Library: Policy

340:105-10-90.1. National Family Caregiver Support Program

Revised 6-1-08

(a) Policy. The Area Agency on Aging (AAA) awards grants to entities to provide support services, including information and assistance, counseling, support groups, respite, and other home- and community-based services to families caring for their frail older members. The National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP) also recognizes the needs of a grandparent or step-grandparent who is a relative caregiver of a child or other older person who is a relative caregiver of a child who is not more than 18 years of age or who is a person with a disability. NFCSP services include:

(1) information to caregivers about available services;
(2) assistance to caregivers in gaining access to services;
(3) individual counseling, organization of support groups, and training to assist caregivers in areas related to their caregiver roles of:
- (A) health;
- (B) nutrition;
- (C) financial literacy;
- (D) decision making; and
- (E) problem solving;
(4) respite care to enable caregivers to be temporarily relieved from their caregiving responsibilities; and
(5) supplemental services, on a limited basis, to complement the care provided by caregivers.

(b) Authority. The authority for this Section is the Office of Management and Budget Notice of Action 0985-0008 and Sections 371 through 374 of the Older Americans Act of 1965, as amended, Public Law 109-365, Grants for State and Community Programs on Aging.

(1) incorporates the provisions of this Section into the Title III policies and procedures manual;
(2) provides technical assistance to prospective and funded Title III projects regarding this rule;
(3) monitors Title III project compliance according to OAC 340:105-10-43, except on specific projects where the State Agency has agreed with the AAA to provide a service and monitoring is not required. The project:
- (A) gathers information on an approved intake form, including, at a minimum:
  - (i) the family caregiver's identifying information;
  - (ii) the caregiver's relationship to the care receiver;
  - (iii) the care receiver's identifying information; and
  - (iv) a written description of the caregiver's current situation, including the care receiver's need for assistance due to inability to perform specific activities of daily living (ADLs) or need for supervision due to Alzheimer's disease or other neurological and organic brain dysfunction or disability;
- (B) conducts a reassessment of NFCSP service recipients annually, at a minimum, to evaluate service provision and update participant status;
- (C) ensures the safety and protection of the participants; and
- (D) receives in-service training each fiscal year specifically designed to increase the project's knowledge and understanding of the programs and participants served;
(4) targets services to caregivers who are older persons in greatest social and economic need, giving priority to:
- (A) family caregivers providing care for persons with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders with neurological and organic brain dysfunction; and
- (B) grandparents or older persons who are relative caregivers providing care for a person or child with a severe disability;
(5) may provide support services to caregivers providing care for frail older family members who are 60 years or older and unable to perform at least two ADLs without substantial human assistance or require substantial supervision due to a cognitive or other mental impairment. ADLs include:
- (A) dressing;
- (B) bathing;
- (C) eating;
- (D) transferring;
- (E) toileting; and
- (F) walking;
(6) may provide support services on a limited basis to grandparents and older persons who are relative caregivers of a child who is 18 years of age or younger.
- (A) Child means a person who is not older than 18 years of age or who is a person with a disability.
- (B) Grandparent or older person who is a relative caregiver means a grandparent or step-grandparent of a child, or a relative of a child by blood, marriage, or adoption who is 55 years of age or older and:
  - (i) lives with the child;
  - (ii) is the primary caregiver of the child because the biological or adoptive parents are unable or unwilling to serve as the primary caregiver of the child; and
  - (iii) has a legal relationship to the child, such as legal custody or guardianship, or is raising the child informally;
(7) ensures the cost of carrying out the program meets the requirement of a minimum non-federal share of 25 percent. The non-federal share is provided from state and local sources;
(8) may not use funds to supplant, replace, or in substitution for, any funds expended under any federal, state, or local law for the same purposes; and
(9) considers awarding funds to expand successful caregiver activities currently in communities, such as respite providers, support groups, outreach, information and assistance, adult day services, counseling, and case management.

(d) Cross references. See OAC 340:105-10-37, 340:105-10-38, 340:105-10-40, 340:105-10-41, 340:105-10-43, 340:105-10-44, and 340:105-10-50.1(a)(15)(F).