For more information, contact: Judy Curtis Scott & White Healthcare Media Relations 254-724-4097 or 512-466-1929 jcurtis@swmail.sw.org Richard McGhee, Director Central Texas Agency on Aging 254-770-2344 richard.mcghee@ctog.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 12, 2009

Central Texas site of study to keep elderly out of nursing homes
State officials call project a model for senior care in Texas

Temple, Texas — Scott and White Healthcare and the Central Texas Area Agency on Aging have received a federal grant to develop and test a model of home-based care to help elderly Texans remain in their homes – and out of nursing homes -- after serious illness.

Scott & White and the Central Texas Area Agency on Aging, a partner agency of the Central Texas Aging and Disability Resource Center, were the sole recipients in Texas of the grant from the Administration on Aging (AoA), which will fund an 18-month demonstration project. The project will help establish alternatives to nursing home care and provide support to family caregivers of frail older adults.

“We are proud that Temple, Texas has been singled out as the location for one of the most important programs aimed at reducing Medicaid spending for nursing homes,” said Alfred B. Knight, president and CEO of Scott & White. “This is a vital service to our patients as well as their families, and allows us to provide the highest level of care to them at a vulnerable time in their lives.”

State officials say the project will serve as a model for all of Texas.

"The Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS) is excited about the opportunities presented by the Nursing Home Diversion demonstration grant,” said Gary Jessee, assistant commissioner of Access and Intake. “Building on our success with promoting independence and the implementation of Aging and Disability Resource Centers, this demonstration project will serve as a model for the state in assisting individuals to remain in their homes and communities for as long as possible by easing access to community services and supports."

Said Amanda Fredriksen, manager of advocacy for AARP Texas,"It's a win win — it's good for seniors, who prefer to stay in their homes and it's good for the government because care at home is less costly than a nursing home stay. With this grant, Scott and White and the Central Texas Aging and Disability Resource Center will help prepare Texas for a growing aging population."

The project will involve 200 Scott & White patients whom medical staff identify as needing home-based services once they leave the hospital.

“Home-based services and support are especially important for families at risk of spending their own assets and resources on nursing home care to the point at which they quality for Medicaid,” said said Alan B. Stevens, director of Scott & White’s Program on Aging and Care and the Vernon D. Holleman-Lewis M. Rampy Centennial Chair in Gerontology at Scott & White Hospital and Texas A&M University Health Science Center.

The project aims to give patients a choice in how they receive long term care. Staff members involved in this demonstration project will identify patients at risk for nursing home placement.

Once enrolled in the project, patients will have access to community resources and funds to purchase in-home services, such as personal attendants. The grant also helps to defray the costs to retrofit the patients’ homes to accommodate wheel chairs and other medical equipment.

“I am pleased that through the support of local elected officials, the Central Texas Council of Governments was designated as an Aging and Disability Resource Center, which was a federal requirement in order to receive this significant grant,” said Richard McGhee, director of the Central Texas Area Agency on Aging.

Texas is one of 14 states to receive the grants, totaling $10 million, to help older Americans maintain their independence and to keep the elderly and people with chronic disease such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease in their homes and communities.

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