Senate Bill No. 539

(By Senator Chafin and Rowe)

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[Introduced February 7, 2002; referred to the Committee

on Health and Human Resources; and then to the Committee on Finance.]

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A BILL to amend article five, chapter nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section twenty, relating to providing for a pilot project intended to divert low-income residents from early institutionalization in nursing homes by providing personal home care in their communities.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article five, chapter nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section twenty, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.

ยง9-5-20. Pilot project to reduce medicaid budget by reducing early institutionalization.

 The division of human services shall develop and implement during the fiscal year beginning the first day of July, two thousand two, a pilot program consisting of a project-based assisted living medicaid waiver to be allocated to the housing authorities for the cities of Williamson, Wheeling and Moundsville. The pilot program is intended to divert nursing home admission and to pay for services for low-income elders in their licensed personal care homes. The division may contract directly with the housing authorities in each of these cities to utilize their facilities for medicaid eligible residents at high risk for nursing home placement.


NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide for a pilot project intended to divert low-income residents from early institutionalization in nursing homes by providing personal home care in their communities.

This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been omitted.