Sec. 17b-371. Long-Term Care Reinvestment account. Report.
Sec. 17b-371. Long-Term Care Reinvestment account. Report. (a) There is established within the General Fund, a separate, nonlapsing account which shall be known
as the "Long-Term Care Reinvestment account". The account shall contain any moneys
required by law and this section to be deposited in the account. Any funds resulting
from the enhanced federal medical assistance percentage received by the state under
the Money Follows the Person demonstration project pursuant to Section 6071 of the
Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 shall be deposited in the account.
(b) Money held in the account shall be expended by the Commissioner of Social
Services, in consultation with the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management,
in accordance with this subsection and the plan developed pursuant to subsection (c) of
this section, to:
(1) Provide funds for programs and services that provide cost-effective home and
community-based alternatives to institutional care in nursing home facilities, including,
but not limited to, occupational therapy, homemaker services, companion services,
meals on wheels, adult day care, personal care services, transportation, mental health
counseling, care management, elderly foster care, minor home modifications and assisted living services;
(2) Provide funds for rate increases (A) for home health agencies and other providers
of home care services that are in addition to any rate increases authorized pursuant to
sections 17b-242 and 17b-343 to meet the actual costs of care, and (B) for increased
wages for transition coordinators under the Money Follows the Person demonstration
project;
(3) Provide funds to develop, improve and increase the long-term care services
workforce, including, but not limited to, training, education and other incentives;
(4) Provide funds to improve information technology and systems used to track
costs and savings associated with the provision of home and community-based services
and to improve access to information on long-term care programs and services for the
elderly and disabled;
(5) Encourage the purchase of precertified long-term care insurance through the
Connecticut Partnership for Long-Term Care by covering the costs of the premiums of
individuals for six months;
(6) Pay the cost of relocating nursing home residents to other facilities if necessary
to protect the health and safety of such residents, maintaining and operating a facility
pending correction of deficiencies or closure, and reimbursing residents for the loss of
funds in personal fund accounts pursuant to subsection (b) of section 17b-106;
(7) Provide grants to existing nursing home facilities to make facility changes, improvements and modifications to support home and community-based services and programs; or
(8) Provide grants to promote the adoption of building designs and principles of
alternative nursing homes, such as Eden Alternative, Green House or Small House nursing homes, to improve the quality of life for long-term care facility residents.
(c) The Commissioner of Social Services, in consultation with the Secretary of
the Office of Policy and Management, shall develop and implement a written plan for
purposes of the allocation of funds pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, including,
but not limited to, application procedures and establishment of eligibility criteria and
requirements for recipients of assistance. The commissioner shall submit a copy of the
written plan to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance
of matters relating to human services and appropriations and the budgets of state
agencies.
(d) On or before January 1, 2009, and annually thereafter, the Commissioner of
Social Services shall submit a report, in accordance with section 11-4a, to the Governor
and to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of
matters relating to human services and appropriations and the budgets of state agencies
concerning the long-term care reinvestment account established under this section. The
report shall include financial information concerning the money in the account, including, but not limited to, information on the number, amount and type of expenditures
from the fund during the prior calendar year and estimates of the impact of the fund on
present and future Medicaid expenditures.
(P.A. 08-180, S. 3.)
History: P.A. 08-180 effective July 1, 2008.