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Residential complex for deaf seniors in agency budget plan
Combating elder abuse and developing a residential complex for deaf seniors are two projects the Area Agency on Aging 1-B plans to tackle this year.
That's in addition to the usual programming the agency does on behalf of 435,000 adults who are 60 and older in the region.
There may be other ideas out there, though, for the agency's proposed plan for the $21.1-million budget for the 2008 fiscal year. And, on Friday, the agency will hold a hearing to take comments from the public about what it could or should be doing.
"My goal is to never go through this process and not change the plan," said Jim McGuire, the agency's director of planning and advocacy. The 2008 implementation plan has already been modified to include a Stanford University-developed health prevention program that teaches seniors to self-manage their chronic conditions. The suggestion came from a staff member, he said.
The Area Agency on Aging 1-B is a nonprofit that serves senior citizens in Oakland, Macomb, Livingston, Monroe, St. Clair and Washtenaw counties. It has a counterpart in Wayne, which also draws more than half its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the remainder from the state. The $21.1-million budget is the same as the current one, per the state's directive, McGuire said.
The agency provides case management, programming that includes home-based meals, adult day care, caregiver support, transportation and in-home chore assistance and advocacy services, with the underlying objective to keep people in their homes as they age.
One of next year's goals is to develop a public relations campaign to help seniors prevent and report identity theft and other forms of financial abuse, crimes that are on the rise. McGuire said reporting incidents is tedious and often complicated, so the agency is focusing on streamlining the process by writing a guide for seniors and training other organizations that work with older adults.
A complex for deaf seniors is on the table, and the Deaf Senior Housing Coalition is looking into potential sites, McGuire said. Nothing is likely to happen until the end of the year, but if it comes to pass, it would be a first in Michigan. The closest complex is in Columbus, Ohio.
The agency's ongoing advocacy efforts include administering MI Choice, a voucher program that enables seniors to take Medicaid funding from a nursing home to their personal homes to pay for in-home services. The program is wildly popular and grossly underfunded. McGuire said the agency has a waiting list of 1,300 people eager for vouchers.
Combating elder abuse and developing a residential complex for deaf seniors are two projects the Area Agency on Aging 1-B plans to tackle this year.
That's in addition to the usual programming the agency does on behalf of 435,000 adults who are 60 and older in the region.
There may be other ideas out there, though, for the agency's proposed plan for the $21.1-million budget for the 2008 fiscal year. And, on Friday, the agency will hold a hearing to take comments from the public about what it could or should be doing.
"My goal is to never go through this process and not change the plan," said Jim McGuire, the agency's director of planning and advocacy. The 2008 implementation plan has already been modified to include a Stanford University-developed health prevention program that teaches seniors to self-manage their chronic conditions. The suggestion came from a staff member, he said.
The Area Agency on Aging 1-B is a nonprofit that serves senior citizens in Oakland, Macomb, Livingston, Monroe, St. Clair and Washtenaw counties. It has a counterpart in Wayne, which also draws more than half its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the remainder from the state. The $21.1-million budget is the same as the current one, per the state's directive, McGuire said.
The agency provides case management, programming that includes home-based meals, adult day care, caregiver support, transportation and in-home chore assistance and advocacy services, with the underlying objective to keep people in their homes as they age.
One of next year's goals is to develop a public relations campaign to help seniors prevent and report identity theft and other forms of financial abuse, crimes that are on the rise. McGuire said reporting incidents is tedious and often complicated, so the agency is focusing on streamlining the process by writing a guide for seniors and training other organizations that work with older adults.
A complex for deaf seniors is on the table, and the Deaf Senior Housing Coalition is looking into potential sites, McGuire said. Nothing is likely to happen until the end of the year, but if it comes to pass, it would be a first in Michigan. The closest complex is in Columbus, Ohio.
The agency's ongoing advocacy efforts include administering MI Choice, a voucher program that enables seniors to take Medicaid funding from a nursing home to their personal homes to pay for in-home services. The program is wildly popular and grossly underfunded. McGuire said the agency has a waiting list of 1,300 people eager for vouchers.