Establishes a caregiver coordinator position in the executive office on aging.

A BILL FOR AN ACT

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that families, not institutions, are the primary providers of long-term care for older adults in the State. In 2003, approximately twenty-one per cent of Hawaii's adult population was providing care or assistance to a person age sixty or older. Of these caregivers, twenty-nine per cent were caring for a spouse or partner, and twenty-one per cent were caring for a parent.

Based on estimates of Hawaii's caregivers, it is established that persons in different demographic groups and with varied socioeconomic characteristics exhibit similar chances of being caregivers. Additionally, Hawaii caregivers are remarkably similar to their non-caregiving counterparts in terms of age, ethnicity, education, income, household size, health, and other characteristics.

Among the different ethnic groups in Hawaii, native Hawaiians are most likely to provide regular care to an older adult, followed by Filipinos, Japanese, and Caucasians. Married persons in Hawaii are just as likely to provide care to an older adult as their unmarried counterparts. Adults of any household income have a similar likelihood of providing care to an elderly person.

Twelve per cent of men and sixteen per cent of women said that they provide care or assistance to someone age sixty or older. While men are almost as likely as women to report that they are caregivers, national studies have shown that women are more likely than men to be primary caregivers, rather than secondary caregivers, who provide higher intensities and frequencies of care.

Sixty-five per cent of Hawaii's caregivers are employed. To balance their employment and eldercare roles, working caregivers report having to take leaves of absence, coming in late or leaving early, changing from full-time to part-time, or changing jobs to something less demanding. Other caregivers report having to take early retirement or to give up work completely. Additionally, caregiving places a further strain on the nature of one's retirement income. Fewer contributions to pensions, social security, and other retirement savings are the result of reduced hours on the job or fewer years in the workforce.

The need for personal care due to physical sensory, cognitive, and self-care disabilities increases with age. By 2020, more than one in four individuals will be sixty years old or older. As Hawaii's population ages, many more families will be providing higher levels of long-term care to frail and disabled older adults at home.

The legislature finds that the executive office on aging is responsible for Hawaii's long-term care strategy by developing a comprehensive, statewide system of support for family caregivers. The motivation is both a matter of values, the preference of older adults to remain at home with their families, and a matter of economics, controlling rising long-term care costs, especially for institutional care.

The purpose of this Act is to coordinate and develop family caregiver support services statewide by authorizing the executive office on aging to establish a family caregiver services coordinator.

SECTION 2. There is established within the executive office on aging one full-time equivalent permanent program specialist in aging position. The program specialist in aging shall coordinate a statewide system of caregiver support services by:

SECTION 3. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ , or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2005-2006, and the same sum, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2006-2007, to establish one full-time equivalent permanent program specialist in aging position in the executive office on aging.

SECTION 4. The sums appropriated shall be expended by the executive office on aging for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2005.