Silver Haired Legislature delegate travel to Jefferson City

Southeast Missourian

Members of Missouri's Silver Haired Legislature want to make sure state lawmakers know exactly what is on their minds.

That's why area delegates traveled to the state capital in Jefferson City, Mo., last week to participate in a mock legislative session and reach a consensus on priority issues that they will turn around and present to the Missouri General Assembly.

"That's what our group is all about -- to be watchdogs and let legislators know what needs to be done," said Loretta Schneider, Silver Haired Legislature representative from Cape Girardeau.

Missouri was the first state in the nation to develop a Silver Haired Legislature in 1973, according to Ruth Dockins, SHL coordinator with the Southeast Missouri Area Agency on Aging. The program is funded through the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, formerly the Missouri Division of Aging, and coordinated through each of the 10 area agencies on aging in the state.

Southeast Missouri's Silver Haired Legislature is made up of three parts: the Southeast Region, the Ozark Foothills Region and the Bootheel Region.

Priority issues

Four out of five priority issues brought to October's state meeting by the SEMO Silver Haired Legislature were included in the top five bills to be presented to Missouri's General Assembly.

Priority bills chosen were: Protection of the Elderly, Funding for Silver Haired Legislature, Funding for Home Delivered Meals, Medicaid Eligibility Limits and Medicaid Reimbursement for Residential Care Facilities.

The Improvement of Nursing Home Environments and Nursing Home Administrator Qualifications bill from the SEMO Silver Haired Legislature was not selected as one of the state's top five issues.

"It is always a learning experience -- meeting with others, learning that your concerns are their concerns, that we can make a difference in getting some of these ideas passed," said Schneider, elected chair of the Southeast Missouri SHL last spring.

The Silver Haired Legislature is a formally elected body of residents 60 years of age or older that promote conscientious legislative advocacy for Missouri's older adults.

All 30 senators and 120 representatives are volunteers who serve without pay.

Following the statewide conference, delegates return to their respective areas and talk to their legislators about the recent session and the possibility of becoming a sponsor for the chosen priority bills as well as other bills that passed.

Growing visibility

Over the years, the SHL has grown in visibility and esteem, said Schneider.

Many priority bills brought to the General Assembly by the SHL have passed since its beginning, including bills concerning: a revised guardianship code, a revised nursing home inspection law, living wills, the enforcement of auto liability insurance, appropriation for home delivered meals, and improved regulations for managed care and HMOs.

jgosche@semissourian.com

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