| Mary, a 74-year-old Florida woman, suffered a | | | | are providing those services instead of an agency |
| stroke. She needed help with bathing, dressing, | | | | worker. |
| food shopping, meal preparation, laundry and | | | | Today, the grants are available in 12 more states |
| housekeeping. Her state Medicaid plan covered the | | | | - Alabama, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, |
| cost of a home-health care worker to provide | | | | Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Rhode |
| those services, but the local agencies were | | | | Island, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia. |
| short-staffed and couldn't send helpers on the | | | | According to the Cash and Counseling website, |
| schedule Anna needed. | | | | the program was created because, "family |
| So her daughter took time off work to care for | | | | caregivers are the backbone of the long-term |
| Mary. Soon after, Mary and her daughter learned | | | | care system, providing millions of hours of care |
| about Cash and Counseling, a non-traditional | | | | every year for no compensation and frequently |
| Medicaid program pioneered by New Jersey, | | | | at great cost to their own emotional health. |
| Florida and Arkansas with seed grants from the | | | | They're burned out and exhausted from juggling |
| U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, | | | | work, family responsibilities, and caregiving. In |
| the Administration on Aging and The Robert | | | | addition, many caregivers have to reduce their |
| Wood Johnson Foundation. | | | | work hours or even give up their jobs to take |
| Cash & Counseling participants may use their | | | | care of their loved ones. By supporting caregivers, |
| Medicaid-provided personal assistance budgets to | | | | we're helping them hang in longer, and, hopefully, |
| hire their own personal care aides as well as | | | | relieving some of their stress. Keep in mind, that |
| purchase items or services, including home | | | | even with Cash & Counseling support, family |
| modifications that help them live independently. By | | | | caregivers are typically paid lower-than-average |
| redirecting personal assistance funds from | | | | wages and, in most cases, are paid for only a |
| agencies to consumers themselves, Cash & | | | | small fraction of the hours of service they |
| Counseling allows people to hire whomever they | | | | provide." |
| want to provide their care and decide for | | | | To apply for the program, elders apply through |
| themselves if they would rather hire a home | | | | Medicaid. They are assessed in the same way |
| health aide to cook for them, or pay a friend or | | | | they would be for traditional agency-provided |
| relative to do it. The services paid for by the | | | | services. If they choose the Cash and Counseling |
| state are all part of the elder's authorized Medicaid | | | | option, they work with the program's staff to |
| care plan. What's different is that, in many cases, | | | | develop an individual budget and care plan. |
| family members and friends chosen by the elder | | | | |