Library: Policy

340:105-10-54. Supportive services

Revised 6-1-08

(a) Policy. The Area Agency on Aging (AAA) makes grants to local agencies or organizations for the provision of supportive services to older persons. Providers of any such service must comply with all standards outlined in this Subchapter relating to the service(s) provided. Supportive services, for purposes of this Section, include:

(1) health, including mental health, education and training, welfare, informational, recreational, homemaker, counseling, or referral services;

(2) transportation services to facilitate access to supportive services or nutrition services, and services provided by an AAA in conjunction with local transportation service providers, public transportation agencies, and other local government agencies that result in increased provision of such transportation services for older persons;

(3) services designed to encourage and assist older persons to use the facilities and services, including information and assistance services, and language translation services to assist older persons with limited English speaking ability to obtain services;

(4) services designed to:

(A) assist older persons obtain adequate housing, including minor residential repair and renovation projects, up to $250 annually per client, designed to enable older persons maintain their homes in conformity with minimum housing standards;

(B) adapt homes to meet the needs of older persons who have physical disabilities;

(C) prevent unlawful entry into residences of older persons, through the installation of security devices and structural modifications or alterations of such residences; or

(D) assist older persons in obtaining housing for which assistance is provided under programs of the Department of Housing and Urban Development;

(5) services designed to assist older persons avoid institutionalization and assist persons in long-term care institutions who are able to return to their communities, including:

(A) client assessments, case management, and development and coordination of community services;

(B) supportive activities to meet the special needs of caregivers, including caregivers who provide in-home services to frail older persons; and

(C) in-home services and other community services, including home health, homemaker, and chore services to assist older persons to live independently in a home environment;

(6) services designed to provide to older persons legal assistance and other counseling services and assistance, including:

(A) tax counseling and assistance, financial counseling, and counseling regarding appropriate health and life insurance coverage;

(B) representation of persons who are wards, or are allegedly incapacitated, and in guardianship proceedings of older persons who seek to become guardians, if other adequate representation is unavailable in the proceedings;

(C) provision, to older persons who provide uncompensated care to their adult children with disabilities, of counseling to assist such older persons with permanency planning for such children;

(7) services designed to enable older persons to attain and maintain physical and mental well-being through programs of regular physical activity, exercise, music therapy, art therapy, and dance movement therapy;

(8) services designed to provide health screening, including mental health screening, to detect or prevent illnesses, or both, that occur most frequently in older persons;

(9) services designed to provide for older persons, pre-retirement counseling and assistance in planning for and assessing future post-retirement needs with regard to public and private insurance, public benefits, lifestyle changes, relocation, legal matters, leisure time, and other appropriate matters;

(10) services of an ombudsman at the state level to receive, investigate, and act on complaints by older persons who are residents of long-term care facilities and to advocate for the well-being of such persons;

(11) provision of services and assistive devices, including provision of assistive technology services and assistive technology devices, designed to meet the unique needs of older persons with disabilities and older persons who provide uncompensated care to their adult children with disabilities;

(12) services to encourage the employment of older workers, including job and second career counseling, and where appropriate, job development, referral, and placement, and including the coordination of the services with programs administered by or receiving assistance from the Department of Labor, including programs carried out under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, Section 2801 of Title 29 of the United States Code;

(13) crime prevention services and victim assistance programs for older persons;

(14) a program, to be known as Senior Opportunities and Services, designed to identify and meet the needs of older persons who are poor, 60 years of age or older, in one or more of the areas of:

(A) development and provision of new volunteer services;

(B) effective referral to existing health, including mental health, employment, housing, legal, consumer, transportation, and other services;

(C) stimulation and creation of additional services and programs to remedy gaps and deficiencies in presently existing services and programs; and

(D) other services as the Assistant Secretary for Aging of the Administration on Aging may determine are necessary or especially appropriate to meet the needs of older persons who are poor and ensure them greater self-sufficiency;

(15) services for the prevention of abuse of older persons in accordance with Section 307(a)(12) of the Older Americans Act (OAA) of 1965, as amended;

(16) in-service training and state leadership for legal assistance activities;

(17) health and nutrition education services, including information concerning prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of age related diseases and chronic disabling conditions;

(18) services designed to enable mentally impaired older persons to attain and maintain emotional well-being and independent living through a coordinated system of support services;

(19) services designed to support family members and other persons providing voluntary care to older persons who need long-term care services;

(20) services designed to provide information and training for persons who are or may become guardians or representative payees of older persons, including information on the powers and duties of guardians and representative payees and alternatives to guardianships;

(21) services to encourage and facilitate regular interaction between students and older persons, including services for older persons with limited English proficiency and visits in long-term care facilities, multipurpose senior centers, and other settings;

(22) in-home services defined by the State Agency in the State Plan submitted under Section 307 of the OAA, taking into consideration the age, economic need, and noneconomic and nonhealth factors contributing to the frail condition and need for service of the persons described in this paragraph, and in-home services defined by an AAA in the Area Plan submitted under Section 306 of the OAA;

(23) services designed to support States, AAAs, and local service providers in carrying out and coordinating activities for older persons with respect to mental health services, including outreach for, education concerning, and screening for such services, and referral to such services for treatment;

(24) activities to promote and disseminate information about life-long learning programs, including opportunities for distance learning; and

(25) any other services necessary for the general welfare of older persons, if the services meet standards prescribed by the Assistant Secretary for Aging and are necessary for the general welfare of older persons.

(b) Authority. The authority for this Section is Section 321 of the OAA of 1965, as amended.

(1) incorporates the provisions in this Section into the Title III policies and procedures manual;

(2) provides technical assistance to prospective service project applicants regarding the policy in the development of Title III-B services; and

(3) utilizes the policy as an indicator in the evaluation of Title III-B service project proposals.

(d) Cross references. See OAC 340:105-10-40, 340:105-10-50.1 and 340:105-10-51.