The first semiannual meeting of 2001 of the Special Advisory Commission of Senior Citizens (Commission) convened on Thursday, May 10, 2001, at 1:00 PM, in the Ballroom of the Holiday Inn Capital Plaza Hotel in Frankfort. Dr. Abby Marlatt, Chair, called the meeting to order.
Present were:
Guests: Professor Allison Connelly, University of Kentucky; Representative Carolyn Belcher; Representative Gippy Graham; Senator Marshall Long; Senator Joey Pendleton; Dr. Dan Roenker, Western Kentucky University; Representative Charles Siler; Representative Dottie Sims; Representative Kathy Stein; Representative Jim Thompson; Senator Elizabeth Tori; and Representative Susan Westrom.
LRC Staff: Anne Armstrong, Barbara Baker, Emily Bottoms, Janice Clark, Gerard Donovan, Gilmore Dutton, Sally Everman, Greg Freedman, Jamie Griffin, Linda Hughes, Kathy King, Louis Pierce, Cindy Smith, John Snyder, Ellen Steinberg, Mike Sunseri, and Rose Mack, Secretary.
Chairperson Marlatt welcomed everyone to the first meeting of the twenty-fourth year of the founding of the Special Advisory Commission of Senior Citizens. She asked all the charter members of the Commission to stand and be recognized. Mrs. Gayle Lawson was the only original member in attendance. Chairperson Marlatt introduced the following new Commission members:
Ms. Margie England, appointed by the Northern Kentucky Area Development District;
Mr. Bobby Humes, appointed by the Joint Executive Council of Veterans Organizations of Kentucky;
Mr. L. G. Kuhn, appointed by the Joint Executive Council of Veterans Organizations of Kentucky;
Mrs. Gayle Muncy, appointed by the Kentucky River Area Development District; and
Mr. Don A. Potts, appointed by the Joint Executive Council of Veterans Organizations of Kentucky.
Mr. Gilmore Dutton, Commission Staff Coordinator, announced that Mr. Bill Schunder had been chosen as the new coordinator for the Northern Kentucky Regional Coordinating Committee and that a vacancy still exists for the Coordinator for the Kentucky River Regional Coordinating Committee. Mr. Dutton informed the members that the University of Kentucky’s Sanders-Brown Center on Aging’s “Summer Series on Aging” conference will be held July 9-11, 2001, in Lexington and encouraged the members to attend, since the Commission is a cosponsor of the event. He also announced that the Commission’s November, 2001, meeting has been rescheduled for November 8-9, 2001, instead of November 1-2, 2001, as previously reported.
Mr. Dutton introduced Dr. Dan Roenker, Professor of Psychology and Director of the Center for Research on Aging, Western Kentucky University, who discussed the effects of aging on driving ability, and demonstrated “The Useful Field of View” (UFOV). “The Useful Field of View” is a procedure which measures the amount of information an individual can process in a brief period of time, and is a reliable predictor of problems experienced by the elderly in safely operating an automobile. In an ongoing study conducted by Western Kentucky University, senior citizens and others are trained to expand their UFOV. The training is free; anyone interested in participating in the study can do so by calling Western Kentucky University at (270) 745-6313.
Dr. Roenker shared the following facts:
· There are 30 million senior (60 and older) drivers on the road today.
· It is estimated that there will be 70 million senior drivers by 2030.
· Travel accidents kill or injure 1.2 million senior drivers annually.
· Per mile, senior drivers have twice the accident rate of younger drivers.
· Senior drivers make up 13 percent of the population, but incur 17 percent of the fatalities.
· The likelihood of crashing increases as you get older.
· Most older drivers are safe drivers.
· Eighty percent of crashes involve 20 percent of the older drivers.
· The speed with which individuals or seniors can process visual information¾”The Useful Field of View”¾distinguishes potentially safe drivers from likely unsafe drivers.
Following Dr. Roenker’s presentation, Chairperson Marlatt adjourned the opening general session to allow the subcommittees to convene. She announced that the dinner session would commence at 6 PM.
Chairperson Marlatt convened the dinner session and introduced the evening’s legislative hosts:
Representative Carolyn Belcher,
Representative Gippy Graham,
Senator Marshall Long,
Senator Joey Pendleton,
Representative Charles Siler,
Representative Dottie Sims,
Representative Kathy Stein,
Representative Jim Thompson,
Senator Elizabeth Tori, and
Representative Susan Westrom.
The Commission members were addressed by Ms. Allison Connelly, Assistant Professor of Law, University of Kentucky College of Law, Director of the University’s Legal Clinic, and Chair of the Kentucky Bar Association’s Elder Law Committee, on the topic, “Rights of Senior Citizens.” Professor Connelly provided each member with a copy of the book, Laws and Programs for Older Kentuckians, published jointly by the Kentucky Bar Association and the University of Kentucky College of Law Legal Clinic. Professor Connelly edited the publication and was a contributing author.
According to Professor Connelly, in 1961 the White House Conference on Aging listed the rights to which each older adult is entitled:
· The right to be useful.
· The right to obtain employment based on merit.
(The 1967 Age Discrimination in Employment Act protects workers 40 and over from age discrimination in the workplace. The Kentucky Civil Rights Act also protects workers ages 40 years or older from employment discrimination.)
· The right to freedom from want in old age.
(Everyone has the right not to be financially exploited, abused, or neglected, and everyone has the right not to have to choose between drugs and food.)
· The right to a fair share of the community’s recreational, educational, and medical resources.
· The right to obtain decent housing suited to the needs of the elderly in order to live independently.
(Seniors have the right to live with dignity and to live in their own homes and communities. Seniors need a consumer directed, comprehensive health system dedicated to preserving independent living for frail seniors, persons with disabilities, and persons with chronic or terminal illnesses.)
· The right to the moral and financial support of one’s family so far as is consistent with the best interest of the family.
· The right to live and die with dignity.
· The right of access to all knowledge available on how to improve the later years of life.
The Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs had a presentation by Dr. Ginny Smith, Director of the Division of Consumer Services of the Public Service Commission (PSC). Ms. Smith explained the responsibilities for the Division of Consumer Services. The first responsibility is the PSC’s mission statement: “To ensure that utility rates are fair, just, and reasonable for the services provided and that those services are adequate, efficient, and reasonable.” The second responsibility is the PSC’s regulation of intrastate utilities by rates and service. Customer service is the third responsibility, including the complaint process.
Next was a presentation by Mr. Loren Carl, Director of the Division of Financial Integrity, Office of the Attorney General. Mr. Carl stated that the Attorney General had successfully moved identity theft legislation through the General Assembly. Mr. Carl recommended that members call the four credit bureaus listed in the Office of the Attorney General’s “Identity Theft…” brochure to put a “fraud alert” on his/her accounts to reduce junk mail and to provide protection from others accessing one’s credit.
Mr. Carl explained the pitfalls of the telemarketing bill introduced in the 2001 Session of the General Assembly and announced that the Attorney General plans to propose the legislation in 2002.
It was announced that the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office is offering donated cell phones to senior citizens who do not have a telephone in their residence, therefore allowing those senior citizens a way to call 911 for help in case of an emergency.
Representative Susan Westrom discussed the need for telemarketing legislation with the members. She said that she is working in conjunction with Professor Allison Connelly and a member of the Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary in hopes of introducing additional telemarketing legislation for the 2002 Session of the General Assembly.
Next, Representative Westrom spoke about sweepstakes and stated that the federal law has too many loopholes and that she will reintroduce legislation in 2002 to help close some of those loopholes. She also discussed the high cost of prescription drugs and explained that the federal government is presently considering the problem and that she may be drafting legislation that will serve masses of Kentuckians who have to make the choice between food and prescription drugs.
The Subcommittee approved the following recommendations:
(1) Support telemarketing legislation;
(2) Support legislation to protect seniors who grant a Power of Attorney;
(3) Support TRIAD Programs;
(4) Encourage service credit banking;
(5) Support legislation that addresses the high cost of drugs and health care; and
(6) Continue to oppose utility deregulation.
The Subcommittee on Health and Human Services was addressed by Representative Paul Bather, Chair of the Medicaid Managed Care Oversight Advisory Committee, who discussed the current Medicaid budgetary shortfall. Representative Bather reported that the Medicaid Managed Care Oversight Advisory Committee plans to have five regional meetings across the state and encouraged the Subcommittee members to attend the meeting in their region of the state.
Also on the Subcommittee’s agenda was a discussion regarding various long-term care topics focusing on assisted living. Mr. John Underwood, Executive Director of the Kentucky Assisted Living Facilities Association; Mr. Ed Wilson, Director, Division of the Long-Term Care in the Inspector General’s Office; and Mr. Jerry Whitley, Director of the Office of Aging Services in the Cabinet for Health Services, served as the Subcommittee’s resource panel.
The Subcommittee approved the following recommendations:
(1) To support additional expansion and funding for a true continuum of community-based care including homecare, caregiver support, senior centers, assisted living, adult day care, hospice, and other programs that allow individuals to remain in community-type living as long as possible’
(2) To recommend that relief for prescription drug costs be given to Medicare recipients by recommending that those recipients be given their prescriptions at the same costs that Medicaid receives their prescription drugs; and
(3) To recommend that all Kentuckians have access to comprehensive, consistent, consumer-friendly and accessible literature and web-based information that explains the myriad of long-term care services.
The Subcommittee on Insurance heard testimony from Mr. Fred Nelson, Executive Director of Kentucky Access, and from Mr. Mark McGuire, Actuary with the Department of Insurance.
The Subcommittee agreed to further study the feasibility of legislation that would mandate that Kentucky Access provide a Medicare supplement policy that includes prescription drug benefits to persons covered by Medicare. (Medicare does not cover outpatient prescription drugs and 35 percent of Medicare beneficiaries do not have supplemental prescription drug coverage.) Because this will have a financial impact on Kentucky Access, the Subcommittee agreed to make the following requests of the Department of Insurance:
(1) That the Department of Insurance provide an estimate of the financial impact on Kentucky Access of legislation mandating Kentucky Access to offer a Medicare supplement policy that includes prescription drug benefits for persons receiving Medicare who are 65 years of age or older,
(2) That the Department of Insurance provide an estimate of the financial impact on Kentucky Access of legislation mandating Kentucky Access to offer a Medicare supplement policy that includes prescription drug benefits for persons under the age of 65 who are receiving Medicare.
The Subcommittee agreed to request the 2002 Kentucky General Assembly to adopt a resolution requesting the United States Congress to enact a prescription drug program for senior citizens.
The Subcommittee also agreed to study further actions taken by states to create prescription drug programs. The Subcommittee staff will provide relevant information on state actions prior to the November, 2001, meeting of the Subcommittee. The Subcommittee agreed to recommend that the 2002 Kentucky General Assembly enact legislation creating a prescription drug program for senior citizens which will become null and void if the federal government enacts a federal prescription drug program.
The Subcommittee approved the following recommendation:
That the General Assembly and the Department of Insurance be encouraged to continue efforts to increase the availability of health insurance in Kentucky at affordable premiums.
The Subcommittee on Taxation heard testimony from Representative Mark Treesh, who serves on the Interim Joint Committee on Appropriations and Revenue and is an appointee of the newly formed legislative Subcommittee on Tax Policy Issues. Representative Treesh explained a comprehensive tax reform bill that he introduced during the 2001 Session of the General Assembly. He said that the bill started good discussion and debate but could not be addressed during the session because of the constraints placed on taxation legislation. The prime components of the legislation dealt with individual income tax reform, the vehicle property tax, and telecommunications tax reform. Representative Treesh also presented scenarios for two different low income families to show how Kentucky’s tax system affected them. According to Representative Treesh, the Subcommittee on Tax Policy Issues held its first meeting in April and promises to deal with a variety of tax reform issues.
The Subcommittee also heard testimony from Ms. Alice Delambre, who is with the Office of Aging Services in the Cabinet for Health Services. Ms. Delambre said that more than 80 percent of the care provided for persons 65 years of age or older is provided by informal caregivers, such as family members, and that this number is rapidly increasing. She said that the Older Americans Act has established an important new program called the National Family Caregivers Support Program. Kentucky has received $1.5 million for distribution to each area development district to begin the program on July 1, 2001. The program is designed to provide assistance in obtaining services, counseling for the caregiver, and respite care to give temporary relief to the caregiver. Ms. Delambre said that family caregivers must be supported, because they are such an integral part of long-term care.
The Subcommittee on Taxation approved the following recommendations:
(a) Eliminate the status of married persons filing separately on a combined form and using the federal standard deduction for all files; and
(b) Eliminate the 740-S Form.
(1) That the General Assembly enact legislation requiring that tax credits be given to those who care for the elderly in the elderly person’s home or in the caregiver’s home.
(2) Eliminate the inheritance tax on Class B and Class C beneficiaries and retain the federal estate tax pickup.
Mr. Robert Veazey, Commission Vice Chair, thanked Chairperson Marlatt and the Legislative Research Commission staff for their work in planning the Commission’s meeting. He also asked the staff to convey to Mr. Robert Sherman, Director of the Legislative Research Commission, thanks for the many years of support the Legislative Research Commission has given to the Special Advisory Commission of Senior Citizens.
Chairperson Marlatt announced that the next meeting of the Special Advisory Commission of Senior Citizens will be November 8-9, 2001, at the Holiday Inn Capital Plaza Hotel in Frankfort. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:09 A.M.