Older Americans Act reauthorization: what's up?

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), has drafted a bill to reauthorize the Older American Act. He is hosting an event in DC to rally support for the reauthorization. Here's the scoop on the event:

OLDER AMERICANS SUMMIT
WHEN: Thursday, May 23rd at 11:00 AM
WHERE: 430 Dirksen Senate Office Building
WHAT: Celebrate the 50th anniversary of Older Americans Month, highlight the success of the Older Americans Act programs, and show support for the Act’s reauthorization to meet the needs of our nation’s growing senior population.
Questions? Call Billy Gendell at (202) 224-5480
Press contact Michael Briggs at (202) 224-5141

Now is the Time to Pay Attention to Elder Abuse

“Efforts to address elder abuse are 40 years behind those of child abuse and 20 years behind those of domestic violence” said Kathy Greenlee, Assistant Secretary for Aging (ASA) and Administration for Community Living Administrator, in an interview last week on American University radio station WAMU 88.5 FM (Washington, DC). Greenlee added “That if we do not act now and apply the lessons we have learned from combating child abuse and domestic violence and sexual assault to develop a comprehensive approach that brings together all of the different resources to prevent elder abuse, the problem will only deepen. Elder abuse is a problem that is only going to intensify as the population ages and the number of older persons increases.”

Administrator Greenlee and Bob Blancato, National Coordinator of the Elder Justice Coalition, who also participated in the interview, made it clear that elder abuse is a crisis.

You can find this week’s series on WAMU’s web page: http://wamu.org/aging_and_abuse. This page contains the audio and transcript of the broadcast, as well as additional resources: more of the interview with AS Greenlee, including her “Three Questions,” and material from the Year of Elder Abuse campaign.

The rest of the series will be featured on the WAMU page throughout this week, and will include the following stories, and you can click on the links to read and listen:

• Part 1, Monday: Elderly Couple's Tale Of Abuse Not So Uncommon
• Part 2, Tuesday: Adult Protective Services Fight Against Elder Abuse
• Part 3, Wednesday: Tackling Nursing Home Complaints With Ombudsman Programs
• Part 4, Thursday: Financial Exploitation Of Elderly Difficult To Detect
• Part 5, Friday: House Calls A Better Option For Some Elderly

Unleash the Power of Age!

May is Older Americans Month, a time to honor the contribution of elders in our communities. This year's theme is Unleash the Power of Age. For ideas about activities you can do to celebrate in your community check out this page from the federal Administration on Aging www.olderamericansmonth.acl.gov/activityideas.html

Many Seniors Receive QMB/SLMB/QI Terminations in Error

Some low-income seniors in West Virginia have recently gotten erroneous notices that they are no longer eligible for their QMB, SLMB, or QI benefits because their incomes went over the limit when they got their Social Security Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) in January 2013. If the only change in their income/assets was the COLA then that notice is an error. Federal law prohibits DHHR from considering the amount of the COLA for benefits eligibility until March or April of each year (the second month after the new federal poverty guidelines are issued and the eligibility limits increase accordingly). These clients are not likely to know that the termination is a mistake. They can take steps to correct and get back on the benefits and get refunds for any premiums incorrectly deducted from their benefits, but many may need help to do that.

Dual eligibles are Medicare beneficiaries who also receive some Medicaid benefits because of their limited income and assets. There are three programs for dual-eligibles: Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB), Specified Low-Income Beneficiary (SLMB) and Qualifying Individuals (QI), each providing different packages of Medicaid benefits to the Medicare beneficiary. All three of the programs include the benefit of Medicaid paying the beneficiary's Medicare Part B premium, which for most people is currently $104.90 per month.

The dual eligibles who are most likely to have received the erroneous notice are those whose incomes were close to the eligibility limits. If you work with low-income seniors in any capacity you may be able to help identify people who need assistance to get those benefits back, and help them get successfully referred for that help.

West Virginia Senior Legal Aid (WVSLA) and Legal Aid of West Virginia (LAWV) are working together to try to resolve this problem for anyone who was wrongfully terminated. Senior services programs, homecare providers, healthcare providers, and others who work with seniors can help by checking with their clients who receive QMB/SLMB/QI and asking if they have gotten a letter from DHHR terminating their benefits. If yes, they may be able to get assistance from the Aging and Disability Resource Centers at 1-866-987-2372 or Medicare Counselors with the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) program at 1-877-987-4463. WVSLA and LAWV will coordinate with both ADRC and SHIP to help assure affected clients have their rights and benefits protected. There will be at least two important issues that need to be resolved for these clients: 1) getting the QMB/SLMB/QI benefit restored, and 2) getting refunds from Social Security for any premiums deducted from their benefits that should not have been.

Breaking news: bill to avert govt shutdown passes House, heads to Senate

The ice seems to be breaking as Republican leaders and President Obama met last week to try to find compromise in the budget impasse that has led to the sequestration crisis (see our post about what sequestration means here). The House has since passed a 6 month spending bill that would fund federal government beyond the period of the current continuing resolution (which ends March 27) until October when the new federal fiscal year begins. This funding will lessen some of the impact of sequestration but not eliminate it, so all federal agencies will still see substantial cuts unless further compromise is reached in both houses.

What effect will the looming March 1 sequestration have on seniors?

Congress gave itself a deadline to come to agreement about the federal budget. It has pushed the deadline back, several times, actually. If it does not pull out a last-second budget deal seniors deserve to know how sequestration will effect them, and it's not easy to figure out.

First of all, just for the curious, why is it called "sequestration"? This actually goes back to the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Deficit Reduction Act of 1985, in which Congress decided it should put a limit on the total budget outlay rather than just keep making it a function of the total of millions of lines of expenses resulting from multiple individual appropriations processes. Congress develops this limit early in the process by passing a Budget Resolution. Then if all the subsequent appropriations add up to more than that previously-set limit an automatic cutting process takes place across most (but not all) federal spending. They call it "sequestration" because the different between the total appropriated and the Budget Resolution limit is not disbursed but rather is held by the US Treasury, sequestered, while each federal agency reduces its budget equally to account for the shortfall. But there are a few large and notable federal programs that are exempt from the sequestration, so the do not suffer the across-the-board budget reduction.

If it's been the law since 1985 why haven't we had these sequestrations before? Because the intention of the law was to create pressure on lawmakers to resolve their disagreements and pass budgets to avoid the harshness of sequestration. They have successfully done that most of the time until now.

Here are a few of the programs that benefit seniors that are NOT effected by sequestration:
- Social Security
- Veterans pay
- SNAP (food stamps)
- Medicare coverage (there is a small reduction in provider reimbursement but no coverage change)
- Medicaid coverage

What will be cut that is important to seniors? Many senior services offered by county senior programs and WV Senior Legal Aid, including nutrition, transportation, some in-home services,and legal services will be cut perhaps by as much as 7.8% The exact calculation is not totally clear yet. Other services like Low-Income Energy Assistance (LIEAP), Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), the regional Long-term Care Ombudsman Program, senior HUD housing, and many more will be cut. Federal workers will be furloughed (forced to take temporary unpaid leaves) starting in April.

There is a lot at stake. You can find contact information for West Virginia's senators and house of representatives members here www.veterans.wv.gov/resources/Pages/UnitedStatesSenatorsRepresentatives.aspx

Federal Estate Tax made permanent

After years of instability, which gave rise to some macabre humor about heirs calculating the most advantageous expiration dates for wealthy elderly family members, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) establishes a permanent federal estate tax. Don't worry, most West Virginia estates will still be untaxed because ATRA also establishes a $5 million exemption. A West Virginia estate is only subject to state inheritance tax when a federal tax is imposed on it, so most of us will be unaffected by ATRA.

For those estates worth more than the $5 million exemption amount the federal tax rate will be 40%.

Federal benefit payments go electronic, deadline March 1, 2013

The U.S. Treasury will require that most recipients of Social Security, Veterans Affairs, and other federal payments receive their payments electronically instead of by paper check as of March 1, 2013. Recipients still receiving a paper check may receive their federal benefits via direct deposit to a bank account or through the U.S. Treasury-recommended Direct Express prepaid debit card. Prepaid cards offered on the private market can also be used for direct deposit, with some conditions.

Some limited waiver are available. Recipients who are receiving their benefits by paper checks on March 1, 2013 and are over 92 years old as of that date will be permitted to continue receiving their benefits by check if they request a wavier (see phone number below). Additionally, waivers will be permitted for mental impairment, or if the recipient lives in a remote geographic area which lacks the infrastructure to support the electronic financial transaction.

To request a waiver, recipients should call toll-free (800) 333-1795. However, persistence may be required. If needed, ask for a supervisor to assist you. If advocates experience significant problems, please contact National Consumer Law Center Attorney Margot Saunders for assistance via email at MSaunders@nclc.org.

The National Consumer Law Center has published an issue brief with additional information, including how electronic deposit of benefits can help protect bank accounts from debt collectors, available at: www.nclc.org/images/pdf/older_consumers/consumer_concerns/cc-electronic-payments-feb-2013.pdf.

2013 Federal Poverty Guidelines announced

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) annually issues the Federal Poverty Guidelines used to determine income eligibility for many means-tested benefits and programs. Here are the figures for 2013:

Family Size	Gross Yearly Income	Gross Monthly Income
1	$11,490	$958
2	$15,510	$1,293
3	$19,530	$1,628
4	$23,550	$1,963
5	$27,570	$2,298
6	$31,590	$2,633
7	$35,610	$2,968
8	$39,630	$3,303
add'l	+$4,020	+$335

Federal Register, Vol. 78, January 24, 2013, pp. 5182 -5183

Senator Jay Rockefeller to retire in 2014

“As I approach 50 years of public service in West Virginia, I’ve decided that 2014 will be the right moment for me to find new ways to fight for the causes I believe in and to spend more time with my incredible family,” Rockefeller said the morning of January 11, 2013. He announced that he will not run for Senate at the end of his current term.

Rockefeller, born in 1937, has been elected to 6 terms in the senate, and served alongside Senator Robert Byrd for over 25 years. Before that he served as governor of West Virginia for two terms, was a member of the House of Delegates, and West Virginia Secretary of State. He is the great-grandson of John D. Rockefeller, oil tycoon, industrialist, and patriarch of a mostly Republican dynasty. Senator Rockefeller has remained a Democrat throughout his long career as elected official.

In the Senate Rockefeller has served on several committees including Commerce, Veterans Affairs, Taxation, and the powerful Finance committee.

Rockefeller will be remembered as a champion for healthcare for the needy, and has been a strong supporter of the fight against Alzheimer's disease. He founded the Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute in 1999 to help advance medical and scientific understanding of Alzheimer's and other diseases of the brain. It is the world's only non-profit institute dedicated exclusively to the study of both human memory and diseases of memory.

Medicaid telephone scam

Several West Virginia consumers, especially those who north of the Buckhannon area, have received phone calls over the past few days from scam artists attempting to obtain bank account information. The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division urges people to use caution when dealing with inbound telephone calls and not to share banking or credit card information with unknown callers. This latest scam begins with the caller telling the consumer that all Medicare beneficiaries are going to need new Medicare cards. To receive the new cards, beneficiaries need to share banking or credit card information to be able to process the fee for the card or the shipping/handling. Consumers are warned not to share any information with these callers – this is a scam. People who receive these calls are urged to hang up, but if they have caller ID, please report the telephone number the call came from along with the time and date of the call to the Attorney General’s Office at 800-368-8808 or to the West Virginia Senior Medicare Patrol (1-800-799-4638).

Julie Shelton, Director,
Medicaid Program Operations

WV511: WV launches Traveler Information System for traffic info

The West Virginia Dept of Transportation launched a new information system to enable travelers on WV roads to get real-time traffic and road conditions information. There are several ways to access the WV511 system, including phone, computer, mobile app, and twitter feeds.

By dialing 511 from any landline or mobile phone, callers will receive traffic information, road conditions and weather forecasts in addition to transfers to the Department of Tourism and neighboring states' 511 systems. West Virginia 511 also is updated with public safety alerts, including AMBER and Silver alerts.

The WV511.org website provides an interactive map with the locations of traffic incidents, roadway construction, and weather advisories. The map also allows users to view traffic cameras from around the state in addition to showing the location of electronic roadway signs and their current messages.

The free WV 511 Drive Safe mobile app offers drivers audible, hands-free traffic alerts. The app is available for iPhone and Android devices and uses the phone's speaker and GPS location to provide audible travel advisories in the driver's vicinity.

For traffic updates via Twitter, WVDOT encourages travelers to follow WV 511 Twitter feeds for statewide, regional and roadway specific traffic updates:

• @WV511
• @WV511Metro
• @WV511North
• @WV511Central
• @WV511East
• @WV511South
• @WVinterstate64
• @WVinterstate68
• @WVinterstate70
• @WVinterstate77
• @WVinterstate79
• @WVinterstate81

US Supreme Court to hear Same Sex Marriage Case

The Supreme Court announced Friday it will consider whether California’s ban on same-sex marriage is constitutional and whether Congress may withhold federal benefits from legally married same-sex couples by defining marriage as only between a man and a woman. The court will hear arguments in the the end of March and the decision is expected by the end of June.

120 slots open for Aged and Disabled Waiver

One year ago the state Bureau for Medical Services announced that enrollment in the West Virginia Aged and Disabled Waiver Program was frozen. Since then applications have still been taken, but those found medically eligible were put on a waitlist called Managed Enrollment.

Today the Governor announced that 120 people on that list may now become enrolled and receive services.

As of November 13 there were 1,713 people on the managed enrollment list who are medically eligible for services and waiting. The 120 slots will be filled by those individuals who have been on that list the longest, according to Penney Hall, Program Manager for the Aged and Disabled Medicaid Waiver program. "Those individuals will be notified by mail that there is a slot opened and they will need to choose their service model. If they choose Traditional Model they will also have to choose their case management and homemaker agencies."

Medicare Premiums and Deductibles 2013

Part A generally pays inpatient hospital, skilled nursing facility, and some home health. Most beneficiaries do not pay a premium for Part A since they have at least 40 quarters of Medicare-covered employment.

Part B generally pays a portion of the cost of physician services, outpatient hospital services, certain home health services, durable medical equipment, and other items.

Here below are the premiums, deductibles, and copays for Medicare Parts A and B for 2013:

Part A
Hospital Deductible		$1184
Hospital Copay	days 61-90	$296/day
	days 90+	$592/day
Skilled Nursing Facility Copay	days 21-100	$148
Part B
Premium for individual by income	<$85k	$101.90
	$85k to $107k	$146.90
	$107k to $160k	$209.80
	$160k to $214k	$272.70
	>$214k	$335.70

LGBT Elder Americans Act of 2012: open teleconference 11-27-12 2:30p ESP

Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) is holding an open teleconference on Tuesday, November 27, at 2:30 p.m. EST to discuss his bill, The LGBT Elder Americans Act of 2012. The LGBT Elder Americans Act of 2012 “proposes several amendments to the Older Americans act (OAA), the country’s largest vehicle for funding and delivering services to older people. The OAA is currently up for reauthorization and includes no mention of LGBT older adults. Participants in the call will learn more about the bill, and its potential impact on aging providers and LGBT older adults.”

The presentation, followed by a Q&A session, will feature:

• Senator Michael Bennet
• Michael Adams, Executive Director, SAGE
• Brad Clark, Executive Director, One Colorado
• Sandy Markwood, CEO, National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a)
• Shari Wilkins, Program Coordinator, SAGE of the Rockies

Phone number: (805) 399-1200, participant access code: 917325. No RSVP is required.

For a summary and full text of the bill and an overview of the legislative status of this bill check out www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/112/s3575

Have an older worker who could benefit from assistive technology?

NEW ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS SOLUTIONS WEB SITE
http://atconnects.com/employers
Introducing the RESNA Catalyst Project’s Assistive Technology for Employer and Business Web Portal

The RESNA Catalyst Project (www.resnaprojects.org) provides technical assistance to Statewide Assistive Technology Programs, Alternative Financing and Access to Telework Programs, and Protection and Advocacy for Assistive Technology programs. RESNA is the Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America, a professional organization dedicated to promoting the health and well-being of people with disabilities through increasing access to technology solutions.

In 2011, the RESNA Catalyst Project began a new initiative focusing on the use of Assistive Technology (AT) for employment and business solutions. This initiative includes the development of an AT for Employer/Business Web Portal (http://atconnects.com/employers) designed to provide AT exclusive resources for businesses, employers, and those who work with employers to get people with disability employed.

Specifically, the AT for Employer/Business Web Portal features information on AT solutions in the workplace, finding help to access AT through the AT Act Entities, a consultant data base directory of RESNA Professionals and the services and expertise each offers to employers, publications on AT and Employment, various resources for employers to explore, and the partners who have worked with the RESNA Catalyst Project to create the Portal including the United States Business Leadership Network, Job Accommodation Network, the Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation, Southeast TACE, and the U.S. Department of Education, Rehabilitation Services Administration.

The online location of the Portal is housed on the National Public Internet Site for AT (AT Connects), operated by the University of New Hampshire's Institute on Disability’s (http://atconnects.com/). For more information about the AT for Employer Web Portal, please contact the RESNA Catalyst Project staff, or visit www.resnaprojects.org to learn more about AT Act programs and the RESNA Catalyst Project.

Power Restoration Schedules after Superstorm Sandy

Over 350,000 customers lost power as a result of Monday's superstorm. Over 3 feet of snow fell in parts of the highlands bringing down trees and powerlines and trees on powerlines.

West Virginia counties covered by Mon Power (a subsidiary of First Energy Corporation) are listed on the following website including number of customers with outages, number of customers restored, and expected schedule of restoration for communities within each county: www.firstenergycorp.com/content/customer/outages_help/Sandy/WVOutagesCity.html and here are estimated restoration dates. You can also get updates by following MonPower's twitter @MonPOwerWV

Counties covered by Appalachian Power are listed on the following website including when restoration is expected to be complete www.huntingtonnews.net/48365. You can get updates by following Appalachian Energy's twitter @appalchianpowe (not a typo, there's no "r" at the end)

State Constitutional Amendment on ballot this election

This election, Tuesday, November 6, there will be an amendment to our state constitution on the ballot. Depending on the way a ballot measure is worded it can be confusing to figure out exactly what voting in favor or against means. WV voters can review exactly what is proposed and determine in advance whether they intend to vote for or against the measure by reviewing sample ballots in the newspaper, or checking the ballot language on the Secretary of State's office website www.sos.wv.gov/elections/currentelection/Pages/ConstitutionalAmendment.aspx, reprinted here below:

From the Office of the WV Secretary of State:

On the November 2012 General Election Ballot, voters will see the following proposed amendment to the West Virginia Constitution. Ratification of the amendment requires a majority vote. If this amendment is ratified by the voters, the language below will be removed completely from the West Virginia Constitution, and nothing will be added in its place.

WV Code §3-11-4

Language to be Removed from the West Virginia Constitution

A person who has been elected or who has served as a sheriff during all or any part of two consecutive terms shall be ineligible for the office of sheriff during any part of the term immediately following the second of the two consecutive terms. The person holding the office of sheriff when this section is ratified shall not be prevented from holding the office of sheriff during the term immediately following the term he is then serving.

West Virginia State Election Commission Information

The West Virginia State Election Commission has provided the following non-partisan information about the proposed amendment:

Voting “For the Amendment” means you are in favor of removing the two term limit on county sheriffs.

Voting “Against the Amendment” means you are in favor of keeping the two term limit on county sheriffs.

The Exact Wording of the Amendment on the Ballot

No. 1

Repeal The Two Consecutive Term Limitation for Sheriffs Amendment To repeal section three, article IX of the State Constitution which provides that a person who has been elected or who has served as a sheriff during all or any part of two consecutive terms shall be ineligible for the office of sheriff during any part of the term immediately following the second of the two consecutive terms, and that the person holding the office of sheriff when this section is ratified shall not be prevented from holding the office of sheriff during the term immediately following the term he is serving.
[ ] For the Amendment
[ ] Against the Amendment

Social Security COLA 1.7% for 2013

Beginning with benefits in January 2013 Social Security benefit checks will go up 1.7%. The annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) is based on the Consumer Price Index from the 3rd quarter. Neither Congress nor the President decides how much or whether Social Security benefits increase to keep pace with inflation.

The maximum earnings that are subject to Social Security tax will also increase in 2013 from $110,100 to $113,700. That means that Social Security tax is withheld for every dollar earned by a worker during the year until the worker reaches $113,700. All earnings above that have no Social Security taxes imposed on them.

The retirement earnings test exemption amount will also increase in 2013. The earnings limit for workers who are younger than "full" retirement age (age 66 for people born in 1943 through 1954) will be $15,120. Social Security deducts $1 from benefits for each $2 earned over $15,120. The earnings limit for people turning 66 in 2013 will be $40,080. Social Security deducts $1 from benefits for each $3 earned over $40,080 until the month the worker turns age 66. There is no limit on earnings for workers who are "full" retirement age or older for the entire year.

Medicare will likely increase the Part B premium for 2013, as well. That has not yet been determined. If it does, some Social Security beneficiaries who pay Medicare Part B premiums may actually not see any increase in their monthly benefits take-home amount, since the increase in Part B premium might offset the COLA increase.