“The United States of Elder Fraud – How Prevalent is Elder Financial Abuse in Each State?” – comparitech
by Paul Bischoff
“The vast majority of elder fraud cases in the US go unreported. Our research team set out to uncover the true cost of elder fraud in the US by analyzing and extrapolating data from government reports and registries.
“Comparitech estimates 5 million cases of elder fraud occur in the US annually resulting in $27.4 billion in losses.
“Elder fraud, also called elder financial abuse or elder financial exploitation, is defined as the misappropriation or abuse of financial control in a relationship where there is an expectation of trust, resulting in harm to the elderly victim.
“More than 200,000 scams and financial abuse cases targeting the elderly are reported to authorities every year, and most experts agree that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Our estimates show $1.17 billion in damages are reported to authorities, but the real figure likely dwarfs that amount when factoring in unreported elder fraud.
“To calculate the full scope of the problem, Comparitech aggregated data from multiple studies on elder fraud in every US state, including the number of reports to authorities and average loss per case. We then used those numbers to estimate the total number of cases and total damages in each state, adjusted for the proportion of unreported cases.”
Click here to read the report and read this article at comparitech in its entirety here.
“woman’s story personifies failures in Medicaid waiver program” – A long read about “system failures” at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
“Fran Morgante moves her mom, Vilma Morgante, 100, to spend some time in the front room, Thursday, June 20, 2019, at the family’s Lower Burrell home. Fran Morgante, a professional musician lives in New York State and has moved back home to care for her mother.” – SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
by Deb Erdley
“Fran Morgante brushed back her mother’s hair tenderly as she offered the tiny elderly woman a drink of water on a hot June day.
“Vilma Morgante, who celebrated her 100th birthday June 21 in her Lower Burrell home, never asked much of the world.
“Her one desire: to die in the neat brick bungalow she and her late husband, Steve, scrimped and saved for and then built from the ground up seven decades ago.
“Frail, suffering from moderate dementia for the previous year and a half and forced to use a wheelchair, she relied on her daughter — a professional violinist with the Buffalo Philharmonic — to steer her through the complex web of rules and regulations that govern the safety net designed to protect the nation’s most vulnerable citizens.
“‘Years ago, I tried to talk her into coming to live with me, and she said, “Chica, I want to die at home,” Fran Morgante recalled.
“On July 4, Vilma died at home, one year and two days after qualifying for 24-hour home care — care that never arrived.”
Click here to read this Pittsburgh Tribune-Review article in its entirety.
Meet ALICE!
“United Way of Pennsylvania launched a statewide data project, ALICE, which provides a comprehensive measure of financial hardship across our state. ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained,Employed.
“The ALICE report tells the story of our community members who are going to work but are still struggling to survive, through a standardized methodology that assesses the cost of living in every county. ALICE is our neighbors, friends and family who may earn more than the official Federal Poverty Level, but still cannot afford the basic necessities for their family. ALICE lives in every county in Pennsylvania. Equipped with this data, the Pennsylvania network of United Ways will convene, advocate and innovate in our local communities to highlight the issues faced by ALICE households, and to generate solutions which help them on their path to financial stability.”
How Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services Supports ALICE
Community HealthChoices (CHC) information | CHC comes to Berks-Lancaster-Lebanon Service Area in January 2020
Keep informed about Community HealthChoices (CHC):
“Poll: 1 in 4 don’t plan to retire despite realities of aging” – WorkingLongerStudy
by Andrew Soergel
“CHICAGO (AP) — Nearly one-quarter of Americans say they never plan to retire, according to a poll that suggests a disconnection between individuals’ retirement plans and the realities of aging in the workforce.
“Experts say illness, injury, layoffs and caregiving responsibilities often force older workers to leave their jobs sooner than they’d like.
“According to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 23% of workers, including nearly 2 in 10 of those over 50, don’t expect to stop working. Roughly another quarter of Americans say they will continue working beyond their 65th birthday.
“According to government data, about 1 in 5 people 65 and older was working or actively looking for a job in June.”
Click here to read this article in its entirety.
“Most Older Americans Face Age Discrimination in the Workplace, New Survey Finds: Forty-five percent say the growing trend toward delayed retirement is good for the economy.”
“Understanding Drug Side Effects as You Age | As your metabolism changes, common meds may trigger new, unwelcome reactions” – AARP
by Kathleen Fifield
While you’ve probably given your metabolism some thought when it comes to midlife weight gain, your digestive process affects other things, too — including how your body handles any drugs you take.
“‘Your metabolism changes a lot as part of the normal aging process,’ explains internist Michael Hochman, clinical associate professor of medicine and director of the University of Southern California Gehr Family Center for Health Systems Science. ‘Your liver breaks things down differently, your kidneys stop being as efficient, and your GI system works a little more slowly. That means a medication that your body may have had no trouble metabolizing when you were middle-aged becomes more problematic as you get older.’ As a result, you’ll be more susceptible to possible side effects from the medications you take than someone a decade or two younger, he says.
“Overall, 1 in 6 adults over age 65 are likely to have a harmful reaction to one or more of the meds they’re popping, according to the American Geriatric Society.”
C;lick here to read this article at AARP in its entirety.
Read this related information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Adverse Drug Events in Adults
“Changes to PA General Assistance”
“As required by Act 12 of 2019, which amended 62 P.S. § 403.2(a), the General Assistance program will end on August 1, 2019. No General Assistance cash assistance will be dispersed after July 31, 2019. Current General Assistance recipients were notified of this change via mail, but we recognize that there will likely be questions.
If people you work with currently receive or think they qualify for General Assistance, they may qualify for other benefits. Individuals can work with a COMPASS Community Partner or contact their local County Assistance Office or apply online via COMPASS at www.compass.state.pa.us. If you are not a COMPASS Community Partner, more information on registering is available here.
If they are currently receiving other benefits like Medical Assistance or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), those benefits will continue. The Department of Human Services (DHS) will notify clients again before making changes to other benefits for any reason.
People seeking more information can contact the DHS Helpline at 1-800-692-7462. TDD Services are available at 1-800-451-5886.
This change will likely result in an additional need for resources from charitable and social service organizations around the commonwealth. DHS is working closely with our partners to identify potential resources for people affected by this change. As we become aware of additional resources, we will share the information on DHS’ social media pages and through this newsletter.
Thank you for all that you do to help Pennsylvanians in need,
Secretary Miller
Heard about “ALPHA”? | This York County initiative is tackling the issue of helping people by bolstering interest in personal care homes
Click on the above graphic to download the entire fact sheet.
“In southcentral Pa, low-income residents are at risk as personal care homes rapidly close” – The Hanover Evening Sun
York County’s ALPHA Project facebook page.
“Personal Care Homes (PCHs) are residences that provide shelter, meals, supervision and assistance with personal care tasks, typically for older people, or people with physical, behavioral health, or cognitive disabilities who are unable to care for themselves but do not need nursing home or medical care. While available services vary and are based on the individual needs of each resident, services provided at a typical PCH include assistance with:
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Personal Care Homes are inspected and licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services. They are usually privately-owned, although some are operated by local governments or non-profit agencies. In Pennsylvania, homes may be licensed to care for as few as four people and as many as several hundred. -SOURCE: Pennsylvania Department of Human Services
To find information on a Personal Care Home near you see the Personal Care Home Directory.
“The History of the Fourth of July” – Military.com
Today, Americans celebrate Independence Day!
“On July 4, 1776, the 13 colonies claimed their independence from England, an event which eventually led to the formation of the United States. Each year on the fourth of July, also known as Independence Day, Americans celebrate this historic event.
“Conflict between the colonies and England was already a year old when the colonies convened a Continental Congress in Philadelphia in the summer of 1776. In a June 7 session in the Pennsylvania State House (later Independence Hall), Richard Henry Lee of Virginia presented a resolution with the famous words: ‘Resolved: That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.’”
“The Story of the Fourth of July” – ConstitutionFacts.com
Request for Information – Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) Application and Enrollment Services
The Department of Human Services (DHS) is seeking input from vendors and other stakeholders on the specific measures it may undertake to improve the quality, consistency and effectiveness of the Office of Long-Term Living‘s (OLTL’s) Independent Enrollment Broker’s (IEB’s) services.
On June 28, 2019, DHS released a Request for Information (RFI) to gather input and information concerning the application and enrollment services and support services for the beneficiaries of two Medical Assistance (MA) managed care programs, one 1915(c) MA home and community-based services (HCBS) waiver program and a state-funded program, all administered by the DHS OLTL. You can view the RFI by clicking here.
Through these programs, eligible beneficiaries receive long-term services and supports (LTSS) and other benefits, depending on the particular program.
Specifically, the DHS issues this RFI to solicit input on its potential strategies and solutions to improve the LTSS application and enrollment services and beneficiary support services provided by the OLTL’s IEB to individuals who apply for and enroll in the Community HealthChoices (CHC) Program, the Pennsylvania Living Independence for the Elderly Program (LIFE), the OBRA Waiver and the state-funded Act 150 Attendant Care Program.
DHS is requesting that all responses to the RFI be submitted by 12:00 p.m. on July 29, 2019. Responses must be submitted electronically to the following email account with “OLTL Application and Enrollment Services RFI” in the email subject line: RA-PWRFICOMMENTS@PA.GOV<mailto:RA-PWRFICOMMENTS@PA.GOV>.
DHS does not intend to respond to questions or clarifications during the RFI response period; however, respondents may submit questions related to the RFI electronically to: RA-PWRFICOMMENTS@PA.GOV<mailto:RA-PWRFICOMMENTS@PA.GOV> using “OLTL Application and Enrollment Services RFI question” in the email subject line. DHS may or may not respond based on the nature of the question.
If you have any questions regarding this email please contact Michael Hale, Bureau Director, Fee for Service Programs at mhale@pa.gov<mailto:mhale@pa.gov>.
