cost of those
9 services.
10 Section 25. No entitlement. Nothing in this Act creates
11 or provides an individual with an entitlement to services,
12 equipment, and supplies or benefits made available only to
13 the extent of the availability and level of appropriations
14 made by the General Assembly.
15 Section 30. Displacement of benefits prohibited.
16 Funding authorized under this Act shall not be used to
17 displace benefits, entitlements, or resources available under
18 other programs.
19 Section 35. Rules. The Department shall adopt rules
20 necessary to implement the provisions of this Act in
21 accordance with the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act.