Long-Term Care Options Counseling available to assist Health Care Homes with finding community resources

Celebrating at Home…

“Thanks Connie. We are so grateful for all of the help you have given our family. We are celebrating my dad’s 97th birthday on Sunday and are so happy to be doing it AT HOME!”

There are many reasons why the State needs Linkage Lines…

• We are statewide and also available outside the state• We have one brand and people recognize us• We can triage people into critical services but also help them

help themselves• We are not operated by a particular agency, service or need so

all options are available to us• We are completely objective

Consumer Facts

• Information for consumers is often not accessible and too high of a literacy level

• People who need help, don’t self identify

• There are many “sources” of information and assistance but not all are neutral

• Generation Xr’s and Millenials have high demands for technology and we are not prepared as they move into the role of caregiver

Minnesota Average Annual Care Costs in 2010

Source: 2010 Genworth Cost of Care LTC Survey

Annual Monthly

Nursing Home Private Room $74,460 $6,205

Nursing Home Semi-Private Room $66,795 $5,566

Assisted Living Facility $33,817 $2,818

Adult Day Health Care Facility $18,590 $1,549

Home Health Aide (44 hours per week) $57,200 $4,767

Homemaker Services (8 hours a day, 5 days a week)

$50,336 $4,195

Long-term Care Options Counseling Defined

Long-term care options counseling is an interactive decision-support process whereby consumers, family members and/or significant others are supported in their deliberations to determine appropriate long-term support choices in the context of the consumer’s needs, preferences, values, and individual circumstances.

Senior LinkAge Line® Expertise Includes:

• The benefits provided by private options and how they intersect with public options (such as Medicare or Medicaid)

• Public systems and assistance with applications• Other insurance benefits like Long-term Care Insurance and other

financing options• Housing options and the appropriate time to consider a move• Caregiver supports• Understanding home and community service options

Qualifications for Senior LinkAge Line® Specialists

• Staff have minimum of Bachelors Degree in Social Work or Nursing• 18 hour Core Body of Knowledge training• 15 CEUs annually• Monthly videoconferences/ILinc trainings • Monthly conference calls• Mandatory Certificate on Aging training from Boston University• Annual in-person training

Who are Senior LinkAge Line® Specialists?

• Area Agencies on Aging– Manage seven contact centers

– Many outreach staff/volunteers statewide

• Single statewide number –consumers then routed to localized assistance• Objective, comprehensive, neutral information• Individualized assistance by phone, in-person or online• No fee or charge for assistance• Does not sell, endorse or promote any product or service

The Senior LinkAge Line® serves people through four channels

• Phone – 800-333-2433 at seven call centers located throughout Minnesota• In-person – through a reform initiative that helps people return home from a

nursing home and counsels people before entering an assisted living• Print – through an annual publication that focuses on Medicare options in

Minnesota and long-term care options• Web at Minnesotahelp.info which has interactive long-term care navigators

for consumers and professionals to make a plan of long term supportive home and community based services.

Health Care Homes Accessing The Network

• Warm handoffs through phone or online chat• Care planning through a conference call with the consumer• Seek on site training from Linkage Line staff – LinkAge Line

staff can directly or arrange for indirect presentations about network resources to support in-services

• For more tech savvy users - use web based tools directly (long-term care navigator can produce a support plan for the consumer) by going to www.minnesotahelp NOW! online chat if needing additional help