Bill Text: NY S05209 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relates to informal caregiver training; defines "person in need of assistance"; and expands who may serve as an "informal caregiver".

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-02-24 - referred to ways and means [S05209 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S05209-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          5209
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                     April 16, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Aging
        AN ACT to amend the elder law, in relation to informal caregiver  train-
          ing
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 206 of the elder law, subparagraph 4  of  paragraph
     2  (a)  of  subdivision  3  as added by chapter 269 of the laws of 2014, is
     3  amended to read as follows:
     4    § 206. Informal caregiver training. 1. The director is hereby  author-
     5  ized  and directed, to the extent appropriations are available therefor,
     6  to develop, establish and  operate  training  and  technical  assistance
     7  programs,  including caregiver resource centers, caregiver networks, and
     8  other support activities, for informal caregivers throughout  the  state
     9  for  the purposes of assisting such caregivers and improving the quality
    10  of care provided [to frail and disabled  persons].  The  director  shall
    11  also  make  available  and  encourage  the  utilization of such training
    12  programs in consultation with the  commissioner  of  the  department  of
    13  health,  the commissioner of the office of children and family services,
    14  the commissioner of the office of mental health, and the commissioner of
    15  [mental retardation  and  developmental  disabilities]  the  office  for
    16  people with developmental disabilities.
    17    2.  Definitions. For the purposes of this section: (a) "Informal care-
    18  giver" shall mean the family member or other natural person who normally
    19  provides [the] daily  care  or  supervision  [of  a  frail  or  disabled
    20  person], or any family member or other natural person who contributes to
    21  and  is involved in [the] caretaking responsibilities [for such frail or
    22  disabled person]. Such informal caregiver may provide care for a  person
    23  in  need  of assistance, but need not[,] reside in the same household as
    24  the [frail or disabled] person, or may be an older adult providing  care
    25  to a minor relative in their home.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04310-03-9

        S. 5209                             2
     1    (b) ["Frail or disabled person" shall mean any person who is unable to
     2  attend  to  his  or  her  daily  needs without the assistance or regular
     3  supervision of an informal caregiver due to mental or  physical  impair-
     4  ment.  Such definition shall not exclude persons under eighteen years of
     5  age  who  suffer from mental or physical impairment.] "Person in need of
     6  assistance" shall mean any person who requires assistance  with  one  or
     7  more  activities  of  daily  living  due  to:  (1) a physical, mental or
     8  medical impairment resulting from anatomical, physiological, genetic  or
     9  neurological  conditions  which prevents the exercise of a normal bodily
    10  function or is demonstrable by medically accepted clinical or laboratory
    11  diagnostic techniques, or (2) a condition regarded by others as such  an
    12  impairment.
    13    (c)  "Program"  shall  mean the program of informal caregiver training
    14  and technical assistance established by this section.
    15    (d) "Caregiver resource center" shall mean a project  funded  pursuant
    16  to this section which provides services and activities which are respon-
    17  sive  to  the  needs  and  contracts of informal caregivers in regard to
    18  their caregiving responsibilities.
    19    (e) "Caregiver networks" shall mean local  coalitions  which  develop,
    20  coordinate,   and  implement  action  plans  to  identify  and  mobilize
    21  resources to address the unmet needs of [frail and disabled] persons  in
    22  need of assistance and [their] informal caregivers.
    23    (f)  "Older  adult"  shall  mean any person aged sixty years of age or
    24  older.
    25    (g) "Minor" shall mean a person seventeen years of age or younger.
    26    3. (a) The duties of the  director  pursuant  to  this  section  shall
    27  include, but not be limited to:
    28    (1)  developing  and  [make] making available or [approve] approving a
    29  curriculum for informal caregiver training which considers and is easily
    30  adapted to an array of personal needs and  disabilities,  and  which  is
    31  sensitive to ethnic and community characteristics;
    32    (2)  providing technical assistance and training to appropriate organ-
    33  izations and groups, including caregiver resource centers and  caregiver
    34  networks,  which,  in  turn,  shall  provide  training and assistance to
    35  informal caregivers; [and]
    36    (3) providing grants to appropriate organizations and groups,  includ-
    37  ing  caregiver  resource  centers and caregiver networks, to develop and
    38  make available approved curricula for  informal  caregiver  training  as
    39  well as disseminate information regarding the curriculum[.]; and
    40    (4)  [develop]  developing guidelines for local area agencies on aging
    41  in order to provide the following:
    42    (i) information and assistance regarding gaining access  to  available
    43  services to assist informal caregivers;
    44    (ii)  resource  referrals  for informal caregivers regarding decision-
    45  making on behalf of the individual receiving care; and
    46    (iii) counseling referrals for informal caregivers.
    47    (b) Training and technical assistance shall include, but not be limit-
    48  ed to:
    49    (1) knowledge of major health  problems  and  diseases,  mental  [and]
    50  illness, physical disabilities, and the aging process;
    51    (2) practical skills required in providing personal care and support;
    52    (3)  stress  awareness  and  methods  of dealing with stress caused by
    53  providing care;
    54    (4) financial management; and
    55    (5) identification and utilization of available  resources,  including
    56  benefits, entitlements, and other programs and assistance.

        S. 5209                             3
     1    4. The director shall:
     2    (a)  Promulgate  any  rules and regulations necessary to carry out the
     3  provisions of this section.
     4    (b) On or before the first day of January every other year,  submit  a
     5  report  to  the  governor, the temporary president of the senate and the
     6  speaker of the assembly, which shall include, but not be limited to:
     7    (1) a financial report of the program's operation;
     8    (2) a profile of persons or groups receiving  training  and  technical
     9  assistance pursuant to this section; and
    10    (3)  an  analysis of the program's success in assisting informal care-
    11  givers and improving the quality of care provided by such persons.
    12    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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