For Immediate Release:
August 24, 2006
Contact:
Nanci Gonder
Office of Public Information
573-751-6062
'Assisted Living' Comes of Age in Missouri
Assisted living facilities will be a new option for Missouri seniors under a law that takes effect August 28, according to officials with the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
Assisted living has gained widespread popularity in the last decade as an option for older people who can no longer live independently but do not require nursing home care. The new law defines for the first time what assisted living means in Missouri and allows qualifying facilities to use the consumer-friendly term in marketing and promotional campaigns, though many have done so unofficially for years.
“The assisting living concept has been popular for years, but across the country there is confusion about the services provided in facilities that call themselves ‘assisted living,’ says Julie Eckstein, Director of the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS).
Nationwide, assisted living facilities tend to be very different from one another in size, appearance and the types of services they offer. Some provide meals, basic housekeeping and help with activities of daily living (ADLs) like bathing, dressing and grooming. Others may arrange for transportation and certain health services. “Missourians deserve to know exactly what type of care and services their loved ones are getting in assisted living and this new law spells it out,” says Eckstein.
The law, which was signed by Governor Matt Blunt on July 10, 2006, allows DHSS to license and inspect four types of long-term care facilities, with each providing a different level of care depending upon a person’s needs. The first type, residential care, is for people who are basically healthy but may need help with medications or a short-term illness. The second type, assisted living, provides even more help to its residents and 24-hour care is provided under the direction of a licensed physician. Generally, people who live in either of these settings are healthier and require a lot less care than those who live in intermediate care and skilled nursing homes, the other DHSS-licensed facilities.
The law also mandates that assisted living facilities provide help with such activities as bathing, dressing, preparing meals, shopping, and managing money and medications. What’s more, these services must be consistent with a “social model of care,” meaning they will be “delivered in a setting that is more home-like than institutional and which promotes the dignity, privacy, independence and autonomy of the individual.”
The new law also allows residents to continue living in an assisted living facility even if they are unable to evacuate with minimal assistance or are temporarily incapacitated, as long as the facility complies with additional safety rules. A few safety rules are that a facility “has sufficient awake staff 24 hours a day to assist in evacuations” and “an individualized evacuation plan in the resident’s service plan.” Currently, residents unable to evacuate with minimal assistance must live in a setting that provides a higher level of care than that offered in assisted living, such as an intermediate-care or skilled nursing home.
The law goes into effect August 28, 2006, but assisted living facilities will not be inspected for compliance with the new standards until April 1, 2007, unless a facility wants an inspection prior to that time.