/021316/. COMMISSIONERS' COURT AGENDA REQUEST PLEASE FURNISH ONE ORIGINAL AND ONE (1) COPY OF THIS REQUEST AND DOCUMENTS TO BE REVIEWED BY THE COURT MADE BY: Patrice Doerries and Coral Adema OFFICE: MEETING DATE: December 13, 2010 TIME PREFERRED: 9:00 AM SUBJECT: Update on senior status of Kerr County residents from Patrice Doerries and Coral Adema, Kerr County representatives on the Alamo Area Senior Advisory Committee. EXECUTIVE SESSION REQUESTED: (PLEASE STATE REASON) NAME OF PERSON ADDRESSING THE COURT: Patrice Doerries and Coral Adema ESTIMATED LENGTH OF PRESENTATION: IF PERSONNEL MATTER - NAME OF EMPLOYEE: Time for submitting this request for Court to assure that the matter is posted in accordance with Title 5, Chapter 551 and 552, Government Code, is as follows: Meeting scheduled for Mondays: 5:00 PM previous Tuesday THIS REQUEST RECEIVED BY: THIS RQUEST RECEIVED ON: @ .M. All Agenda Requests will be screened by the County Judge's Office to determine if adequate information has been prepared for the Court's formal consideration and action at time of Court Meetings. Your cooperation will be appreciated and contribute towards your request being addressed at the earliest opportunity. See Agenda Request Rules Adopted by Commissioners' Court. Make sure any and all back up material is attached to this form. • w x Ad v i sory Members- AACOG December 2010 x�3 e t'coun1y Report volume 2, Issue 1 Coral Adema, RN 0 792 -5106 I I. I cadema @stx.rr.com Patrice Doerries 895 -1403 Patrice @hccares.com Coral Adema is a palliative • care nurse with Peterson Educational P rograms- F REE Highlights of 2010 : Coming up in 2011: Hospice. She is a Matter of Legislature appoints a Balance instructor. Coral committee on aging. 4 Senior Day at the serves on the Senior • Matter of See executive Capital Advisory Committee for Balance summary. New commissigner to AACOG. Classes • Reduced fares for be appointed to the transportation for AACOG Board', Patrice Doerries is the Vice- Chronic seniors Dietert Center has a • Chair of the Senior Advisory • Resources available for new program Which Committee for AACOG Disease seniors needing includes Information and the Senior CARES Education assistance with utilities, and Referral resources. Coordinator for Hill Country air conditioners, and Hill Country CARES also CARES. Patrice is a Master • Diabetes ramp construction. provides this Trainer for Stanford Education • Resource Center information to Seniors. University Medical School's located at the Dieted Patient Education Program. Center. • Grief Support 4 The Hill Country Coalltion on Aging= 71+ providers serving Kerr County. Adult Protective Services Denial on the part of • Mobility / transportation • Cases for 2010 in Kerr the senior citizen, the County = caregiver, and the • Living alone without a community. caregiver Reported: 297 • Refusing to accept help • Lack of preparation on Investigated: 265 the part of the senior for crisis situations • Confirmed: 193 Lack of preparation on the part of the senior for diagnosis of serious APS Clients receiving illness / change in services: 229 health status/ finances. • Grandparents raising their grandchildren • Rising costs and diminished resources for seniors. Executive Summary The Legislative Committee on Aging was tasked with studying transportation, education, income, employment needs, housing, and health care issues as they pertain to the aging population. The Committee met on five different occasions to discuss the above referenced issues. The testimony and information provided to the Committee during these hearings can be organized into four general findings. First, a lack of information about the availability of resources is a formidable barrier to accessing services for both caregivers and the elderly population. The Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS) has worked to increase knowledge of available resources, but without legislative support, DADS will not be able to achieve its goal. Second, regarding health care, concern over reduced provider rates for Medicaid and Medicare was discussed often in Committee hearings. Providers caring for seniors are reliant on Medicaid and Medicare, making it difficult for geriatric specialists to run their clinics. Nursing homes assisted living facilities, adult day care, and hospice care are also seeing increases in the utilization and acuity level of care. These trends are leading to higher costs while reimbursement rates remain stagnant or reduced. Third, transportation continues to prove difficult for many seniors, particularly in rural areas; Even large metropolitan areas like Dallas/Fort Worth lack adequate transportation options for seniors. Fourth, as the elderly population continues to grow and live longer, many have either re- entered the workforce on a full or part-time basis. Others have postponed retiring due to a lack of retirement funds. Employer- sponsored retirement plans only make -up a small portion of the average senior income because few employees have access to retirement plans. Overall, the needs of the senior population are prevalent and will continue to grow exponentially;' With the baby boomer population entering retirement, the state must begin working immediately to address the needs of these individuals. In its evaluation of these findings, the Legislative Committee on Aging developed seven recommendations, which are presented starting on page 25 of this report. Legislative Committee on Aging Report, 82 Leg Page 2'