Appropriation for Caring Homes Initiative

Representative Barbara L’Italien (D-Andover) today announced that a $2,000,000 appropriation for a Caring Homes initiative project was included in the FY06 Conference Committee Budget and voted on favorably by the House and Senate. The budget is now on its way to the Governor for approval.

Currently a small pilot program at Elder Affairs, Caring Homes is a housing with services demonstration project which would delay or prevent nursing home placement and enable a MassHealth enrollee to live in the home of an individual or relative, with the exception of a spouse or dependent child, where they would provide their long term supports and 24/7 care in exchange for a stipend and would provide for coordination of care and respite services. The Caring Homes demonstration project provides the Commonwealth with a cost-effective and humane way to support families in their essential efforts to care for their aging relatives.

“Under the Caring Homes program, a son or daughter could take in their parent and provide a home for them in the community, said Representative L’Italien. The stipend would lessen the financial burden on the caregiver and would still be two-thirds the cost of a nursing home placement. The program also has potential to receive 50% federal reimbursement. It is a win-win for our seniors and for our taxpayers.”

The Caring Homes initiative is approximately 65% of the cost of a nursing home placement and would save taxpayers an average of $20,000 per year. Most importantly, the Caring Home initiative will allow elders to stay in the homes and communities which they have been a part of for years, bringing a sense of confidence and joy to their lives. It has proven to be a success in several other states and is sure to be one in Massachusetts as well.

Georgetown Fire Department Grant

REPRESENTATIVE BARBARA L’ITALIEN ANNOUNCES
GEORGETOWN FIRE DEPARTMENT GRANT

Boston, MA – Representative Barbara L’Italien (D-Andover) announced today that the Georgetown Fire Department was selected by the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs (EOEA) and its Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) to receive a $1,991.75 grant under the Volunteer Fire Assistance Program (VFA) funded by the National Fire Plan (NFP).

DCR’s Division of State Parks and Recreation/Bureau of Forest Fire Control promotes wildland fire protection and training for cities and towns throughout the Commonwealth. Many communities have call and volunteer departments, who rely on outside sources of funding to provide for the necessary equipment that they cannot afford through the normal budgetary process.

“I am extremely pleased that the Town of Georgetown has been selected to receive this grant from the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs and the Department of Conservation and Recreation,” commented L’Italien. “It is important that Georgetown has the proper equipment to ensure that the town and its’ people are safe.”

VFA funds are made available to DCR through the USDA Forest Service to assist call or volunteer fire departments that provide service primarily to a community with a population of 10,000 or less. Funding is available on a 50% reimbursement basis. NFP funding provides assistance to (1) high risk communities adjacent to federal lands, (2) those communities working in partnership with federal firefighting agencies in responding to wildland fires, or (3) high risk communities, not associated with federal lands.

Division of Autism Created

Representative Barbara L’Italien (D-Andover) today announced that a $1,200,000 appropriation for a new Division on Autism was included in the FY06 Conference Committee Budget and voted on favorably by the House and Senate. The budget is now on its way to the Governor for approval.

The new Division of Autism will be operated under the Department of Mental Retardation. The idea had been discussed and worked on over the past 2 years with a series of focus groups and interviews of over 300 children and families. The division would initially address the needs of autistic children ages 3-18 by offering Information & Referral; Casemanagement coordination and advocacy; and much-needed services of respite, intensive supports and social/recreational. Working within the existing autism support centers statewide, this can maximize the funding on service provision. There has been a conservative estimate that 10,000 children would fit the eligibility criteria.

Autism is the most widely diagnosed developmental disability in the nation, affecting 1 in 166 children, a ten-fold increase over the past 20 years. It is more common than the sum of all childhood cancers, muscular dystrophy, juvenile diabetes and cystic fibrosis combined. Every day, 66 children are diagnosed with autism… nearly 3 per hour.