Activities of Daily Living – Eight basic activities usually engaged in during the course of the day: bathing, eating, dressing, grooming, mobility (ambulation), transferring from bed to chair, and toileting (bladder & bowel control).
Administration on Aging (AoA, aka U.S. Administration on Aging) – Federal agency that funds, administrates and oversees Older Americans Act programs through the state units, area agencies on aging and the Native American Tribal Units. The AoA, created in 1965, is an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and is headed by Assistant Secretary for Aging Josefina G. Carbonell.
Adult Care Facility – Residential care homes classified as either an adult family home (3-5 residents) or an adult group home (6-16 residents). Skilled nursing services, such as medication administration, cannot be provided in adult care facilities. Many of Ohio’s adult care facilities serve residents with mental or behavioral problems.
Adult Day Care (also Adult day services) –Programs offering social and recreational activities, supervision, health services, and meals in a single setting to older adults with physical and/or cognitive disabilities. Typically open weekdays during standard business hours.
Adult Family Home – An adult care facility that provides accommodations and support services for three to five unrelated adults, and personal care services to at least three of those adults.
Adult Foster Care/Home – A live-in arrangement in which one or two adults live with, and are provided care and/or services by, an unrelated individual or family. In addition to room and board, the services include housekeeping, laundry, some personal care, and supervision with finances and medications when deemed necessary. These individuals must not be in need of 24-hour supervision. Adult foster homes are certified by area agencies on aging.
Adult Group Home – An adult care facility providing accommodations and support services for 6 to 16 unrelated adults, and providing personal care services to at least three individuals.
Adult Protective Services (APS) – Service that protects the rights of frail older adults by investigating cases of abuse, neglect, and (financial) exploitation as mandated by law.
Advance Directive – Legal document allowing people, (in case of incapacitation) to give others legally binding instructions about their preferences regarding health care decisions. Types of advance directives are living will and durable power-of-attorney for health care.
Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRC) – “One-stop shopping” through community centers that offer referrals and help people make informed decisions about their service and supports options. These centers serve as the single point of entry to the long-term care service system and are intended to make accessing a wide array of senior services easier and less time consuming.
American Association of Retired Persons (now officially known simply as AARP) – A nonprofit, nonpartisan lobbying organization advocating for improved quality of life for Americans age 50 and over. AARP, with more than 35 million members, provides a wide range of benefits and services, including an array of publications, investment opportunities and discounts on insurance, travel and other items.
Area Agency on Aging (AAA) – A local or regional agency, funded under the federal Older Americans Act thorough the state unit on aging, that plans and coordinates various social and health service programs for persons 60 years of age or older. The national network of AAA offices consists of 655 approved area agencies on agencies (not including Native American aging programs).
Assisted Living/Assisted living facility– Residences providing a “home with services” emphasizing residents’ privacy and choice. Residents typically have private rooms (only shared by choice) with bathrooms and locks on the doors. Personal care services are available on a 24-hour a day basis.
Capitation – A system of health-care payment in which set rates are established according to persons served rather than services performed.
Caregiver– Can be either informal (unpaid) or formal (usually paid). An informal caregiver is a person who provides care and assistance with various activities to a family member, friend, or neighbor. Formal caregivers are volunteers or paid care providers who are usually associated with an agency or social service system. Roughly 75 percent of all caregiving for older persons is provided by informal caregivers, i.e., family, friends and neighbors.
Care plan – (Also called service plan or treatment plan.) Written document which outlines the types and frequency of the long-term care services that a consumer receives. It may include treatment goals for the consumer for a specified time period.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) – This federal organization, known until 2001 as the Health Care Financing Administration, oversees the Medicare and Medicaid programs. The organization’s primary goal is to ensure effective, up-to-date health care coverage and to promote quality care, with little or no co-payment, for beneficiaries. It also provides information to assist consumers in choosing a variety of types of service providers through its website at www.medicare.gov.
Certification – In Medicare and Medicaid, certification refers to approval for providers to participate in those programs. Licensed facilities or agencies might elect not to be Medicare- or Medicaid-certified if they plan to provide services only to private-paying residents. Requirements for certification are specified by the federal government for each type of Medicare and Medicaid provider.
Community-Based Services – Services designed to help older and disabled people remain independent and in their own homes. These services include activities provided by senior centers, transportation, home-delivered meals or congregate meals, visiting nurses and/or home health aides, adult day care, and homemaker services.
Congregate Meals – OAA program offering hot meals in a friendly, congregate setting, such as a senior center, community center or church basement. These meals are often free or offered on the basis of donations or sliding-fee scales.
Conservatorship – A legal arrangement granted by the court in which a person chooses an individual to make personal decisions on his/her behalf. The person for whom the conservatorship is arranged must be mentally competent, but physically unable to manage his or her own affairs.
Consumer Direction – An approach to the delivery of home and community-based services allowing informed consumers to make choices about and direct the services they receive. Consumers can assess their own needs, determine how and by whom these needs should be met – including hiring family members and friends – and monitor the quality of services received.
Continuing Care Retirement Community – A community offering multiple, continuing levels of care (independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing care) – that is, a continuum of care – in different facilities within the same area or campus, giving residents the opportunity to remain in the same community if their needs change. These communities provide residential services (meals, housekeeping, laundry), social and recreational services, health care, personal care, and nursing care. CCRCs require payment of a monthly fee and, possibly, a large lump-sum entrance fee.
Continuum of Care – A term for the entire spectrum of specialized health, rehabilitative, and residential services available to the frail and chronically ill; that is, home services, independent living, assisted living and nursing home care.
Custodial Care – Nonskilled, personal care that does not include services typically provided by a doctor and/or nurse. Such care includes help with activities of daily living:bathing, dressing, eating, transferring, ambulation, and toileting, for example. In most cases, Medicare does not pay for custodial care.
Deficiency – A finding from a government inspection that a nursing home failed to meet one or more federal or state requirements.
Dementia – A term describing a group of diseases (including Alzheimer’s Disease) characterized by memory loss and other declines in mental and sometimes emotional functioning.
Disability – A limitation in physical, mental, or social activity. There are varying types (functional, occupational, learning), degrees (partial, total), and durations (temporary, permanent) of disabilities.
Dual Eligibility (sometimes referred to as “dually eligible”) – A term for persons eligible for Medicare (Part A and/or Part B) and who are also eligible for Medicaid. Medicaid pays for premiums, deductibles, and co-payments required by Medicare. There are seven categories of dual eligibility (see Medicaid Only, QMB, QMB Plus, SLMB, SLMB Plus, QI, & QDWI)
Durable Medical Equipment – Equipment such as hospital beds, wheelchairs, and prosthetics used at home. May be covered by Medicaid , Medicare , or private insurance.
Durable Power of Attorney – A legally binding document that names a person (called an "attorney-in-fact") who will act, in case of incapacity, as someone’s agent and make decisions on that person’s behalf. The power of the attorney-in-fact can be restricted to specific areas (such as health care) or can cover broad decision-making responsibilities.
Eldercare Locator – A nationwide information and referral service sponsored by the Administration on Aging. Call (toll-free) 1-800-677-1116 Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., E.S.T., to obtain information about services for older persons in your community or anywhere in the country. Also available on-line (www.eldercare.gov).
Emergency Response System (ERS) – A call button – usually worn by the older individual – which can be pushed to get help from family, friends, or emergency assistance in case of emergency. ERSs can be purchased or rented.
Estate Recovery – States are required by law to “recover” funds from certain deceased Medicaid recipients’ estates up to the amount spent by the state for all Medicaid services.
Fee-for-Service – The formal term for the billing/payment system used by Medicare and private health insurance. Medical providers bill for whatever services they provide.
For-profit – Organization or company in which profits are distributed to shareholders or private owners. More than two-thirds of nursing homes are for-profit, though that is the case for fewer than one-third of hospitals.
Geriatrics – A branch of medicine focusing on the physiology and ailments associated with the aging process.
Gerontology – The study of the physical, psychological and social aspects of aging.
Geriatrician – Physician who is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine of Family Practice in the care of older people.
Guardianship – Legal arrangement in which the court appoints a surrogate decision-maker to act on someone’s behalf because that person has been declared incompetent. The arrangement may include guardianship of the person, estate (finances), or both. The guardian may or may not know this person, depending on the situation at the time of the appointment.
Health Care Proxy – Basically the same as Power of Attorney, that is: A person (called an "attorney-in-fact") given the legally binding right to make decisions concerning another’s health care in the case of incapacity.
Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) – A health-care care organization offering a range of health services to its members for a set rate, but, in attempts to control costs, requires its members to receive care only from health care professionals who are part of the organization’s selected network of providers. (See also Medicare HMOs)
Homebound – One of the requirements to qualify for MedicareHome Health Care. In this context, the term means that someone is generally unable to leave the house, and, if the person does leave home, it is usually only for a short time (e.g., for a medical appointment) and requires much effort. Individuals may attend adult day programs, religious services, or occasional special social outings and still be considered homebound.
Home Care/In-Home Services – Generally non-medical long-term care services received at home. For example: homemaker, personal care, home-delivered meals, chore services, or emergency response systems.
Home-Delivered Meals – Sometimes referred to as “meals on wheels,” home delivered meals are warm meals, prepared to government specifications, delivered to homebound persons who are unable to prepare their own meals.
Home Health Care – Medical care delivered at home that includes a wide range of health-related services such as assistance with medications, wound care, and intravenous (IV) therapy.
Home Health Agency – An organization providing medically skilled home-care services, such as skilled nursing care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and personal care by home health aides.
Homemaker Service – A service providing assistance with meal preparation, shopping, light housekeeping, laundry and other tasks helping clients maintain life in their own homes.
Hospice – Services for the terminally ill provided in the home, a hospital, or a long-term care facility. Includes home health services, volunteer support, grief counseling, pain management and other forms of care aimed at helping terminally ill persons (and their families) live out their lives as dignified, meaningfully and fulfillingly as possible.
Independent Choices – A national demonstration project allowing beneficiaries to use Medicaid funds to hire service providers/helpers of their own choice, instead of using traditional services provided by agency workers. Beneficiaries can hire family members, friends, and neighbors to assist with intimate personal care tasks and have more voice regarding how and when services are provided.
Independent Living – A living arrangement maximizing independence and self-determination, especially for older persons and younger persons with disabilities living in a community instead of in a medical facility.
Independent Living Facility – Rental unit wherein services are not included as part of the rent, although services may be available on site and purchased by residents for an additional fee.
Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) – Household/independent living tasks that include using the telephone, taking medications, money management, housework, meal preparation, laundry, and grocery shopping.
Irrevocable Burial Account – When determining eligibility for Medicaid, the state allows consumers to set aside money in a trust or with a funeral director for burial expenses as part of a pre-paid burial plan.
Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) – An independent, non-profit organization that evaluates and accredits nearly 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States.
Level of Care (LOC) – Amount of assistance required by consumers that may determine their eligibility for programs and services. Levels include: protective, intermediate, and skilled. In order to qualify for Medicaid nursing home or home & community-based services, an individual must meet a nursing home level of care.
Levy-Funded Programs – H ome care service programs for older adults that are funded by county property tax levies. Services and fees vary by program. Currently, there are five states raising funds for senior services through property-tax levies: Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, North Dakota and Ohio.
Life Care Community – A type of Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) requiring a lump-sum payment in return for a lifelong contract covering all levels of care. It often includes payment for acute care and physician's visits. Little or no change is made in the monthly fee, regardless of the level of medical care required by the resident, except for cost of living increases.
Limited Guardianship – A legal arrangement whereby the court appoints a surrogate decision-maker. But, this arrangement limits his or her authority to make specific decisions and/or limits the length of time the guardianship is to be in place.
Living Trust – A trust that is set up while someone (called the grantor or trustor) is still alive. Assets are transferred to the trust, and the grantor names a “trustee” who controls the assets in the trust as well as the “beneficiaries” who will inherit the trust after the grantor has died. This trust may be revocable (meaning that the grantor may change the terms of the trust or take back assets) or irrevocable (meaning that the trust may not be touched by the grantor). This trust may also be considered when determining the grantor’s eligibility for Medicaid.
Living Will – A document stating a person’s preferences for future medical decisions, including the withholding or withdrawing of life-sustaining treatments; such as artificial nutrition and hydration or the use of equipment, such as ventilators and respirators. (See also advance directive)
Long-Term Care (LTC) – The broad spectrum of medical and support services provided – often for years or decades in duration – to persons who have lost the capacity to function on their own due to a chronic illness or condition. Long-term care can consist of care in the home and community by family members who are assisted with voluntary or employed help, adult day health care, or care in assisted living or skilled nursing facilities.
Long-Term Care Insurance – Insurance policies covering long-term care services (such as nursing home and home care), typically those that Medicare and Medigap policies do not cover. Policies vary in terms of what they will cover, and premiums vary accordingly. Coverage may be denied based on health status or age. Only a small portion of the U.S. population (fewer than 5 percent ) are covered by this type of insurance.
Managed Care – A method of organizing and financing health care services that emphasizes cost-effectiveness and coordination of care. Managed care organizations (including HMOs, PPOs, and PSOs) receive a fixed amount of money per client/member per month (called capitation), no matter how much care a member needs during that month. This system generally requires members to receive treatment from an approved list of health care facilities and physicians agreeing to provide services at set rates.
Meals-on-Wheels – Also known as home-delivered meals, this service provides warm meals, prepared to government specifications, delivered to homebound persons who are unable to prepare their own food.
Medicaid (Title XIX of the Social security Act ) – Federal and state-funded program of medical assistance to low-income individuals of all ages, initiated in 1965. There are strict income-eligibility requirements for Medicaid. Federal Medicaid expenditures in 2006 were approximately $186 billion, and more than $300 billion when including state Medicaid appropriations.
Medicaid Waiver Programs –Medicaid programs that provide home-care and community-based alternatives to nursing home care. These programs have the potential to reduce overall Medicaid costs by providing services in innovative ways, or to groups of people not covered under the traditional Medicare program. These programs are often approved on a demonstration basis, and generally have limited slots available.
Medicare (Title XVIII of the Social Security Act ) – Federal health insurance program for persons age 65-and-over (and certain disabled persons under age 65). Consists of four parts: Part A (hospital insurance); Part B (optional medical insurance that covers physicians’ services and outpatient care, in part, and requires beneficiaries to pay a monthly premium); Part C (also known as Medicare Advantage, see below); and Part D (prescription drug coverage). Medicare expenditures were roughly $325 billion in 2006. The program was signed into law on the same day as Medicaid (July 30, 1965) in the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, in honor of former President Harry Truman’s earlier efforts to extend health care to low-income Americans.
Medicare Advantage – Option under Medicare that gives consumers a choice of plans including managed care and fee-for-service plans. Options consist of: traditional fee-for service, HMOs , HMOs with POS, PPOs, PSOs, private fee-for-service , religious/fraternal benefit society plans, and medical savings accounts. Current Medicare beneficiaries are not required to change plans unless they so desire. If you have one of these plans, you don’t need a Medigap policy. Medicare Advantage is also known as Medicare Part C. Previously, this plan was referred to as Medicare+Choice.
Medicare HMOs – Under Medicare HMOs (health maintenance organizations), members pay their regular monthly premiums to Medicare , and Medicare pays the HMO a fixed sum of money each month to provide Medicare benefits (e.g. hospitalization, doctor’s visits, and more). Medicare HMOs may provide extra benefits over and above regular Medicare benefits (such as prescription drug coverage, eyeglasses, and more). Members do not pay Medicare deductibles and co-payments; however, the HMO may require them to pay an additional monthly premium and co-payments for some services. If members use providers outside the HMO’s network, they pay the entire bill themselves unless the plan has a point-of-service option.
Medigap – Private health insurance used to pay costs that are not covered by Medicare, such as deductibles and co-payments. Depending on the benefits package purchased, this supplemental insurance may pay for some limited long-term care expenses. This works only with the original Medicare plan.
National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a:) – The membershiporganization for the 655 area agencies on aging and a voice in the nation’s capital for the 243 Title VI Native American aging programs in the U.S. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., this association advocates on behalf of all area aging agencies and Native American tribal units (Title VI programs) to ensure that the necessary resources are available to older Americans and those who serve them.
National Association of State Units on Aging (NASUA) – Founded in 1964, the National Association of State Units on Aging is a non-profit association representing the nation's 56 officially designated state and territorial agencies on aging. Its mission is to advance social, health, and economic policies responsive to the needs of a diverse aging population. NASUA also strives to enhance the capacity of its membership to promote the rights, dignity and independence of – and expand opportunities and resources for – current and future generations of older persons, adults with disabilities and their families.
National Citizens’ Coalition for Nursing Home Reform (NCCNHR) – A coalition of concerned citizens advocating and lobbying for improved conditions in nursing homes across the country. Formed in 1975, NCCNHR provides information and leadership on federal and state regulatory and legislative policy development and models and strategies to improve care and life for residents of nursing homes and other long term care facilities. Ongoing work addresses issues such as inadequate staffing and poor working conditions in nursing homes, as well as residents’ rights issues
Needs Assessment – An evaluation of physical and/or mental status by a health professional, usually a nurse. This assessment, together with the attending physician’s notes, determines the level of functional and cognitive incapacity of the patient, and is used to create a care plan and make decisions about the possible need for home health care, an assisted living facility, or a skilled nursing facility.
Non-Profit – An organization that reinvests all financial surpluses back into that organization. Only about one-third of American nursing homes are non-profit. By comparison, roughly three-fourths of American hospitals are non-profit.
Nursing Home – A facility licensed by the state to offer residents personal care as well as skilled nursing care on a 24-hour basis. Nursing homes provide nursing care, personal care, room and board, supervision, medication, therapies, and rehabilitation. Rooms are often shared, and communal dining is common. There are close to 17,000 nursing homes in America (roughly two-thirds for-profit) caring for approximately 1.5 million persons.
Occupancy Rate – A measure of inpatient health facility use, most commonly associated with nursing homes and hospitals, determined by dividing available bed days by patient days. It measures the average percentage of a hospital's or nursing home’s beds occupied and may be institution-wide or specific for one department or service. The current U.S. nursing home occupancy rate is approximately 86 percent.
Older Americans Act – Federal legislation specifically addressing the needs of older adults in the United States. Provides funding for aging services (such as home-delivered meals, congregate meals, senior centers, employment programs) promoting the independence and quality of life for older Americans and those who care for them. Creates the structure of the federal Administration on Aging, State Units on Aging, and local agencies that oversee aging programs. Signed into law 16 days before Medicaid/Medicare on July 14, 1965. The OAA budget has steadily grown from $7 million in 1966 to $1.87 billion (including Dept. of Labor funds) in 2007.
Ombudsman (aka LTC Ombudsman) – Trained professional or volunteer who advocates for the rights of older people receiving long-term care services (both in a nursing home facility or at home) and who investigates and mediates their concerns about their rights and care.
Personal Care – Assistance with activities of daily living as well as with self-administration of medications and preparation of special diets.
Planning and Service Area(s) (PSAs) – Multi-county regions of the state wherein aging services are coordinated by Area Agencies on Aging. Set up by 1973 amendment to the Older Americans Act, PSAs are overseen by their respective state units on aging.
Post-Acute Care – Care that improves the transition from hospital to the community by helping patients recuperate following discharge from an acute-care hospital. Care settings include: skilled nursing facilities, the home (through home health agencies), long-term care hospitals, and inpatient rehabilitation facilities. Services include: home nursing, personal care, childcare, allied health services, and home health care.
Pre-Admission Review – Assessment required by some states of all people living independently in the community who wish to enter a nursing home. This ensures that home and community-based long-term care options are presented to all older people who are able to take advantage of them.
Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) –Managed care organization that operates in a similar manner to an HMO, or MedicareHMO, except that this type of plan has a larger provider network and does not require members to receive approval from their primary care physicians before seeing a specialist. It is also possible to use doctors outside of the network, although there may be a higher co-payment.
Private Fee-for-Service – Health plan covering care from any hospital, physician, or covered provider.
Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE)– The PACE program is a unique, capitated managed care benefit for the frail elderly provided by a not-for-profit or public entity featuring a comprehensive medical and social service delivery system. It uses a multidisciplinary team approach in an adult day health center, and is supplemented by in-home and referral services in accordance with participants' needs.
Provider– Individual or organization that provides health care or long-term care services (e.g. doctors, hospital, physical therapists, home health aides, and more). Roughly 29,000 providers in this country are involved with distributing OAA services each year.
Provider Sponsored Organization (PSO) – Managed care organization that is similar to an HMO or Medicare HMO, except that the organization is owned by the providers in that plan and these providers share the financial risk assumed by the organization.
Qualified Disabled and Working Individual (QDWI) – Category of dual eligibility (See Dual eligibles/eligibility). Such a dual-eligible person lost Medicare Part A benefits because he/she returned to work, but is eligible to enroll in and purchase Medicare Part A.
Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) – Category of dual eligibility (See Dual eligibles/ eligibility). Individual enrolled in a Medicaid program that pays for Medicare consumer cost-share expenses (deductibles , co-payments , and Part B premiums) for low-income elders and persons with disabilities who qualify for Medicare Part A . There are income-eligibility requirements for this program.
Qualified Medicare Beneficiary Plus (QMB Plus) – Category of dual eligibility (See Dual eligibles/eligibility). QMB-Plus eligibles have full Medicaid benefits. The QMB- Plus category was created when Congress changed eligibility criteria for QMBs to eliminate the requirement that QMBs could not otherwise qualify for Medicaid.
Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs) – QIOs are largely non-profit, community-based organizations whose mission is to collaborate with both Medicare providers and beneficiaries to achieve significant and continuing improvement in the quality and effectiveness of health care at the community level. Under the direction of CMS is a national network of 53 QIOs, responsible for each U.S. state, territory, and the District of Columbia. QIOs work with consumers and physicians, hospitals, and other caregivers to refine care delivery systems to make sure Medicare patients get the right care at the right time, particularly patients from underserved populations.
Quality of Care – A measure of the degree to which delivered health services meet established professional standards and judgments of value to the consumer.
Rehabilitation Services – Services designed to improve/restore a person’s functioning. These include physical therapy, occupational therapy, and/or speech therapy. The services are provided at home or in long-term care facilities. They may be covered in part by Medicare.
Respite Care – Service in which trained professionals and/or volunteers come into the home – or where care is provided in an institutional setting for a short-term (from a few hours to a few days) – to allow caregivers of an older or disabled person some time away from their caregiving roles.
Senior Center – A community organization that provides a variety of on-site programs for older adults including recreation, entertainment, congregate meals, and some health services. Usually a good source of information about area programs and services for persons age 60 and over. Over 10,000 senior centers are in operation across the country, with some 6,000 of them receiving OAA funds.
Skilled Care – Care requiring skilled medical services (such as injections, catheterizations, and dressing changes) provided by medical professionals, including nurses, doctors, and physical therapists.
Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) – Facility that is certified by Medicare to provide 24-hour residential nursing care and rehabilitation services in addition to other medical services.
Social Security – A federal social insurance program established in 1935 that includes a retirement income program (Title II), disability, and survivor and Supplemental Security Income (Title I) benefits, and health insurance through the Medicare program.
Social Services Block Grant services (aka Title XX services) – Grants given to states, under the Social Security Act, which fund limited amounts of social services for people of all ages (including some in-home services, elder abuse prevention services, and more).
Specified Low Income Medicare Beneficiary (SLMB) –Medicaid program which pays for Medicare Part B monthly premiums for low-income elders and persons with disabilities who qualify for Medicare Part A . There are income-eligibility requirements for this program.
Specified Low Income Medicare Beneficiary-Plus (SLMB-Plus) – SLMB-Plus eligibles have full Medicaid benefits. The SLMB Plus category was created when Congress changed eligibility criteria for SLMBs to eliminate the requirement that SLMBs could not otherwise qualify for Medicaid.
Spend Down – Medicaid financial eligibility requirements are strict, and may require beneficiaries to spend down income and/or assets by paying for health care with their own assets or income until they reach the income-eligibility level.
Spousal Impoverishment Protection – Federal regulations preserve some income and assets (generally the home, car and $1,500 in assets) for the spouse of a nursing home resident whose stay is covered by Medicaid.
Sub-Acute Care – Type of short-term care provided by many long-term care facilities and hospitals that may include rehabilitation services, specialized care for certain conditions (such as stroke and diabetes) and/or post-surgical care and other services associated with the transition between the hospital and home. Residents on these units often have been hospitalized recently and typically have more complicated medical needs. The goal of sub-acute care is to discharge residents to their homes or to a lower level of care.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) – A federal program (separate from standard Social Security retirement funds paid into by workers) for low-income elderly or disabled persons established in 1972, when Social security folded various Old Age, Blind and Disabled payments into SSI. From its inception, SSI adjusted benefits to reflect increases in inflation and helped to reduce the country’s poverty rate. Many states supplement SSI with additional state SSI. In most states, SSI recipients are also automatically eligible for Medicaid.
Support Groups – Groups of people who share a common bond (e.g., caregivers) who come together on a regular basis to share problems and experiences. The groups may be sponsored by social service agencies, senior centers, religious organizations, as well as organizations such as the Alzheimer’s Association.
Telephone Reassurance – Program in which volunteers or paid staff call homebound elders on a regular basis to provide contact, support, and companionship.
Title III services – Services constituting the heart and soul of the Older Americans Act. These services, provided to individuals age 60 and older, include: congregate and home-delivered meals, supportive services (e.g., transportation, information and referral, legal assistance, and more), in-home services (e.g., homemaker services, personal care, chore services and more), and health promotion/disease prevention services (e.g., health screenings, exercise programs, and more). Also, see Older Americans Act.
Title IV – Involves research on older persons and in the field of aging, including grants for demonstration projects and initiatives related to intergenerational programs, developmental disabilities, housing and alternate funding sources.
Title V – Originally dealt with training, but now covers the realm of senior employment. Unlike most OAA programs, senior employment is administered by the U.S. Dept. of Labor through the Senior Community Service Employment Program, and the eligibility starts at age 55 and older for those whose incomes are below 125 percent of the poverty level. ($10,210 for an individual in 2007). The program targets older persons with poor employment prospects.
Title VI – The portion of the OAA providing direct grants to the 243 Native American tribal units (Native American versions of area agencies on aging), was added to the OAA via 1975 and 1978 amendments to the act, though funds were not appropriated until 1980. This title originated in response to concerns that Native Americans were underserved by traditional area agencies on aging. In 1987, further amendments broadened Title VI to serve Native Alaskans and Hawaiians. Roughly $33 million in OAA funds went to Native Americans (including native Alaskans and Hawaiians) in 2006.
Title VII – Formalized and consolidated components of four initiatives related to elder rights, placing them under a new title in efforts to improve communication and more emphatically promote and protect the rights of older Americans. The components are:
Transportation Services – Service for older adults offering rides to medical appointments and, occasionally, other destinations. These services may include buses, taxis, volunteer drivers, or vans or ambulance services that can accommodate wheelchairs and persons with other special needs.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (V.A.) – Offers acute and long-term care benefits (nursing home care and home care) benefits to veterans of the United States Armed Forces, and in some cases, their families. Services are provided by V.A. medical centers across the country.