“Realizing the importance of respite to family caregivers in South Carolina, I have asked our state legislature to fund a voucher program in next year’s budget to provide these caregivers with the break they deserve,” said Lt. Gov. Glenn McConnell in a news release.

He will unveil the Lifespan Respite Care Program’s State Plan in an event planned for today. The news release refers to a federal grant from the U.S. Administration on Aging in partnership with the S.C. Respite Coalition and Family Connection of South Carolina.

“It is important for family caregivers across our state to have the respite services they need in order to have the strength to care for their loved ones,” said McConnell.

The Lifespan Respite Care Program in South Carolina is assisted by a State Advisory Committee comprised of consumers and members of the public and private sectors.

The grant is intended improve access to quality respite services for family caregivers.

Geriatric care professionals refer to “respite” as regular, temporary breaks for people who care for those who suffer from a disability or chronic illness, Alzheimer’s, or have special needs.

Monday’s statement from McConnell, a Republican, calls respite “an essential service that provides caregivers with the relief necessary to maintain their own physical and emotional health, thereby allowing families to successfully continue caring for their family member in the home.”

Supporting caregivers is also believed to help families delay or prevent committing a dependent person to long-term hospitalization or facility care.

About 770,000 people in South Carolina serve as unpaid family caregivers, doing work with an estimated economic value of $7.4 billion annually, according to the Office on Aging.

Courtesy of Southern Political Report

The College of Charleston will also present an Honorary Degree to Trident Technical College President Mary Thornley during the ceremonies.

A 1969 graduate of the College of Charleston, McConnell later received his law degree and began his career in public service by working as a staff attorney with the Neighborhood Legal Assistance Program.

In 1980, he was elected to represent the 41st District in the South Carolina Senate, where he has served as Chairman of the Rules Committee and then as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In 2001, he was elected the first Republican President Pro Tempore of the South Carolina Senate since Reconstruction. During his time as President Pro Tempore, McConnell created an atmosphere of non-partisanship and mutual respect in the Senate. As the incumbent Senate President Pro Tempore, he ascended to the office of Lt. Governor on March 13, 2012.

Thornley has been president of Trident Technical College since 1991. She started her career at the college in 1974 as an adjunct instructor. She later became a full-time instructor and moved up the ranks holding positions including program coordinator, department head and vice president for academic affairs.

Over 1500 students are expected to receive their degrees during the two ceremonies.

Source: Beach Carolina

This week’s guests are Sen. Tom Davis (R-Beaufort & Jasper) and Sen. Creighton Coleman (D-Fairfield, Chester & York), as they discuss S-92, a bill that the Senate passed with amendments on 2nd reading yesterday. This bill, as originally introduced, was entitled the NDAA Nullification Act of 2013, whereby the bill would nullify the National Defense Authorization Act passed by Congress.

Sen. Brad Hutto (D-Orangeburg) and Sen. Shane Martin (R-Spartanburg), both members of the Senate Medical Affairs Affordable Care Act Subcommittee, discuss Medicaid expansion in South Carolina from the Senate perspective.

Helping to fill part of this void is adult day care, which gives family members who care for a loved one the ability to have a break in their caregiving responsibilities in order to maintain their normal work schedule while a dependent family member receives valuable services at a day care center.

Participants at these centers, including seniors and persons with disabilities, may require some assistance with the activities associated with daily living (such as bathing, eating, and dressing), but generally, they are not in need of advanced forms of care.

Adult day care centers are vital community resources that serve as lifesavers for countless family members and individuals in our state. First and foremost, adult day cares provide a much-needed benefit for working family members, who, without these facilities, would be forced to choose between their job and taking care of a loved one.

These facilities allow a family member to continue to support themselves, keep the family unit together, and prevent their loved one from becoming a ward of the state.

Secondly, these centers serve as an outlet during the day for similarly challenged individuals so that they are able to associate with one another, receive nursing support, and benefit from mental and physical stimulation.

Thirdly, these centers prevent the migration of its participants to more costly forms of care, such as an assisted living facility or a nursing home. In essence, these centers not only provide a benefit for the families and individuals who rely on their services, but they also save taxpayers money.

Some families are able to pay privately for services at adult day care centers. But for participants who qualify for assistance, adult day programs in South Carolina are reimbursed $43.75 per person per day for services.

Nationally, the average rate for adult day care centers is $61 per person per day, which often includes eight to ten hours of care. Recent state Medicaid rate reductions have made providing day care increasingly challenging, and furthermore, South Carolina’s Medicaid reimbursement rates are among the lowest in the nation. Compared to a Medicaid nursing home bed, which costs approximately $52,000 per year, the savings to taxpayers is over $40,000 annually.

In addition, adult day care continues to be plagued by government’s regulatory environment.

In one particular facility I visited, there was a strong interest shown by the participants, family, and staff for the center to open on Saturdays.
However, for that to occur in the same center where they operate Monday through Friday with identical services, the center was required to jump through more bureaucratic hoops via a recertification process in order to receive special permission. Therefore, it just wasn’t worth it to them in time, energy, and money.

Care options, such as adult day cares, are the answers to many of our residents’ prayers. They allow loved ones to live at home with their family close by, while creating social opportunities with fellow peers. They provide flexible nursing care, as needed, throughout the day, while monitoring and supervising the distribution of medication. Many of them offer transportation and are designed for adults of any age, including seniors, with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

I have toured similar facilities statewide, and I have observed first-hand the severe need for care options, such as adult day care centers.

We should be doing everything in our power to promote additional care options in our state. Yet, our state has created a regulatory road so bumpy that the effort required to offer additional services is barely outweighed by the advantages. Options for care, such as adult day care centers, should be encouraged instead of hindered.

Sadly, an increasing number of these facilities are struggling to remain open. Money is not the only roadblock that these centers must overcome, and the desire for additional care options will only continue to grow as South Carolina’s senior population doubles over the next 20 years.

This is a trend that must be reversed, but it will take a more common sense approach from policymakers across our state.

This week’s guests are Coretta Bedsole, Principal at Palmetto Public Affairs, and Barbara Wright, Executive Director at Helping Hands Adult Day Care in Cayce, South Carolina. This week’s topic is Adult Day Care in our state, including awareness of the types of care options available, the benefits of Adult Day Care, and some of the challenges that Adult Day Care owners are facing.

This week’s guests are Rep. G. Murrell Smith, Jr. (R) Sumter and Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter (D) Orangeburg. The topic is Medicaid expansion in South Carolina.

This week’s topic is transportation with Rep. Dennis C. Moss (R-Cherokee) and Douglas A. Wright; CEO of Senior Solutions in Anderson, S.C. The discussion will be about our state’s network of transportation resources and what can be done to improve the efficiency and accessibility while lessening budgetary concerns.

Sunday marks the anniversary of the H.L. Hunley’s mission against the federal blockade ship Housatonic off Charleston.

The Hunley sank the Union ship but neither the sub nor its eight-man crew returned. The sub was raised off the coast almost 13 years ago and is in a conservation lab in North Charleston.

Lt. Gov. Glenn McConnell speaks at a ceremony Sunday at Sunrise Presbyterian Church on Breach Inlet where the

Hunley began its mission. Afterward, there’s a procession to the inlet where there will be infantry and artillery salutes.

Both the crew of the Hunley and the five Houstonic crewmen who died are being honored.

Courtesy of www.WSPA.com.

This week’s guests are Tony Kester, Director, Office on Aging and Dale Watson, State Ombudsman, Office on Aging. They will discuss details of the Office on Aging’s Ombudsman Program and how it is used to improve the quality of life and quality of care for all residents in long-term care facilities across the state.