HB 0049

CS

CHAMBER ACTION

1	The Elder & Long-Term Care Committee recommends the following:
2
3	Council/Committee Substitute
4	Remove the entire bill and insert:
5	A bill to be entitled
6	An act relating to caregivers for adults; providing
7	legislative intent to foster caregiving as a nonlicensed
8	paraprofessional activity and to promote the caregivers'
9	use of best practices; providing for the Department of
10	Elderly Affairs to contract with a not-for-profit
11	corporation; specifying requirements of the contract;
12	requiring reports to the Governor and the Legislature;
13	providing duties of the Florida Policy Exchange Center on
14	Aging and other public agencies; providing for the Office
15	of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability
16	to conduct a review of the corporation by a specified date
17	and to report to the Governor and the Legislature;
18	providing an effective date.
19
20	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
21
22	Section 1.  Legislative intent; contract with corporation;
23	purposes and duties; reports.--
24	(1)  It is the intent of the Legislature to foster the
25	development of caregiving for frail elders and disabled adults
26	as a nonlicensed paraprofessional activity that is critical to
27	the provision of community-based and institutional care for
28	frail elders and disabled adults who live in the community or in
29	an assisted living facility licensed under part III of chapter
30	400, Florida Statutes, or an adult family-care home licensed
31	under part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes, or who attend
32	an adult day care center licensed under part V of chapter 400,
33	Florida Statutes. It is the further intent of the Legislature to
34	promote the use of nationally recognized best practices
35	information by caregivers so as to improve the quality of care
36	in the community and in long-term care facilities licensed by
37	the state and to ensure some degree of uniformity of techniques,
38	practices, and standards used in caring for frail elders and
39	disabled adults residing in the state.
40	(2)  In order to accomplish the goal of developing best
41	practices information and providing that information to
42	caregivers of frail elders or disabled adults who live in the
43	community, reside in facilities licensed by the state under part
44	III or part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes, or attend an
45	adult day care center licensed under part V of chapter 400,
46	Florida Statutes, the Department of Elderly Affairs may contract
47	with a not-for-profit corporation operated in compliance with
48	chapter 617, Florida Statutes. The contracted corporation may be
49	physically located in the Florida Policy Exchange Center on
50	Aging at the University of South Florida.
51	(3)  The contract with the corporation shall provide for
52	the corporation to assist the Florida Policy Exchange Center on
53	Aging in the development of policy recommendations to enhance
54	the center's efforts to improve the skills and availability of
55	individuals who seek to work as caregivers in the home, in the
56	community, or in a facility licensed by the state under part
57	III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes. The
58	contract must provide that the corporation also:
59	(a)  Shall seek to identify funding by state, federal, and
60	private sources for the purpose of providing training in and
61	promotion of the use of best practices to caregivers.
62	(b)  Shall work with universities and other related parties
63	to develop training materials and a curriculum and identify best
64	practices.
65	(c)  Shall conduct a needs assessment of the nonlicensed
66	caregivers who work in the community or in facilities that are
67	licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400,
68	Florida Statutes.
69	(d)  Shall make recommendations to the Department of
70	Elderly Affairs, the Department of Children and Family Services,
71	the Agency for Health Care Administration, and the Department of
72	Health regarding policy and related changes that will improve
73	the quality, availability, and retention of nonlicensed
74	caregivers who work in the community or in facilities licensed
75	under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida
76	Statutes.
77	(e)  Shall make recommendations on proposed legislative
78	changes and budget-related items that would affect the quality,
79	availability, and retention of nonlicensed caregivers and review
80	the need for nonlicensed caregivers to work in the community or
81	in facilities licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of
82	chapter 400, Florida Statutes. This information shall be
83	provided to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
84	Speaker of the House of Representatives by January 1 of each
85	year.
86	(f)  Shall develop agreements with the Department of
87	Elderly Affairs, the Department of Children and Family Services,
88	the Agency for Health Care Administration, the Department of
89	Health, and any other state agency it considers necessary for
90	the exclusive purpose of providing access to state buildings and
91	state employees in order to offer low-cost, effective training
92	and paraprofessional development assistance to nonlicensed
93	caregivers who work in the community or in facilities licensed
94	under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida
95	Statutes.
96	(g)  May charge a reasonable fee, on a sliding scale, as
97	provided in the bylaws of the corporation for the training of
98	nonlicensed caregivers who work in the community or in
99	facilities licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of
100	chapter 400, Florida Statutes. The corporation shall take all
101	steps possible to offer high-quality training at the most cost-
102	effective rates.
103	(h)  May offer training to the personnel of assisted living
104	facilities, adult family-care homes, and adult day care centers.
105	The Department of Elderly Affairs, in consultation with the
106	corporation and the contractor responsible for the development
107	of training materials, shall annually evaluate and make any
108	necessary changes to these materials.
109	(i)  Shall collect information regarding nonlicensed
110	caregivers who work in the community and in facilities licensed
111	under part III, part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida
112	Statutes. The information collected must include, but need not
113	be limited to, the salary rates for various positions,
114	professional development needs of nonlicensed caregivers,
115	information regarding turnover rates and retention, and data
116	that identify the number of caregivers using best practices in
117	daily care-related activities.
118	(j)  Shall develop a memorandum of understanding with the
119	Florida Policy Exchange Center on Aging that describes how the
120	corporation will interact with the center in carrying out its
121	responsibilities.
122	(k)  Shall develop an agreement with the Florida Policy
123	Exchange Center on Aging for the provision of administrative
124	support and startup costs, with the expectation that the
125	corporation will not rely upon the center for staff or financial
126	assistance after June 1, 2008.
127	(l)  May contract with the Florida Policy Exchange Center
128	on Aging for the provision of staff support, research, technical
129	assistance, and data storage under a memorandum of agreement.
130	(m)  Shall, by January 10 of each year, issue a report to
131	the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of
132	the House of Representatives that evaluates the status of the
133	work of the corporation relating to the use of best practices by
134	caregivers and the development of nonlicensed caregivers who
135	work in the community or in facilities licensed under part III,
136	part V, or part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes.
137	(4)  Each public sector agency that provides training or
138	support for nonlicensed caregivers who work in the community or
139	in facilities licensed under part III, part V, or part VII of
140	chapter 400, Florida Statutes, shall cooperate with the
141	corporation. The Florida Policy Exchange Center on Aging shall
142	certify to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
143	Speaker of the House of Representatives, using criteria that
144	include communication, timeliness of response, and coordination
145	of efforts, whether the corporation is receiving the necessary
146	and requested support from public sector organizations that
147	provide training to nonlicensed caregivers.
148	Section 2.  By October 1, 2009, the Office of Program
149	Policy Analysis and Government Accountability shall conduct a
150	review of the contracted services for developing best practices
151	information and providing it to caregivers and shall issue a
152	report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
153	Speaker of the House of Representatives evaluating the
154	effectiveness of the corporation in helping the state meet its
155	goals of improving the retention of nonlicensed caregivers in
156	the community or in facilities licensed under part III, part V,
157	or part VII of chapter 400, Florida Statutes, and whether it has
158	been successful in promoting the use of best practices by
159	caregivers of the state's frail elder and disabled adult
160	population.
161	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2006.

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