HB2461 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB094 09552 DRJ 39803 b

94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB2461

Introduced 02/17/05, by Rep. Sidney H. Mathias

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

320 ILCS 65/10
320 ILCS 65/15

Amends the Family Caregiver Act. Makes the Act applicable to family caregivers for adults over age 18 who are disabled. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning aging.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Family Caregiver Act is amended by changing Sections 10 and 15 as follows:

(320 ILCS 65/10)

Sec. 10. Legislative intent. It is the intent of the General Assembly to establish a multi-faceted family caregiver support program to assist unpaid family caregivers and grandparents or other older individuals who are relative caregivers, who are informal providers of in-home and community care to older individuals, or children, or adults with disabilities.

Services provided under this program shall do the following:

(1) Provide information, relief, and support to family and other unpaid caregivers of older individuals, and children, and adults with disabilities.

(2) Encourage family members to provide care for their family members who are older individuals, and children, and adults with disabilities.

(3) Provide temporary substitute support services or living arrangements to allow a period of relief or rest for caregivers.

(4) Be provided in the least restrictive setting available consistent with the individually assessed needs of older individuals, and children, and adults with disabilities.

(5) Include services appropriate to the needs of family members caring for older individuals, including older individuals with dementia, and children, and adults with disabilities including older individuals with dementia.

(6) Provide family caregivers with services that enable them to make informed decisions about current and future care plans, solve day-to-day caregiving problems, learn essential care giving skills, and locate services that may strengthen their capacity to provide care.

(Source: P.A. 93-864, eff. 8-5-04.)

(320 ILCS 65/15)

Sec. 15. Definitions. In this Act:

"Adult with disabilities" means an individual who is over 18 years of age and disabled.

"Caregiver" or "family caregiver" means an adult family member, or another individual, who is an informal provider of in-home and community care to an older individual, or a grandparent or older individual who is a relative caregiver.

"Child" or "children" means an individual or individuals 18 years of age or under.

"Department" means the Department on Aging.

"Eligible participant" means a family caregiver or a grandparent or older individual who is a relative caregiver.

"Family caregiver support services" includes, but is not limited to, the following:

(1) Information to caregivers about available services.

(2) Assistance to caregivers in gaining access to the services.

(3) Individual counseling, organization of support groups, and caregiver training for caregivers to assist the caregivers in making decisions and solving problems relating to their caregiving roles.

(4) Respite care to enable caregivers to be temporarily relieved from their caregiving responsibilities.

(5) Supplemental services, on a limited basis, to complement the care provided by the caregivers.

(6) Other services as identified by the Department and defined by rule.

"Frail individual" means an older individual who is determined to be functionally impaired because the individual (i) is unable to perform from at least 2 activities of daily living without substantial human assistance such as , including verbal reminding, physical cueing, or supervision or (ii) due to a cognitive or other mental impairment, requires substantial supervision because the individual behaves in a manner that poses a serious health or safety hazard to the individual or to another individual.

"Grandparent or older individual who is a relative caregiver" means a grandparent or step-grandparent of a child or an adult with disabilities, or a relative of a child or an adult with disabilities by blood or marriage, who:

(1) lives with the child or the adult with disabilities;

(2) is the primary caregiver for the child or the adult with disabilities because the child's biological or adoptive parents of the child or the adult with disabilities are unable or unwilling to serve as the primary caregiver for the child or the adult with disabilities; and

(3) has a legal relationship to the child or the adult with disabilities, such as legal custody or guardianship, or is raising the child or caring for the adult with disabilities informally.

"Informal provider" means an individual who is not compensated for the care he or she provides.

"Older individual" means an individual who is 60 years of age or older, except for a grandparent or older individual who is a relative caregiver.

"Respite care" means substitute supports or living arrangements provided on an intermittent, occasional basis. The term includes, but is not limited to, in-home respite care, adult day care, child care, and institutional care. The term also includes respite care as defined in Section 2 of the Respite Program Act to the extent that such services are allowable and participants are eligible under the National Family Caregiver Support Program.

(Source: P.A. 93-864, eff. 8-5-04.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.