State Legislation, Policy & Reports

Florida: State Budget Provides Record Funding for Elder Care Services

The recently approved Florida FY 2006-2007 budget includes record funding for support services for caregivers and older adults with long-term care needs. Elder service programs, such as meal delivery, transportation services, and home and community-based services, will receive $8 million, and Alzheimer's Assistance Projects will receive $15 million for respite services for caregivers, research, and diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's patients. For more information, visit:

Florida Department of Elder Affairs

Louisiana: Legislation to Create Adult Day Care Medicaid Program

The Louisiana Senate is considering a bill (S.B. 754) to create an adult day health care benefit as a non-waiver program under the State's Medicaid system. The services will be available for individuals age 17 or older who are physically, mentally or socially impaired and need supervision. For more information, visit:

Louisiana Legislature

New York: Legislation to Create More Consumer-Directed Options for Personal Assistance Services

A new bill (A. 11650) in the New York Assembly would allow individuals receiving personal assistance services to participate in a "cash and counseling" program that promotes consumer choice and control in accessing support services. An individual could hire a relative to provide care or use his or her individualized budget to purchase items that would increase independence. For more information, visit:

New York Assembly

North Carolina: Legislation to Conduct Study of Paid Family and Medical Leave

The North Carolina Legislature is considering bills (H.B. 2746; S.B. 2007) that would require the State's Legislative Research Commission to conduct a study on the feasibility of providing paid family leave to employees to care for a new child or an ill family member. The Commission would also consider laws from other states regarding family leave, such as temporary disability insurance programs, family leave insurance programs, and sick leave banks. For more information, visit:

North Carolina Legislature- House Bill
North Carolina Legislature- Senate Bill

Federal Legislation, Policy & Reports

Policy Statement from Family Caregiver Alliance Outlines National Policy Agenda for Caregiver Support

Family Caregiver Alliance has released its 2006 Policy Statement, outlining a national caregiving policy agenda to better recognize and support caregiving families. The Statement includes recommendations for strengthening the National Family Caregiver Support Program, as well as modernizing the Medicare and Medicaid programs to improve hospital discharge planning and include assessment of family caregivers. In addition, the Statement proposes expansion of the Family and Medical Leave Act and implementation of tax credits and respite care for caregivers. For more information, visit:

Family Caregiver Alliance

Senate Hearing on Planning for Long-Term Care Includes Testimony on Need for Caregivers

The Senate Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Health, held a hearing on May 17, 2006 on the challenges of planning for long-term care. Eight professionals in the long-term care field provided testimony on the struggles that families face concerning long-term care, as well as policy options to help families save for long-term care expenses. Several testimonies included discussion of the role of family caregivers, the need for caregiver training, and the shortage of direct care workers. For more information, visit:

Senate Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Health

International News

Scotland: Petition to Adopt Recommendations from a Report on Carer Services

The Princess Royal Trust for Carers, the largest provider of comprehensive carer support services in the United Kingdom, recently submitted a petition to the Scottish Parliament on behalf of 660,000 carers in Scotland. The petition calls for implementation of the recommendations outlined in the Scottish Executive's report, entitled "Care 21: The Future of Unpaid Care in Scotland". Survey results from the report indicated that only one third of carers received any caregiving training, and 95 percent of carers reported that caregiving had a negative impact on their health and wellbeing. The report recommends increased respite services and carer training, and assessment of carer programs and services. For more information, visit:

The Princess Royal Trust for Carers Media Release
Scottish Executive Response to "Care 21" Report

Australia: Additional One-Time Grants to Family Caregivers

Australia's FY 2006-07 budget includes one-time payments to family caregivers to help them offset the cost of providing care. Individuals currently receiving the Carer Payment, a program that provides monthly grants to carers of individuals 16 years or older with long-term care needs, will also receive a $1,000 bonus. Individuals currently receiving the Carer Allowance, a more substantial public assistance program that provides income supplements to carers of individuals with long-term care needs, will receive a $600 bonus. These carer bonuses total approximately $358 million. For more information, visit:

Australia FY 2006-07 Budget

Research Reports & Journal Articles

Report on "Cash and Counseling" Long-Term Care Programs for Older Adults

A new research paper from the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, written by researchers from the Urban Institute, describes the evolution of the "cash and counseling" model for delivering long-term care services to older adults. Such models often allow beneficiaries to hire family and friends to help with their care, offering greater flexibility and support to caregiving families. The authors report that nearly half of all states now have or are actively planning cash and counseling programs for frail elders. For more information, visit:

Beyond Cash and Counseling: An Inventory of Individual Budget-Based Community Long-Term Care Programs for the Elderly

New Quality Standards Announced for Care Coordination and Palliative and Hospice Care

The National Quality Forum (NQF), a voluntary consensus standard-setting organization, has announced endorsement of a voluntary consensus standard for measuring the quality of care coordination in the acute care hospital setting. The endorsed care coordination standard is a measure known as the 3-Item Transition Measure (CTM-3). NQF also endorsed a national framework and preferred practices for palliative and hospice care that focuses on the topics of ethical and legal aspects of care and emphasizes understanding and respecting the wishes of patients and families. For more information, visit:

National Quality Forum- Care Coordination
National Quality Forum- Palliative and Hospice Care

New National Profile of Caregivers of Frail Elders

An article in The Gerontologist (Volume 46, Number 3) offers an updated profile of family caregivers of frail elders. Using data from the 1989 and 1999 National Long-Term Care Survey and Informal Caregiver Survey, researchers at Johns Hopkins University developed nationally representative profiles of disabled older adults and their primary informal caregivers. On average, those receiving care were older and more disabled in 1999 than in 1989. The proportion of spouse caregivers was relatively stable across this decade, but the likelihood of children being caregivers increased. In addition, there were significant increases in the proportion of caregivers providing help on a daily basis. For more information, visit:

The Gerontologist

Effectiveness of Internet-Based Support Group for Family Caregivers

The Gerontologist (Volume 46, Number 3) features a study on an Internet-based intervention for family caregivers of older adults with neurodegenerative disease. Caregivers in the study were provided with computers and training to access a Web site with links to information, email and online facilitated support groups. Caregivers receiving this intervention experienced less stress compared with a comparable group of caregivers who received no services and experienced a rise in stress levels. For more information, visit:

The Gerontologist

Conferences & Trainings

Communicating Effectively and Interacting with People with Alzheimer's Disease: July 17, 2006

The National Interfaith Coalition on Aging (NICA) will host a free 90-minute Webcast program about communicating with people with Alzheimer's disease and their family members. The program is intended for professionals who work with older adults. For more information, visit:

National Interfaith Coalition on Aging

Alzheimer's Association Dementia Care Conference: September 11-13, 2006

The 14th annual Alzheimer's Association Dementia Care Conference will be held September 11-13, 2006 in Atlanta, Georgia. The conference highlights innovative programs and practices concerning Alzheimer's disease, dementia, caregiving and end of life issues. For more information, visit:

Alzheimer's Association Dementia Care Conference

Festival of International Conferences on Caregiving, Disability, Aging and Technology: June 16-19, 2007

Five concurrent conferences will take place during the Festival of International Conferences on Caregiving, Disability, Aging and Technology, to be held June 16-19, 2007 in Toronto, Canada. The five conferences will focus on: growing older with a disability; technology and aging; neurorehabilitation; caregiving; and improving medical device usability. Poster or paper submissions for the conference are due by November 6, 2006. For more information, visit:

Festival of International Conferences on Caregiving, Disability, Aging and Technology

Funding, Media & Miscellaneous

Aging Parents and Common Sense: A Directory of Resources for You and Your Parents

AXA Financial, with assistance from the National Alliance for Caregiving, has developed a resource directory of organizations and services that are helpful to family caregivers and older adults. Each listing in the directory includes a brief description and contact and Web site information. For more information, visit:

AXA Financial: Aging Parents and Common Sense Directory

Two Booklets Provide Easy-to-Understand Information about Alzheimer's Disease and Support Services

The National Institute on Aging now offers two free booklets designed to help people with limited literacy skills learn about Alzheimer's disease and memory loss. The booklets feature plain language, stories, photographs and other features to inform readers about topics such as symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, treatment options, and how to find help as a caregiver. For more information, visit:

National Institute on Aging

Three Publications Focus on Self-Care and Support for Family Caregivers

The National Cancer Institute has created three publications for caregivers, focusing on the family caregiver's needs for information and support rather than on the person receiving care. While the booklets are written for family members and friends of cancer patients, the information is applicable to anyone caring for someone with long-term care needs. For more information, visit:

National Cancer Institute