Long Term Care News and Views Sharing Information about Home and Community-Based Long Term Care Services Planning for Elders in the Central City* Volume 14, Issue 11* December 2009 IHSS CHANGES CREATE CHAOS AND COMMUNITY RESPONSE Because of the confusion regarding the hastily mandated “new requirements” re- garding IHSS providers (provider enrollment forms, fingerprinting, unannounced home vis- its, background checks, felony prohibitions), it is hectic at the IHSS offices due to a high volume of calls from workers and people showing up with many questions. Consumers and caregivers are very worried and confused. (See CRCL page 4 for more on IHSS cuts) This is the situation statewide, as counties have been told they need to implement the new requirements but are given no direction from the state as to how to go about this. At the SF Public Authority they are trying to mitigate the chaos by telling consumers not to change providers right now and keep the workers they have. They are telling providers to hold onto the enrollment forms they have received from the state and not to do anything just yet. No one knows what to do although DAAS and the Public Authority are working with the community post haste on ways to implement the changes. The IHSS-Health Task Force has been working on ways to address the crisis that is no longer looming, but has landed. A considerable amount of time was spent at the last meeting discussing how we as a community can address the problems that are erupting because of the Governor’s attack on the IHSS program. The task force unequivocally supports Next IHSS- Health Task Force the consumers right to choose who their home- Thursday December 3rd 10:30 A.M.-12:00 Noon care workers are. The task force agreed that IHSS Consortium the City and State should follow the federal 1453 Mission St. #520 standard against employment discrimination and that people with felony convictions should Did you know you can contribute not be categorically denied employment. to Planning for Elders on-line? (continued on Page 7) Visit our website: The PECC office will be closed on the www.planningforelders.org following dates: —Thursday November 26th and Friday Inside this Issue: Senior Spotlight: Alex MacDonald Pg 2 November 27th (Thanksgiving) Community Issues Pg 3 —Tuesday December 15th (Staff retreat) Consumer Rights for Community Living Pg 4 —Thursday December 24th and HAT Pg 5 Senior Survival School Pg 6 Friday December 25th (Christmas) Upcoming Events and News Briefs Pg 7 —Thursday December 31st and Elder Women’s Initiative Pg.8 Friday January 1st (New Year’s Day) Calendar Pg.9 PECC HOLIDAY PARTY FRI DECEMBER 11 3:00 - 6:00 (see p. 7) Senior Spotlight: Alex MacDonald This month’ Senior Spotlight illuminates the enlight- ened Alexander MacDonald. Despite some recent hip problems he remains an exemplary and upstand- ing member of the Planning for Elders family. Of course we know Alex is very hip, and extremely ac- tive too. He has been involved with the organization since 1998 and has taken a leadership role with many dif- ferent projects from discharge planning advocacy, HERO (Health Education, Research and Outreach), CRCL, budget advocacy, and Senior Survival School. He is on the SSS Advisory Committee and one of the volunteers who make the SSS sessions possible. Alex is also a leader of the HealthCare Action Team where he plays a skeleton who was sent home too soon in our hospital discharge play. He is also on the DAAS Commission on Aging Advisory council, which he really likes because it helps him keep his ear to the ground and stay on top of the issues. Alex was born in Montreal Canada June 4 19XX and lived in Canada as a child before moving to Texas, Iowa and finally Bakersfield, California, where he spent his formative years. He spent some time in London and Santa Cruz. In 1966 he moved to San Fran- cisco in the height of the hippie era and he considers himself to be one of the last surviving Flower Children. He had various sales jobs through the years. His favorite one was at Silva Antiques on Polk Street. Eventually he became a homecare worker out of necessity, taking care of an elderly sick aunt and two great uncles. After they passed, Alex continued to work in home- care and became a professional caregiver in 1989. Mr. MacDonald was active in the union (UHW and SEIU) and is going to become trained as a shop steward even though he is retired. Alex also likes to paint. He will be taking art classes in January and looks forward to starting to paint again. Alex has his own place af- ter spending 8 years in an SRO, which he describes as an “eye opening experience.” Alex can be counted on to speak eloquently and with passion at press conferences, legislative hearings, at meetings and around the office. He has a love hate relationship with a para- keet named Tiger Lilly that is a frequent commentator on his telephone calls. It is difficult to summarize all of the contributions Alex has made to this organization over the years, but suffice to say they have been numerous and invaluable. We love Alex and almost always appreciate the participation and energy he brings to the table. Thank you Alex for being part of Planning for Elders and making a difference in everyone’s lives! Hats off to Alexander MacDonald. Page 2 James Keys Leaves SAN Planning for Elders has worked closely with Senior Action Network through the years and we are sad that our beloved colleague James Keys has moved on to new work. In his goodbye to the community he says: “Dear Friends and Fellow Advocates, ...I would like to thank all of you for the support given over the years. From the march on Congress- woman Pelosi’s office to ask her support of HR 676, to creating and having the Mayor of San Francisco sign the resolution to urge Congress to hold hearings on HR 676, the Silver Tsunami that saw over 800 seniors demand from the Mayor of San Francisco that he fund senior meal programs to having Dr. Margaret Flowers speak to SAN’s membership, I have done everything I could for this organization. Thanks so much to you all. My experience at SAN has been productive, and my work with you has been rewarding. Sincerely, James Keys” James can be reached at James.Shaye.Keys@gmail.com International Intern: Nicole Stulier This month we were fortunate to have as our interna- tional guest intern the fabulous Nicole Stulier. She is the director of nursing at a senior living facility in Lan- dau, Germany and knows the issues that seniors and people with disabilities face very well. She provided us with information about the medical care people in Ger- many receive. They have universal coverage and a much better system of care. Everyone has healthcare in Germany. Nicole was studying community organizing with the Midwest Academy and has been trav- eling the country working at various organizations that are doing organizing work. Nicole helped with the Senior Survival School in Bayview and got to meet community leaders from many different local organizations. We hope that she had a good experience here at our organization. We really enjoyed hosting her and introducing her to the work we do. Big thanks go out to Nicole for all her help and for all the good work she is doing in the USA and Germany. Danke schön! Page 3 Consumer Rights for Community Living Cuts and Changes to IHSS As IHSS consumers were receiving letters notifying them of impending cuts to their ser- vices, CRCL moved into high gear to respond to the situation. Our phones we ringing off the hook, and CRCL’s peer advocates spent many hours giving advice to callers about their right to appeal a cut in services, and updating them on the lawsuit filed to block the cuts. We also worked on getting the word out to consumers about where to go for help in ap- pealing. We ran ads in some neighborhood papers, helped organize a TV show with Anni Chung, and were on four radio shows talking about the IHSS crisis. CRCL Peer Advocates have been on panels to talk about our work supporting consumer rights, and we have plans to conduct workshops in housing complexes for seniors and people with disabilities. We worked with the HAT team to develop and record a skit on the IHSS cuts (“I Hope Someone Survives”) that will be part of these presentations. Although the cuts have not yet gone through, as there was a preliminary injunction, other changes have been implemented. One of the changes to IHSS regulations is the provision that starting November 1, all new IHSS providers will have to be fingerprinted and undergo a background check at their own expense - approximately $70. Existing providers have to complete this process by June 30, 2010. Anyone ever convicted of a felony or a “serious misdemeanor” will be excluded from being a provider. Since almost half of all IHSS recipi- ents are cared for by a family member, this change in policy has serious implications for family caregivers. Fundamentally, it denies the consumers their right to choose who they want caring for them. Attorney Peter Sheehan of the Social Justice Law Project filed a lawsuit on November 12th challenging the legality of these new regulations. The petition to the court has compelling stories of people who would be excluded from providing IHSS to their family members: a woman with a felony conviction 33 years ago who has cared for her elderly mother for three years; another woman with a felony conviction over 25 years ago who has been car- ing for her disabled mother for eight years; a woman with a felony 18 years ago who has served as her severely disabled son’s IHSS provider for the last 16 years. The IHSS program plays a crucial role in keeping people out of nursing homes and in the community as long as they choose. If this new policy isn’t reversed, many IHSS consum- ers will be deprived of the right to hire the people they want to care for them, and many providers will be denied the ability to do work that is important to them. Page 4 PLANNING FOR ELDERS ACTIVITIES: HealthCare Action Team: November Update November means the holiday season is upon us. Can’t we all just feel the joy? Most of our work this month has been on fighting the IHSS cuts and new requirements. HAT, along with James Keys of SAN and the IHSS Task Force organized an large rally, the IHSS Earthquake on October 22. Many community partners joined in this effort to demonstrate the impact these cuts would have. We created a thunderous earthquake of stomping feet to let City Hall know that if the cuts to IHSS go through a disaster of enormous proportions. Fortunately the preliminary injunction that was issued by Judge Claudia Wilken prevented the cuts, for now. This rally was a bit of a celebration with the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) and SEIU/UHW being well represented, and despite their differences everyone joined in with solidarity to defend homecare. At the exact same time this rally was happening, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals was hearing the case against the elimination of the Medi-Cal “optional benefits.” The news on that front was not as positive, as the court did not rule to block the cuts as people who rely on such optional benefits as vision, dental, podiatry, audiology depend. STAY TUNED TO HAT FOR MORE ON THIS AND ALL OTHER ISSUES December 9 HAT Meeting Wednesday Bayanihan Community Center 1010 Mission (at 6th) 12:00 - 1:30 P.M. Please call James for more information (415) 703-0188 Ext 304 Page 5 PLANNING FOR ELDER ACTIVITIES: Congratulations to the Bayview Graduates! Planning for Elders collaborated with Network for Elders and the Aging and Disability Re- source Center to carry out the first Senior Survival School in the Bayview in over 10 years. The class was held at the Bayview Hunters Point YMCA. Participants came from the Bay- view, the Mission District, South of Market and the Tenderloin. It was very exciting to rein- vigorate our long standing relationship with Network for Elders and to begin a new relation- ship with the newly created Aging and Disability Resource Center. Participants learned about a vast array of community services, programs, and advocacy work. The first day we covered Transportation. There were a lot of questions about the changes to the MUNI bus and rail lines. As you may know, major service cuts and changes will go into effect on Saturday December 5th. (For more information call 3-1-1) The other topics including IHSS, Medi-Cal, Medicare, Social Security, and Adult Day Healthcare were covered through a combination of engaging talks, interactive activities, and even a Jeopardy game! While some of the information was difficult to hear, for exam- ple about the cuts to IHSS and Medi-Cal, it was important to talk directly with the folks who work in the programs and try to make sure that as many people as possible can access the services. The participants had some questions for them. They promised to bring back the concerns to their agencies. We also talked a lot about advocacy and organizing, with James talking about HAT, and Alex and Contance talking about the work of the CRLC. This Senior Survival School had a few new presenters, including Camille Borgo from Hos- pice by the Bay. Camille talked about the delicate area of end-of-life care. She helped to demystify what hospice is and how to access the care. Participants really appreciated the honest and caring approach Camille brought. Another new presenter was Valerie Coleman from Rebuilding Together. They do home repairs and renovations for low-income seniors and non-profits. It’s a great program. You can contact Sarah if you want more information on how to apply. Thank you to everyone who made this another great Senior Survival School class!! The graduating class, with Supervisor Sophie Maxwell. A fabulous time was had by all! Page 6 News and Events Planning for Elders Holiday Party All are welcome Let’s celebrate our accomplishments this year! Friday December 11th 3 P.M.-6 P.M. Food! Drinks! Music! Fun! At the office: 965 Mission St. Suite 550 Please call to R.S.V.P. (415) 703-0188 (IHSS cont. from page 1) Members of the organization All of Us or None attended the task force meeting and discussed how they were able to change local policy regarding initial disclosure of felony convictions on applications for civil service positions. IHSS COMMUNITY RESPONSE Part of the community response against the IHSS new requirements has taken the form of a Board of Supervisors resolution opposing the blanket prohibition that people with any felony conviction are barred from serving as IHSS homecare workers. This resolution, sponsored and introduced by John Avalos was introduced to the board on November 17. Members of PECC, SOS, All of Us or None, and Legal Services for Prisoners with Chil- dren spoke in support of the legislation. It has been referred to the Community Operations and Neighborhood Services committee and it will be heard there on Monday December 14th at 10:30 am at SF City Hall. The resolution urges the Department of Social Services to immediately withdraw All County Letter No. 09-70 and reverse the unlawful absolute ban preventing people with previous felony or serious misdemeanor convictions from serving as homecare providers. It indicates that the felony prohibition is overly broad and violates local, state as well as federal law. Furthermore a categorical blanket prohibition of anyone with a felony convic- tion disproportionately affects low income communities of color. This resolution is but one part of a larger movement to preserve the vital IHSS pro- gram that enables seniors and people with disabilities to remain in their homes. The state may attack our programs and unleash chaos at county departments across California, but we the people are organizing and are poised to fight back! Page 7 Elder Women’s Initiative: AGEnda for Action from the Women’s Foundation report: AGEenda for Action and their website California's aging population is rapidly increasing in number and diversity, and is expected to double in size by 2030. The ongoing recession and state budget crisis continue to cripple California’s economy and the state’s ability to fund essential safety net programs relied upon by elders. Elder women are further vulnerable in terms of health and economic security due to their roles as caregivers and wage earners. Recognizing the magnitude of these issues and the untapped potential of elder women’s leadership, the Women's Foundation of California launched the Elder Women’s Initiative in 2008 with partner organiza- tions. They brought together diverse elder women and their allies, women with courage, to advocate for policies that allow all Californians to age with well-being, dignity and economic and health security. The report presents the Initiative’s findings and provides recommendations for how funders, policymakers, and advocates can ensure all Californians age with well-being, dignity and economic security. It can be downloaded at www.womensfoundca.org. Exciting Progress and Next Steps: The Elder Women's Initiative has engaged in the following activities to build upon past relationships and continue moving the work forward:  Connecting California 2010 Statewide Convening: our statewide conference for grant partners, donor activists and community leaders will provide an incredible opportunity to be part of strengthening and improving a broad-based, multi-issue, intergenerational social justice movement in California. A Pre- Convening Track for Elder Women’s Initiative will bring together key partners for a deeper discussion on the Initiative’s findings and recommendations for how funders, policymakers and advocates can partner to advance elder women’s policies.  The Women’s Policy Institute Elder Issues Team is going on year two. The Women’s Policy Institute piloted the Elder Issues team in 2008 to increase the role elder women play in advocating for public policies that improve the quality of life for elder women in California. The team’s bill, AB 324 (Beall, D - San Jose) ‘Elder Economic Dignity Act of 2009’ reached the Governor’s desk with bipartisan support and the support of over 100 organizations statewide. Although the bill was ultimately vetoed, advoca- tes are still fighting to ensure the economic security for families and seniors in California. Institute’s current elder issues team is in the process of identifying their bill for next legislative year  The Foundation will replicate the Institute by working with locally-based organizations and women’s funds to build Institutes for elder women advocates and their allies in three key regions of the US. In year one, the Foundation will develop criteria for selecting sites and organizations that are interested in replicating an Elder Women’s Policy Institute. In year two, the Foundation will work to launch Institu- tes that allow elder women, primarily from low-income communities and communities of color, to build skills to advocate for policy goals and mobilize constituencies that allow all women to age with dignity, economic security and access to affordable health care where they choose. To learn more about the Elder Women's Initiative please contact Program Officer Karla Rodriguez at karlar@womensfoundca.org. HELP US REDUCE OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT If you would like to receive Long Term Care News and Views by email (as a pdf file or text only word file) instead of by post, send us an email at: sarah@planningforelders.org. Page 8 Community Calendar: December 09 Consumer-Oriented Long Term Care Activities DATE ACTIVITY TIME & PLACE MORE INFO? Mon—Fri Computer Open Lab Call Ahead, (415) 703-0188 965 Mission Street Suite 550 Wed. Dec. 2 LaShaun. Williams DAAS Commission 9:30 am, City Hall, room 416 355-3509 Noon-1:30 pm HealthCare Action Team 1010 Mission (at 6th) James Chionsini Wed Dec. 9 (HAT) Bayanihan Center 703-0188 ext 304 (NOTE NEW LOCATION!) Long Term Care Coordinating 1:00-3:00 pm Thurs. Dec. 10 Bill.Haskell@sfgov.org Council 1 South Van Ness, 2nd Floor Thurs. Dec. 10 Senior Action Network (SAN) 10:00-12:00 Unitarian Universalist SAN General Meeting Church 1187 Franklin @ Geary 546-1333 1:00 - 2:30 ILWU Office Thurs. Dec. 10 California Alliance for Retired Jody Reid 1188 Franklin Street # 4 Americans (CARA) 550-0828 Coalition of Agencies Serving Patty Clement Mon. Dec. 14 3-5:00 Call contact for location the Elderly (CASE) 452-3500 Wed. Dec. 16 SAN Senior Housing Action 1:00 - 3pm Christina Olague Committee (SHAC) 965 Mission St Suite 700 546-1333 3rd Thurs. PECC Board of 5pm—6:30pm Alice Dueker Quarterly Directors Mtg. 965 Mission St, Suite 700 703-0188 ext 306 Thurs. Dec. Sarah Jarmon PECC Newsletter mailing 965 Mission St., Suite 550 17 703-0188 ext. 302 9:30 - 11:30 am Fri. Dec. 18 Debbi Lerman HSN General Meeting LightHouse for the Blind and Visually 415-668-0444 Impaired, 214 Van Ness Avenue. Mayors Office on Fri. Dec. 18 Mayor’s Disability Council 1-4 City Hall Room 400 Disability 415-554-6789 Fri. Dec. 18 SSS Advisory Committee 1-2:30 965 Mission St. Suite 700 Sarah Jarmon 703-0188 Planning for Elders Board of Directors:  Harrison Parker,  Alan Coleman, MD  Norma Satten  Pat Hess DDS (President) (Vice President) (Secretary)  Walter DeVaughn  Michael Kwok  Nader Shabahangi, PhD Page 9 If you would like to receive Long Term Care News and Views, CLIP form and return to: PECC 965 Mission St, Suite 550, San Francisco, CA 94103 Name___________________________________________________ Organization_____________________________________________ Address ________________________________________________ City___________________________________ Zip _____________ Phone:_____________ Fax: ____________email: ______________ I would prefer to get my newsletter by Mail email Enclosed is a donation (appreciated but not required) $12 $25 Other $_____ Contribute on line at www.planningforelders.org or www.networkforgood.org Long Term Care News and Views is published by Planning for Elders (PECC). Production by PECC Staff and Volunteers: Alice Dueker Executive Director, Sarah Jarmon, Senior Survival School®; Donna Willmott, Consumer Rights for Community Living, James Chionsini, HealthCare Action Team, PECC Volunteers Constance Smith, Lenny Reiter, Fran Chan, Bruce Allison, Alex Macdonald, Cordell Thomp- son, Tricia Webb. We would like to hear from you! Send information and commentary to sarah@planningforelders.org or fax to (415) 703-0186.