HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 8
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and
Delegates Martin, Fleischauer,
Douglas, Compton, Willison,
Hubbard, Yeager, Tucker, Susman,
Prunty, Damron, Givens, Ennis,
Butcher, Kominar, Stalnaker,
Everson, Willis, Collins, C.
White, Laird, Hatfied, Romine,
Ashley, Marshall, Azinger, Wills,
Cann, Stemple, Doyle, Facemyer,
Thompson, Frederick, Evans,
Warner, Kelley, Campbell,
Proudfoot, Leggett, Dempsey,
Trump, Anderson, Pethtel, L.
White, Beane, Faircloth and
Caputo)
Concerning endorsing and
supporting passage of the
Medicaid Community Attendant
Services Act of 1999
(MiCasa).
Whereas, According to the most
recent United States decennial
census there were 54 million
disabled Americans, over 2,200,000
of whom reside in nursing homes or
other institutions; and
Whereas, In West Virginia there
are 123,182 persons with
disabilities, over 11,184 of whom
reside in nursing homes or other
institutions, primarily due to the
lack of community home-based
attendant services; and
Whereas, The average yearly
cost of residing in a nursing home is higher than the average yearly
cost of providing community home- based attendant services; and
Whereas, The Medicaid Community
Attendant Services Act of 1999
(MiCasa) would expand the range of
services available to persons with
disabilities and give them a
greater ability to choose services;
and
Whereas, The West Virginia
Legislature was one of the first
state legislatures to enact a
community home-based attendant
services program act, and many
states still do not have viable
alternatives to nursing or
institutional care for persons with
disabilities; and
Whereas, Adopting of MiCasa would help to ensure that community
home-based attendant services
programs are truly responsive to
the needs of persons with
disabilities, especially those
residing in rural areas where
choice of services is currently
more limited; and
Whereas, Under MiCasa, an
individual who is currently
eligible for nursing facility
services or intermediate care
facility services for the mentally
retarded may apply the funding
received through these programs to
purchase qualified community home- based attendant services and
thereby receive care in the most
integrated and least restrictive
setting possible; therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of
Delegates:
That the Legislature of the
State of West Virginia urges
Congress to pass the Medicaid
Community Attendant Services Act of
1999.
Further Resolved, That the
Clerk of the House of Delegates
send a copy of this resolution to
the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, Dennis Haskert,
House Minority Leader, Dick
Gephardt, Senate Majority Leader,
Trent Lott, Senate Minority Leader,
Thomas Daschle, and to each member
of the West Virginia Congressional
Delegation.