HB 49

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to caregivers for adults; providing
3	legislative intent to foster caregiving as a nonlicensed
4	paraprofessional activity and to promote the caregivers'
5	use of best practices; creating the Florida Caregiver
6	Institute, Inc., an independent not-for-profit corporation
7	housed in the Florida Policy Exchange Center on Aging at
8	the University of South Florida; providing purposes,
9	duties, and powers of the corporation; providing for a
10	board of directors; providing for membership, terms of
11	office, meetings, and powers and duties of and
12	restrictions on the board; providing for an audit
13	committee; requiring reports to the Governor and the
14	Legislature; providing duties of the Florida Policy
15	Exchange Center on Aging and other public agencies;
16	providing for the Office of Program Policy Analysis and
17	Government Accountability to conduct a review of the
18	corporation by a specified date and to report to the
19	Governor and the Legislature; providing an effective date.
20
21	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
22
23	Section 1.  Legislative intent; Florida Caregiver
24	Institute, Inc.; creation, duties, board of directors,
25	reports.--
26	(1)  It is the intent of the Legislature to foster the
27	development of caregiving for frail elders and disabled adults
28	as a nonlicensed paraprofessional activity that is critical to
29	the provision of community-based and institutional care for
30	frail elders and disabled adults who live in the community or in
31	an assisted living facility licensed under part III of chapter
32	400, Florida Statutes, or an adult family-care home licensed
33	under part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes, or who attend
34	an adult day care center licensed under part V of chapter 400,
35	Florida Statutes. It is the further intent of the Legislature to
36	promote the use of nationally recognized best practices
37	information by caregivers so as to improve the quality of care
38	in the community and in long-term care facilities licensed by
39	the state and to ensure some degree of uniformity of techniques,
40	practices, and standards used in caring for frail elders and
41	disabled adults residing in the state.
42	(2)  In order to accomplish the goal of developing best
43	practices information and providing that information to
44	caregivers of frail elders or disabled adults who live in the
45	community, reside in facilities licensed by the state under part
46	III or part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes, or attend an
47	adult day care center licensed under part V of chapter 400,
48	Florida Statutes, there is created the Florida Caregiver
49	Institute, Inc., a not-for-profit corporation that shall be
50	registered, incorporated, organized, and operated in compliance
51	with chapter 617, Florida Statutes, and that may not be a unit
52	of state government. The Florida Caregiver Institute, Inc.,
53	hereinafter referred to as "the corporation," shall be
54	administratively housed in the Florida Policy Exchange Center on
55	Aging at the University of South Florida.
56	(3)  The corporation shall assist the Florida Policy
57	Exchange Center on Aging in the development of policy
58	recommendations to enhance the center's efforts to improve the
59	skills and availability of individuals who seek to work as
60	caregivers in the home, in the community, or in a facility
61	licensed by the state under part III, part V, or part VII of
62	chapter 400, Florida Statutes. The corporation also:
63	(a)  Shall seek to identify funding by state, federal, and
64	private sources for the purpose of providing training in and
65	promotion of the use of best practices to caregivers.
66	(b)  Shall work with universities and other related parties
67	to develop training materials and a curriculum and identify best
68	practices.
69	(c)  Shall conduct a needs assessment of the nonlicensed
70	caregivers who work in the community or in facilities that are
71	licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400,
72	Florida Statutes.
73	(d)  Shall make recommendations to the Department of
74	Elderly Affairs, the Department of Children and Family Services,
75	the Agency for Health Care Administration, and the Department of
76	Health regarding policy and related changes that will improve
77	the quality, availability, and retention of nonlicensed
78	caregivers who work in the community or in facilities licensed
79	under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida
80	Statutes.
81	(e)  Shall make recommendations on proposed legislative
82	changes and budget-related items that would affect the quality,
83	availability, and retention of nonlicensed caregivers and review
84	the need for nonlicensed caregivers to work in the community or
85	in facilities licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of
86	chapter 400, Florida Statutes. This information shall be
87	provided to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
88	Speaker of the House of Representatives by January 1 of each
89	year.
90	(f)  Shall develop agreements with the Department of
91	Elderly Affairs, the Department of Children and Family Services,
92	the Agency for Health Care Administration, the Department of
93	Health, and any other state agency it considers necessary for
94	the exclusive purpose of providing access to state buildings and
95	state employees in order to offer low-cost, effective training
96	and paraprofessional development assistance to nonlicensed
97	caregivers who work in the community or in facilities licensed
98	under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida
99	Statutes.
100	(g)  May charge a reasonable fee, on a sliding scale, as
101	provided in the bylaws of the corporation for the training of
102	nonlicensed caregivers who work in the community or in
103	facilities licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of
104	chapter 400, Florida Statutes. The corporation shall take all
105	steps possible to offer high-quality training at the most cost-
106	effective rates.
107	(h)  May offer training to the personnel of assisted living
108	facilities, adult family-care homes, and adult day care centers.
109	The Department of Elderly Affairs, in consultation with the
110	corporation and the contractor responsible for the development
111	of training materials, shall annually evaluate and make any
112	necessary changes to these materials.
113	(i)  Shall collect information regarding nonlicensed
114	caregivers who work in the community and in facilities licensed
115	under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida
116	Statutes. The information collected must include, but need not
117	be limited to, the salary rates for various positions,
118	professional development needs of nonlicensed caregivers,
119	information regarding turnover rates and retention, and data
120	that identify the number of caregivers using best practices in
121	daily care-related activities.
122	(j)  Shall develop a memorandum of understanding with the
123	Florida Policy Exchange Center on Aging that describes how the
124	corporation will interact with the center in carrying out its
125	responsibilities.
126	(k)  Shall develop an agreement with the Florida Policy
127	Exchange Center on Aging for the provision of administrative
128	support and startup costs, with the expectation that the
129	corporation will not rely upon the center for staff or financial
130	assistance after June 1, 2008.
131	(l)  May contract with the Florida Policy Exchange Center
132	on Aging for the provision of staff support, research, technical
133	assistance, and data storage under a memorandum of agreement.
134	(4)(a)  The board of directors of the corporation shall
135	consist of 13 members who represent the views, interests, and
136	perspectives of the parties, individuals, and stakeholders
137	affected by the activities of the corporation. Each member of
138	the board shall be appointed to a 2-year term and may not be
139	reappointed to more than three additional terms, except that the
140	initial legislative appointments shall be for a period of 3
141	years each.
142	(b)  The board of directors of the corporation shall
143	include:
144	1.  One member appointed by the Florida Association of
145	Homes for the Aging.
146	2.  One member appointed by the Florida Assisted Living
147	Affiliation.
148	3.  One member appointed by the Alzheimer's Association.
149	4.  One member appointed by the Florida Council on Aging.
150	5.  One member appointed by the Florida Adult Day Care
151	Association.
152	6.  One member appointed by the Florida Respite Coalition.
153	7.  One member appointed by the State Long-Term Care
154	Ombudsman.
155	8.  Two members appointed by the Governor.
156	9.  Two members appointed by the President of the Senate.
157	10.  Two members appointed by the Speaker of the House of
158	Representatives.
159
160	The Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of
161	the House of Representatives must make their respective initial
162	appointments not later than September 1, 2006.
163	(c)  The chair shall be elected by the members, may not
164	serve more than two 1-year terms, and may not be a state
165	employee.
166	(d)  The board shall adopt bylaws for the regulation of its
167	affairs and the conduct of business and shall follow Robert's
168	Rules of Order, newly revised edition, for all procedural
169	matters that arise.
170	(e)  A majority of the members of the board constitutes a
171	quorum.
172	(f)  The corporation shall be accountable to the board. The
173	meetings of the board shall be open to any member of the public
174	and shall accept input from family members, consumers,
175	stakeholders, providers, or other parties affected by the
176	activities of the corporation. The board shall post the schedule
177	and location of its meetings on a website and in public
178	buildings.
179	(g)  The chair shall ensure that accurate minutes are kept
180	which reflect the attendance, motions, and actions of the board
181	and the discussion of matters brought before the board. These
182	minutes shall be made available to the public for inspection and
183	review and, if possible, posted on a website to provide greater
184	public access.
185	(h)  The chair shall call a meeting quarterly and may
186	schedule other meetings using electronic means as he or she
187	considers appropriate. The chair shall call at least one meeting
188	per year to establish goals and evaluate the progress of the
189	corporation in the previous year.
190	(i)  The chair may appoint advisory committees to advise
191	the corporation on specific issues that fall within the
192	corporation's scope of work and stated objectives.
193	(j)  Each member of the board and its advisory committees
194	shall serve at his or her own expense, including travel or other
195	costs associated with his or her duties as a member of the board
196	of directors.
197	(k)  The chair may remove a member of the board for three
198	unexcused absences from regularly scheduled meetings.
199	(l)  An appointed member serves at the pleasure of the
200	entity that made the appointment and may be removed by that
201	entity without cause.
202	(5)(a)  The chair shall establish an audit committee
203	consisting of at least three board members to annually review
204	and report on the financial condition of the corporation. A copy
205	of the audit committee's report shall be provided to board
206	members, the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
207	Speaker of the House of Representatives by January 10 of each
208	year. The audit committee's report must include a complete
209	accounting of all revenues received and expenses incurred by the
210	corporation during that year.
211	(b)  The corporation may employ staff, contract with
212	consultants, and otherwise retain the necessary staff within the
213	limits of available funds to accomplish its goals and purposes.
214	(c)  By January 10 of each year, the corporation shall
215	issue a report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and
216	the Speaker of the House of Representatives that evaluates the
217	status of the work of the corporation relating to the use of
218	best practices by caregivers and the development of nonlicensed
219	caregivers who work in the community or in facilities licensed
220	under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida
221	Statutes.
222	(d)  Each public sector agency that provides training or
223	support for nonlicensed caregivers who work in the community or
224	in facilities licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of
225	chapter 400, Florida Statutes, shall cooperate with the
226	corporation. The Florida Policy Exchange Center on Aging shall
227	certify to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
228	Speaker of the House of Representatives, using criteria that
229	include communication, timeliness of response, and coordination
230	of efforts, whether the corporation is receiving the necessary
231	and requested support from public sector organizations that
232	provide training to nonlicensed caregivers.
233	Section 2.  By October 1, 2009, the Office of Program
234	Policy Analysis and Government Accountability shall conduct a
235	review of the Florida Caregiver Institute, Inc., and shall issue
236	a report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
237	Speaker of the House of Representatives evaluating the
238	effectiveness of the corporation in helping the state meet its
239	goals of improving the retention of nonlicensed caregivers in
240	the community or in facilities licensed under part III, part V,
241	or part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes, and whether it has
242	been successful in promoting the use of best practices by
243	caregivers of the state's frail elder and disabled adult
244	population.
245	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2006.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.