LEGISLATIVE REPORT: 1998 LEGISLATIVE SESSION DETAILED FURTHER

Missouri has one of the highest percentages of senior citizens in the country. In many cases our elderly citizens and their families need special assistance in a variety of areas such as healthcare, daycare and sometimes assistance with daily chores. This past legislative session, the Legislature appropriated additional funding for many programs which assist our seniors and we passed new legislation to provide additional financial assistance to seniors and the families who care for their elderly loved ones.

SB 675 - Increases the qualifying income levels used to determine eligibility and the amount of credit for seniors/disabled veterans for property tax credit claimed on the individual income tax form. This is known as the "Circuit Breaker." Also, provides a $1,000 income tax deduction for those who care for elderly dependents in their homes, the dependent's home, or if the dependent does not receive Medicaid or state funding while residing in certain care facilities.

HB 1536 - Currently the Department of Revenue can require drivers to take a driver's test if there is "good cause" to believe that a driver is incompetent or unqualified to drive. This bill will now allow family members or healthcare providers to report to the Department of Revenue if they are concerned that an elderly family member is no longer able to drive safely and competently.

This bill addresses a concern voiced by many families concerning elderly loved ones who suffer from dementia or Alzheimer's but who refuse to voluntarily surrender their car keys. To protect the elderly from harassment, only one report per year is allowed to be made. The reports are required to be kept confidential.

HB 1694 - Authorizes people aged 65 or older to attend college tuition-free if they satisfy entrance requirements for admission.

HB 1907 - This bill provides further protection to our seniors who reside in nursing homes by making it a crime for a nursing home to hire someone with a felony criminal background.

HB 1008 - Requires utility companies to provide bills in large type or Braille upon request.

---

This year's budget contained additional funding for several existing programs for seniors, as well as money for a new CLAIM program.

* The Missouri Care Options Program received $15 million this year. This is an increase of $263,000 over last year's budget and will allow the division of aging to serve approximately 12,000 additional senior citizens. Services include in-home care providers, respite services and adult day care facilities.

* "Meals on Wheels" received $6.1 million. This is an increase of $1.2 million over last year's budget. Currently, 108,000 seniors receive these meals and the additional funding will allow approximately 2,500 additional seniors to receive meals. Also, HB 1476 of this year limits the amount of money which can be spent on meals for those who need them.

* The Alzheimer's Services Grants received $250,000 this year to provide assistance to the victims and families of those suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. Some of the services provided under this program include adult services, overnight stays, daycare and care-giver support.

* The division of aging is responsible for investigating complaints of abuse or neglect of seniors in nursing facilities, residential care facilities and adult day care programs. $370,420 was appropriated this year to hire seven additional staff to investigate complaints in a more timely manner against these facilities.

* In 1993, the Community Leaders Assisting the Insured of Missouri (CLAIM) Program was created to assist seniors in the often complex and confusing area of health insurance and Medicare and Medicaid. Since 1993, the program has trained 452 volunteer counselors who have served more than 21,000 senior and disabled Medicare beneficiaries and their families with corrected billings, successful appeals, and insurance evaluations saving beneficiaries more than $1.5 million. This year, $100,000 was appropriated to expand this important program.

State Rep. David Schwab represents the 157th district.