Click here to download the Person-Centered Counseling information sheet as a .pdf format for enlarging and sharing.
To see a presentation on the Pennsylvania Link to Aging and Disability Resources including more descriptive information about Person Centered Counseling, click here. PA Link program
“The CARE Act is ‘more than just a law.’ It’s a change in the practice of health care.”
WASHINGTON — “For today, there are no doctor’s visits. No long afternoons with nothing to do. No struggles over bathing — or not.
“At the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., a group of older adults — some in wheelchairs, some with Alzheimer’s — and their caregivers sit in a semicircle around a haunting portrait of a woman in white.
“’Take a deep breath,’ said Lorena Bradford, head of accessible programs at the National Gallery, standing before The Repentant Magdalen by Georges de La Tour.
“’Now, let your eyes wander all over the painting. Take it all in. What do you think is going on?’
“’I think she looks sad,’ said Marie Fanning, 75, of Alexandria, Va., an Alzheimer’s patient.”
“Marie Fanning (left) sits next to her husband, Bill, during the Just Us program at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., on March 5. Marie, who has Alzheimer’s disease, and Bill are regular attendees at the program. (Lynne Shallcross/KHN)”
Click here to read this article in its entirety.
Pennsylvania’s CARE Act was sponsored by State Representative Hal English; the Pennsylvania CARE Act was based on model legislation developed by AARP. With its unanimous passage in the State Senate and House, Pennsylvania became the 25th state to enact a version of the CARE Act. The law was unanimously approved by state General Assembly and signed by Governor Wolf in April of 2016 and became law on April 20, 2017.
Berks-Lancaster-Lebanon County Link partners were briefed on the Pennsylvania’s CARE Act at separate Link cross-training meeting in each county in 2017 and 2018.
Each week the Office of the Secretary of Pennsylvania’s Department of Aging releases a Friday newsletter with information relevant to activities, issues and events for older Pennsylvanians and persons with disabilities across the Commonwealth. Click here download the newsletter as a .pdf file.
“Experiencing a health emergency like an injury from a fall, or even a heart attack, typically occurs unexpectedly. While these and many other acute conditions only last for a short period of time, the road to recovery may require additional assistance like in-home care. The good news is that Medicare can provide home health care (HHC) services to help you recover.
“Home health care is meant to provide health services and equipment to individuals while they are homebound. Unfortunately, Medicare does not cover custodial care, or long-term care, often required for those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, cancer, and many other conditions. There are programs available that provide long-term care and assist with the cost.
Find our more, click here to continue reading this article.
Proposed rules would advance administrative burden reduction, Medicare modernization, and the Meaningful Measures Initiative
(April 27, 2018) – Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed transformative changes to the payment systems for services furnished by a range of medical facilities. The agency’s proposed payment rules also set out to continue to modernize Medicare through innovation in skilled nursing facility payment to drive value, advance meaningful quality measure reporting, and reduce paperwork and administrative costs.
“We envision all elements of CMS’ healthcare delivery system working to reward value over volume and decisively focus on patients receiving quality care from their Medicare benefits,” said Administrator Seema Verma. “For skilled nursing facilities, we are taking important steps through proposed payment improvements that will reduce administrative burden, and foster innovation to improve care and quality for patients. As people face rising healthcare costs in other clinical settings, we need to leverage advances in technology that help to modernize our programs in a way that benefits patients.”
The proposed payment rules issued today will update Medicare policies and rates under the Skilled Nursing Facilities Prospective Payment System (SNF PPS), Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities Prospective Payment System (IRF PPS), Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update, and Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Prospective Payment System (IPF PPS). These payment policy proposals for Fiscal Year 2019 further advance the agency’s priority of creating a patient-driven healthcare system that fosters innovation of efficient and accountable programs while removing waste, fraud, and abuse. Continue reading →
Here are two wonderful “inclusive arts programs” coming to the Ware Center of Millersville University in downtown Lancaster.
The first is a dance performance created especially for kids – SNOW WHITE by the PENNSYLVANIA BALLET on April 21 which will include both ASL INTERPRETATION and AUDIO-DESCRIPTION. There will also be a sensory tour of the stage and props just prior to the performance and an opportunity to meet with dancers afterwards.
The second is a presentation on May 6 is PETER GROS of MUTUAL of OMAHA’s WILD KINGDOM featuring live exotic animals, although that will take place on the Millersville campus, not downtown. That show will also feature ASL INTERPRETATION and AUDIO-DESCRIPTION, but it will also be SENSORY FRIENDLY.
Both come with hands-on creative activities for kids beginning one hour before show time.
These performances are selling very well, but there are still seats available.
If you know families with financial need, email Barry Kornhauser at Barry.Kornhauser@Millersville.edu.
This flyer (below), created with the Medicare Rights Center, offers a quick reference for consumers to understand the major differences between original Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans, including coverage and network options, and costs.
SOURCE: National Council on Aging
The author’s daughter, Esprit, who has a rare chromosomal disorder, trisomy-18. (Daniel T. Willingham)
by Daniel T. Willingham
“I’m the father of a child who has a rare chromosomal disorder, trisomy-18. It affects about one in 5,000 births and leaves children with profound mental and physical disabilities. Life expectancy is harrowingly brief; some 90% of affected infants don’t see their first birthday.
“There are many reasons why it’s important for people to know about this syndrome — to encourage more research, advance better policies for families coping with it, to ‘raise awareness.’ But when I consider my daughter Esprit, I’m interested in a specific kind of awareness, the kind that helps people feel comfortable interacting with her. Medical details and statistics don’t put anyone at ease around a severely disabled child. But a parent’s perspective might.
“Chances are, you and your children will encounter Esprit or a child who is similarly disabled at a store, or in a park.”
Read this Los Angeles Times article in its entirety, click here.
Ben Wiseman
by Frank Bruni
“They say that death comes like a thief in the night. Lesser vandals have the same M.O. The affliction that stole my vision, or at least a big chunk of it, did so as I slept. I went to bed seeing the world one way. I woke up seeing it another.
“This was about four months ago, though it feels like an eternity. So much has happened since. I don’t mean all the tests and procedures: the vials upon vials of blood; the mapping of major arteries in my neck; the imaging of tiny vessels in my brain; the first injection of an experimental treatment (or, maybe, a placebo) into my right, dominant eye, where the damage occurred; then the second injection; and then, last week, the third.
“I mean the rest of it. I went to bed believing that I was more or less in control — that the unfinished business, unrealized dreams and other disappointments in my life were essentially failures of industry and imagination, and could probably be redeemed with a fierce enough effort. I woke up to the realization of how ludicrous that was.”
Click here to read this New York Times column about vision loss in its entirety.
Going Blind: Coming out of the dark about vision loss is a movie that looks at several of the leading contributors to vision loss and blindness and features conversations with real people with these issues. The movie is a good conversation starter and has been shown at senior centers, senior residences, libraries and retirement communities. Your Link partners’ network has the film and would like to offer to screen it with your organization, group or club. Contact the Berks-Lancaster-Lebanon Service Area coordinator. Call or text: 717.380.9714. Email: blllink@mail.com.
