Tag: caregiver support

Medicaid or Medicare-Which Covers Long-Term Care?

Posted on by Barb Koumjian

Courtesy of Pierce County Washington’s Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC), part of the Aging and Disability Resource Centers network across WA State. Find your area’s ADRC at Community Living Connections.

Medicare:  No long-term care coverage in the home or in a care facility

  • The Medicare Part A benefit for medically necessary skilled nursing facility care becomes active after hospital treatment for an illness or injury.  The “three overnight admission rule” has been waived due to COVID-19. 
  • Medicare Part A pays for medically necessary skilled nursing facility care, up to 100 days, if the patient is actively participating in rehabilitation services and showing improvement within their plan of care.
  • Medicare Part A does not pay for ongoing long-term (custodial) care in a skilled nursing facility once rehabilitation is complete, nor does Part A pay for ongoing long-term (custodial) care in assisted living, memory care, or adult family homes. 
  • Medicare Part B pays for medically necessary home health care, if the patient is homebound, actively participating in rehabilitation services (physical therapy, occupational therapy, respiratory therapy) and showing improvement within their plan of care.

Medicaid:  Long-term care coverage is available in the home and in certain care facilities.

  • Eligibility is based upon the income, resources, and functional need of the applicant.
  • There are special allowances for income, resources, and housing costs of married couples.
  • Medicaid can pay for in-home care or residential care in certain facilities that accept Medicaid funding to pay for the long-term (custodial care) of their residents.
  • Recipients may be required to pay “financial participation” to their care provider, to qualify for and to maintain their Medicaid eligibility, depending upon their income level. 
  • Estate recovery is required to return Medicaid funds to the state once a Medicaid recipient or the surviving spouse of a Medicaid recipient dies.
  • There is a five-year “lookback period” to determine whether an applicant had been “gifting away” resources to qualify for Medicaid. 
  • Eligibility for a recipient receiving Medicaid is reviewed every twelve months. 

Kinship Caregiving

Posted on by Barb Koumjian

Relatives raising the child(ren) of a family member (Kinship Families)

Kinship families are families in which children live with and are being raised by grandparents, other extended family members, or other adults with whom they have a close family-like relationship such as close family friends. Many kinship caregivers don’t necessarily think of themselves that way–it’s natural to step in and raise children when the parents can’t. Even though most of the challenges that come with raising children are the same for a kinship family, there is an important difference. Kinship caregivers do not have automatic legal rights and responsibilities for the children. Raising children when they are not the child’s parent was not necessarily planned or expected. It’s often related to a family crisis, and the child welfare system is not always involved.

Kinship caregivers can often use help with all of the practical issues surrounding a suddenly larger family: large enough housing, paying for the extra food, ensuring medical care, and registering children at a different school. Legal issues may come up–powers of attorney to get things done, custody, guardianship of the children, parental rights and visitation.

There is help available! Kinship caregivers can get help with:

  • Health insurance and health care
  • Financial assistance (including food)
  • Other public benefits
  • Legal assistance
  • Tax credits
  • Schooling–especially if the child or children are now in a new school district
  • Support groups where other kinship caregivers share concerns, experiences, and ideas

WA State’s Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) supports for Kinship Families, including Tribal Families.

MORE HELP:

If the child or children have a disability or special health care need:

PAVE Family Voices of Washington Get Help (works for both programs)

If the child may be experiencing a developmental delay, or you have concerns about that:

“Developmental Screening (Birth to Three and Medically needed developmental screening)”

If the child’s special education needs are not being met: Get Help

If you need a break (respite): Lifespan Respite WA

For Care Partners/Caregivers of Individuals Living with Parkinson’s Disease

Posted on by Barb Koumjian

At Lifespan Respite WA, we focus on caregivers. Our team gathered resources specifically for caregivers from the organizations listed below, to support you in your life with your care partner.

American Academy of Neurology’s Brain&Life website has a quick search function for all types of neurological diseases including Parkinson’s, as well as clinical guidelines (best practices) and information on clinical trials and clinical research.

Davis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson’s

1-866-358-0285; contact@dpf.org

“Dedicated to helping people with Parkinson’s disease live well today. Provides information, inspiration, tools, resources, and opportunities to people living with Parkinson’s Disease and care partners to better manage their disease and promote increased engagement in health.”

Among a list of more traditional resources, the Davis Phinney Foundation focuses in on person-to-person support for those living with Parkinson’s and their care partners:

  • Parkinson’s Ambassadors: located in 35 states and Canada (one on one support)
  • “We have more than 70 Ambassadors located in 35 states and Canada. Ambassadors are available to connect with individuals, families, and groups to help answer questions about living well with Parkinson’s and connect you with resources and relationships to provide support.”
  • Living with Parkinson’s and Care Partner Meetups on Zoom (comes with how-tos for Zoom and access to recordings)
  • “Our monthly Living with Parkinson’s Meetup brings together all people diagnosed with Parkinson’s—young, old, early, late—for open, honest, real, and always fun conversations about everything you’ve ever wanted to know about Parkinson’s but were afraid to ask.”

La Davis Phinney Fundación en Español

Usted puede Vivir Bien Hoy si ha sido diagnosticado con Parkinson y nuestra misión es acompañarlo y apoyarlo durante este camino.

A continuación, encontrará una serie de enlaces a distintos espacios y formularios mediante los cuales queremos establecer un puente de comunicación e información con nuestra comunidad de Parkinson de habla hispana.

Y no olvide que siempre puede contactarnos enviando un correo electrónico a la siguiente dirección: cmartinez@dpf.org.

Sitio Web : En español

Lifespan Respite WA’s website can link care partners to the Washington Family Caregiver Learning Portal (from TRUALTA), which has free training for the type of care individuals with Parkinson’s may need at home. Once in the Portal, type “Parkinsons” in the search bar.

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research

This research-focused organization does have good advice for caregivers, found under the topic “Care Partners”.   The “Support Group” page has some specifics for starting a support group. If you don’t find one that works for you, there is this list:

Parkinson’s Buddy Network is an online community of people impacted by Parkinson’s designed to help you make meaningful connections, engage in important dialogue, find useful resources and build long-lasting relationships.

NeuroTalk has a robust Parkinson’s disease community.

Caring.com hosts a Parkinson’s support group.

HealthUnlocked has Parkinson’s community pages.

Smart Patients Parkinson’s Disease Community offers self-care tips.

PatientsLikeMe has a Parkinson’s forum.

    MyParkinsonsTeam. The website says “MyParkinsonsTeam is a free social network that makes it easy for you to:

    • get the emotional support you need from others like you, and
    • gain practical advice and insights on managing treatment or therapies for Parkinson’s disease”

    Note that this site is run by a for-profit organization, so you may wish to carefully read the “About” section.

    Northwest Parkinson’s Foundation

    Toll-Free: 1-877-980-7500
    Seattle area: 206-748-9481
    Email: info@nwpf.org Website: https://nwpf.org

    “Our Mission is to transform the way people live with Parkinson’s through awareness, education, advocacy, and care.”  They serve in Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho.

    Social Services: “Northwest Parkinson’s aims to fill in the gaps between neurology visits by providing support for People with Parkinson’s, Caregivers, Family members, and Providers in Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho. Social Work is available to provide PD related education and resources or simply lend a listening ear. We offer:

    • 1 to 1 phone consultations to navigate life with Parkinson’s and caring for someone with Parkinson’s. During these consultations we can go over a range of resources from Support Groups, in-home care, placement advisory referrals, Neurology/MDS referrals, financial assistance resources, online and local movement/fitness programs, among others.
    • Support Groups. NWPF runs a few different support groups for Carepartners, Adult Children, and Lay Facilitators of PD Support Groups. We also keep a listing of Support Groups in each of the 4 states we service.”
    • Many other supports and services

    Parkinson’s Foundation https://www.parkinson.org  + https://www.parkinson.org/espanol

    Helpline: 1-800-473-4636 (national)

    “Parkinson’s Foundation focuses on research and access to healthcare for individuals living with Parkinson’s Disease. The Pacific Northwest Chapter serves residents of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington with local resources”

    Support for Care Partners includes among other resources

    From the Pacific Northwest Chapter: list of support groups (for in-person, call first)

    Stanford Medicine has the Caregiver Corner with fact sheets, blog, articles, videos, and podcasts.

    Online – Coffee & Tea Drop-In with P2P

    January 26 @ 10:00 am – 10:30 am PST

    REGISTER Open to parents and caregivers seeking support to navigate the various emotions and life adjustments of raising a child, youth, and adult with a disability. We can help connect families to Pierce County community resources, fosters relationships with other parents and build a support network for parents feeling isolated.

    This group supports:

    Open Discussions: During the meetings, parents engage in open and honest discussions about various aspects of parenting children with disabilities. Topics might include navigating the healthcare system, accessing educational resources, managing daily routines, promoting social interactions, and self-care for parents.

    Shared Experiences: Parents share their personal experiences, challenges, and strategies they have found effective in raising children with disabilities.

    Cultural and Language Sensitivity: Efforts are made to ensure that the group is culturally sensitive and inclusive, respecting the diverse backgrounds and needs of all participants. REGISTER

    Free

    Related Events

    Online – Coffee & Tea Drop-In with P2P

    January 12 @ 10:00 am – 10:30 am PST

    REGISTER Open to parents and caregivers seeking support to navigate the various emotions and life adjustments of raising a child, youth, and adult with a disability. We can help connect families to Pierce County community resources, fosters relationships with other parents and build a support network for parents feeling isolated.

    This group supports:

    Open Discussions: During the meetings, parents engage in open and honest discussions about various aspects of parenting children with disabilities. Topics might include navigating the healthcare system, accessing educational resources, managing daily routines, promoting social interactions, and self-care for parents.

    Shared Experiences: Parents share their personal experiences, challenges, and strategies they have found effective in raising children with disabilities.

    Cultural and Language Sensitivity: Efforts are made to ensure that the group is culturally sensitive and inclusive, respecting the diverse backgrounds and needs of all participants. REGISTER

    Free

    Related Events

    Online – P2P Early Years: Birth – 8 Support

    January 7 @ 9:00 am – 9:30 am PST

    REGISTER Open to parents and caregivers seeking support to navigate the various emotions and life adjustments of raising a child with a disability. We can help connect families to Pierce County community resources, foster relationships with other parents and build a support network for parents feeling isolated.

    This group supports:

    Open Discussions: During the meetings, parents engage in open and honest discussions about various aspects of parenting children with disabilities. Topics might include navigating the healthcare system, accessing educational resources, managing daily routines, promoting social interactions, and self-care for parents.

    Shared Experiences: Parents share their personal experiences, challenges, and strategies they have found effective in raising children with disabilities.

    Cultural and Language Sensitivity: Efforts are made to ensure that the group is culturally sensitive and inclusive, respecting the diverse backgrounds and needs of all participants. REGISTER

    Free

    Related Events