Introduced Version
House Concurrent Resolution 25 History
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HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO.25
[Originating in the Committee on Senior Citizen Issues]
[January 16, 2014]
(By Delegates Williams, Moye, Campbell, Ferro, Manypenny,
Marshall, Moore, Perdue, Pethel, Perry, Pino, Stephens, Young,
Rowan, O'Neal, Armstead, Ashley, Border-Sheppard, Ellem,
Faircloth, Ferns, Householder, Raines, Sobonya, and Westfall)
Urging the West Virginia Governor's Office and the Senate and House
Finance Committees to include sufficient funds in the FY2015
budget to eliminate the wait list for the Aged and Disabled
Waiver program.
W
HEREAS
, The West Virginia Aged and Disabled Waiver program
(ADW) currently serves over 7,000 West Virginians with well over
2,000 applicants are waiting to enter the program; and
W
HEREAS
, The ADW plays an important role in the state, both
through the services it provides to the state's elderly and
disabled populations by assisting them to remain in their homes, as
well as its impact on the state's economy; and
W
HEREAS
, West Virginia University's Bureau of Business and
Economic Research recently provided the Legislature with a report,
"Economic Impact of an Expansion of the Medicaid Aged and Disabled
Waiver on West Virginia's Economy," it is estimated that the ADW
generates $285 million in economic activity in the state, generates $5.5 million in total tax revenues associated with business volume
and employee compensation, and supports more than 3,000 jobs
annually; and
W
HEREAS
, The report estimates that full expansion of ADW to
accommodate everyone on the waiting list would require the state to
spend an additional $13 million in 2013, but it would create nearly
$78.4 million in business volume and support 1,006 jobs. The
spending would return an additional $1.5 million in tax revenue to
the government, offsetting the original expense by 11.5% and
generate more than $33 million in additional employee compensation
annually; and
W
HEREAS
, Because of federally matching funds, each dollar West
Virginia spends on the program garners more than $2.5 of federal
money, magnifying the impact of the program in the state's economy;
and
W
HEREAS
, Elderly and disabled adults who have access to home-
based care are less likely to be hospitalized in the future and
fewer hospitalizations will result in system-wide cost savings in
the long-run;
therefore be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That
West Virginia Governor's Office and the Senate and House
Finance Committees should strongly consider include sufficient
funds in the FY2015 budget to eliminate the wait list for the Aged
and Disabled Waiver program; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates
forward a certified copy of this resolution to the Governor of West Virginia, the Chair of House Committee on Finance and the Chair on
Senate Committee on Finance.