Title: Supporting America's Caregivers and Families Act
Policy area: Social Welfare

Summary:
Supporting America's Caregivers and Families Act
This bill reauthorizes through FY2024, and modifies, programs for family caregivers of older adults, including with respect to caregiver assessment tools and capacity-building for aging networks. It also establishes the National Family Caregiver Resource and Technical Assistance Center to support state and local agencies, community-based providers, and family caregivers.
Specifically, the Administration on Aging must develop a strategy to increase the use of caregiver assessment tools and conduct a study that addresses, among other topics, the feasibility of mandating the use of such tools. Additionally, states must report on the mechanisms they use to assess the needs of caregivers.
The bill also provides statutory authority for certain activities to build the business acumen and related skills of aging networks to increase their capacity to serve older adults and caregivers.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1017 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1017

To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 in order to address the needs 
                 of caregivers, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 3, 2019

 Mr. Durbin (for himself and Mr. Kaine) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 in order to address the needs 
                 of caregivers, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Supporting America's Caregivers and 
Families Act''.

SEC. 2. ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF CAREGIVERS.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations for Family Caregiver Support.--
Section 303(e) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3023(e)) 
is amended by striking ``$154,336,482'' and all that follows through 
the period at the end and inserting ``$360,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2020 through 2024''.
    (b) Improving Caregiver Assessment.--
            (1) Increasing use of caregiver assessment tools.--Section 
        202 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3012) is 
        amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) By not later than January 1, 2021, the Assistant Secretary 
shall--
            ``(1) in consultation with caregivers, older individuals, 
        the aging network, and other experts and stakeholders, develop 
        and implement a strategy to increase the use of comprehensive 
        caregiver assessment tools that--
                    ``(A) are standardized across a planning and 
                service area;
                    ``(B) assess the specific problems, needs, 
                strengths, and resources of caregivers--
                            ``(i) as identified by a recognized 
                        caregiver, as appropriate, through voluntary 
                        participation;
                            ``(ii) through direct contact with the 
                        caregiver, which may include in-person, phone, 
                        or online contact; and
                            ``(iii) at appropriate intervals, including 
                        to accommodate significant changes in the 
                        caregiving situation;
                    ``(C) determine whether a caregiver would benefit 
                from support services; and
                    ``(D) lead to providing targeted caregiver support 
                services to best benefit caregivers, where appropriate 
                and available based upon identified unmet needs, 
                including through referrals;
            ``(2) conduct a study on the best practices and potential 
        considerations regarding mandatory use of comprehensive 
        caregiver assessment tools standardized across a planning and 
        service area by an area agency on aging, which shall examine--
                    ``(A) the current use of caregiver assessments, as 
                of the date of the study;
                    ``(B) the efficacy and feasibility of mandatory use 
                of comprehensive caregiver assessment tools 
                standardized across a planning and service area, 
                including the value to caregivers and the older 
                individuals to whom they provide care; and
                    ``(C) the potential impact on the aging network of 
                using such assessments; and
            ``(3) prepare and submit to Congress a report regarding the 
        study under paragraph (2) that provides recommendations for the 
        appropriate use of comprehensive caregiver assessments 
        standardized across a planning and service area by an area 
        agency on aging, and a proposed budget, based on the Assistant 
        Secretary's professional judgment, for appropriately 
        implementing the recommendations.''.
            (2) Assessing needs of caregivers.--Section 373(e)(3) of 
        the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3030s-1(e)(3)) is 
        amended by inserting ``assess the needs of family caregivers or 
        older relative caregivers and'' before ``provide''.
            (3) Family caregiver resource center and technical 
        assistance.--Section 202(b) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 
        (42 U.S.C. 3012(b)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (10), by striking ``and'' after 
                the semicolon;
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (11) as paragraph 
                (12); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (10) the 
                following:
            ``(11) establish and operate the National Family Caregiver 
        Resource and Technical Assistance Center, which will--
                    ``(A) by grant or contract with a public or private 
                nonprofit entity, provide information and assistance to 
                State agencies, area agencies on aging, and community-
                based service providers funded under this Act, 
                including--
                            ``(i) through technical assistance, 
                        research, training, program analysis, and data 
                        collection;
                            ``(ii) activities described in section 
                        411(a)(11); and
                            ``(iii) dissemination of best practices, 
                        including best practices for conducting 
                        assessments of caregiver needs using 
                        comprehensive assessment tools standardized 
                        across a planning and service area; and
                    ``(B) directly or through grant or contract, 
                provide information, education, and assistance to 
                family caregivers in a manner that is accessible and 
                understandable to the family caregivers.''.
    (c) Business Acumen Provisions.--
            (1) Assistance relating to growing and sustaining 
        capacity.--Section 202(b)(9) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 
        (42 U.S.C. 3012(b)(9)) is amended--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' after 
                the semicolon;
                    (B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``and'' after 
                the semicolon; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(C) business acumen, capacity building, 
                organizational development, innovation, and other 
                methods of growing and sustaining the capacity of the 
                aging network to serve older adults and caregivers most 
                effectively;''.
            (2) Clarifying partnerships for area agencies on aging.--
        Section 306 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3026) 
        is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(g) Nothing in this Act shall restrict an area agency on aging 
from providing services not provided or authorized under this Act, 
including through--
            ``(1) contracts with health care payers;
            ``(2) consumer private pay programs; or
            ``(3) other arrangements with entities or individuals that 
        increase the availability of home and community-based services 
        and supports in the planning and service area supported by the 
        area agency on aging.''.
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