The Florida Senate

430.205  Community care service system.--

¹(1)(a)  The department, through the area agency on aging, shall fund in each planning and service area at least one community care service system that provides case management and other in-home and community services as needed to help the older person maintain independence and prevent or delay more costly institutional care.

(b)  For fiscal year 2001-2002 only, in each county having a population over 2 million, the department, through the area agency on aging, shall fund in each planning and service area more than one community care service system that provides case management and other in-home and community services as needed to help elderly persons maintain independence and prevent or delay more costly institutional care. This paragraph expires July 1, 2002.

(2)  Core services and other support services may be furnished by public or private agencies or organizations. Each community care service system must be under the direction of a lead agency that coordinates the activities of individual contracting agencies providing community-care-for-the-elderly services. When practicable, the activities of a community care service area must be directed from a multiservice senior center and coordinated with other services offered therein. This subsection does not require programs in existence prior to the effective date of this act to be relocated.

(3)  The department shall define each core service that is to be provided or coordinated within a community care service area and establish rules and minimum standards for the delivery of core services. The department may conduct or contract for demonstration projects to determine the desirability of new concepts of organization, administration, or service delivery designed to prevent the institutionalization of functionally impaired elderly persons. Evaluations shall be made of the cost-avoidance of such demonstration projects, the ability of the projects to reduce the rate of placement of functionally impaired elderly persons in institutions, and the impact of projects on the use of institutional services and facilities.

(4)  A preservice and inservice training program for community-care-for-the-elderly service providers and staff may be designed and implemented to help assure the delivery of quality services. The department shall specify in rules the training standards and requirements for the community-care-for-the-elderly service providers and staff. Training must be sufficient to ensure that quality services are provided to clients and that appropriate skills are developed to conduct the program.

(5)  Any person who has been classified as a functionally impaired elderly person is eligible to receive community-care-for-the-elderly core services. Those elderly persons who are determined by protective investigations to be vulnerable adults in need of services, pursuant to s. 415.104(3)(b), or to be victims of abuse, neglect, or exploitation who are in need of immediate services to prevent further harm and are referred by the adult protective services program, shall be given primary consideration for receiving community-care-for-the-elderly services. As used in this subsection, "primary consideration" means that an assessment and services must commence within 72 hours after referral to the department or as established in accordance with department contracts by local protocols developed between department service providers and the adult protective services program.

History.--s. 5, ch. 80-181; s. 272, ch. 81-259; s. 9, ch. 90-319; s. 33, ch. 95-418; s. 7, ch. 98-182; s. 99, ch. 2000-349; s. 18, ch. 2001-254.

¹Note.--Section 18, ch. 2001-254, amended subsection (1) "[i]n order to implement Specific Appropriation 480 of the 2001-2002 General Appropriations Act."

Note.--Former s. 410.0241.