H-3338

WHEREAS, As a result of significant ongoing issues and expanding opportunities in a dynamic long-term care environment in Washington state;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, By the House of Representatives of the state of Washington, the Senate concurring, That a joint legislative committee on long-term care oversight be created. The committee shall consist of: (a) Four members of the senate appointed by the president of the senate, two of whom shall be members of the majority party and two of whom shall be members of the minority party; and (b) four members of the house of representatives, two of whom shall be members of the majority party and two of whom shall be members of the minority party; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the committee elect a chair and vice-chair. The chair shall be a member of the senate in even-numbered years and a member of the house of representatives in odd-numbered years. The vice-chair shall be a member of the senate in odd-numbered years and a member of the house of representatives in even-numbered years; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the committee shall:

(a) Review the need for reorganization and reform of long-term care administration and service delivery;

(b) Review all quality standards developed, revised, and enforced by the department;

(c) In cooperation with the department of social and health services, develop suggestions to simplify, reduce, or eliminate unnecessary rules, procedures, and burdensome paperwork that prove to be barriers to providing effective coordination or high quality direct services;

(d) Suggest methods of cost-efficiencies that can be used to reallocate funds to unmet needs in direct services;

(e) List all nonmeans tested programs and activities funded by the federal older Americans act and state funded senior citizens act or other such state funded programs and recommend how to integrate such services into existing long-term care programs for the functionally disabled;

(f) Suggest methods to establish a single point of entry for service eligibility and delivery for functionally disabled persons;

(g) Evaluate the need for long-term care training and review all long-term care training and education programs conducted by the department and suggest modifications to improve the training system;

(h) Describe current facilities and services that provide long-term care to all types of chronically disabled individuals in the state including Revised Code of Washington requirements, Washington Administrative Code rules, allowable occupancy, typical clientele, discharge practices, agency oversight, rates, eligibility requirements, entry process, social and health services and other services provided, staffing standards, and physical plant standards;

(i) Determine the extent to which the current long-term care system meets the health and safety needs of the state's long-term care population and is appropriate for the specific and identified needs of the residents in all settings;

(j) Assess the adequacy of the discharge and referral process in protecting the health and safety of long-term care clients;

(k) Determine the extent to which training and supervision of direct care staff are adequate to ensure safety and appropriate care;

(l) Identify opportunities for consolidation between categories of care; and

(m) Determine if payment rates are adequate to cover the varying costs of clients with different levels of need.