H.R. 5288House113th Congress (2013-2015)In Committee

National Care Corps Act of 2014

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Referred to the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training.

Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee

November 17, 2014

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HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

July 30, 2014

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

Education and Workforce Committee

July 30, 2014

HouseCommittee

Referred to the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training.

Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee

November 17, 2014

Floor Debate

1 member

What members said about H.R. 5288 on the floor

1 Democrat

Rep. Michelle Lujan GrishamD-NM-1 · Nov 17, 2014

Madam Speaker, I rise during National Family Caregivers Month to recognize the millions of family caregivers who do incredible work every day and to talk about the future of caregiving in this…

Madam Speaker, I rise during National Family Caregivers Month to recognize the millions of family caregivers who do incredible work every day and to talk about the future of caregiving in this country.

Right now, the vast majority of care services in the United States are provided by family caregivers. They do this out of love for their loved ones, to restore and maintain respect and dignity, and because the vast majority of disabled adults and seniors rely on Medicare as their primary insurance, and Medicare does not pay for long-term care services, and they are barely ineligible for Medicaid, which might.

Forty-nine million Americans provide more than 520 billion in care to seniors and adults with disabilities every year. They manage a range of really difficult responsibilities because they have a friend or a loved one who is older or who has a disability and is in need of extra help.

I know how tough it is to be a family caregiver because I am one. My mother, who lives with me in New Mexico, relies on me to oversee her care and also provide financial support. These are difficult arrangements for a number of reasons. Having a parent rely on a child when they have spent their life being the caregiver can be a tough transition to make.

But family caregivers navigate that relationship while taking the time to call insurance companies and hospitals to ensure their loved one is getting proper care and while often having to use their own resources to cover many of the costs associated with that care.

They do it out of love, and they do it because they know that their mother or their husband or their friend wants to remain as independent as possible, and they know that they want to live out their lives with dignity. I think they have earned that right.

But these family caregivers cannot do it alone. They need someone to take their sister to her appointment and when they get busy with a day at work or to make sure that their dad takes his medication while they attend a parent-teacher conference.

Already in this country, we have got more than 4 million men and women who have chosen direct care as a career and provide these kind of services on a paid basis, but if you look at the sheer demographics, that is not nearly enough.

As the baby boom generation continues to age, demand for services will increase. The gap between the number of family caregivers and direct care workers and the number of people who need services will continue to grow.

In 2010, there were seven potential caregivers for every person over the age of 80. By 2030, that ratio is projected to drop by almost half, to 4.1.

In the direct care workforce, demand is projected to grow, so that the U.S. will need to add at least 1 million more direct care workers over the next 10 years.

So we face real challenges in growing a workforce that will help meet the needs of our population. At the same time, our economy continues to slowly recover from the Great Recession.

Young people looking to enter the workforce, along with workers who are willing to retrain, want to find jobs in a field that is growing and can provide them with some job security.

So I see two challenges that I think can be solved with one coordinated national effort called Care Corps. My bill, H.R. 5288, creates a national Care Corps that will place volunteers and communities to work with seniors and individuals with disabilities who need a little extra support to live independently.

In return for their services, volunteers will receive health insurance and other benefits, along with a postservice educational award. This award can be used to pay for up to 2 years of attendance at an institution of higher education or to pay back educational loans.

But I want to end with what I think will be the program's legacy if we are able to get this done. Care Corps provides an opportunity for intergenerational relationships, for seniors and our young people to learn from each other, and for us as a country to gain a better sense of our history to the people that lived it.

Anyone who has ever been a caregiver will tell you not just that it was challenging, but that it was incredibly rewarding.

So I want to thank our family caregivers who are already filling a serious void in this country, and I want to urge my colleagues to support them by supporting the National Care Corps Act.

Bill Text

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Introduced in HouseIssued July 30, 2014

113th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 5288

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

July 30, 2014

Ms. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce

A BILL

To establish a National Care Corps through which qualified volunteers provide care, companionship, and other services to seniors and individuals with disabilities.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the National Care Corps Act of 2014.

Definitions

For purposes of this Act, the following definitions shall apply:

(1)

Corps

The term Corps means the National Care Corps established under section 3 of this Act.

(2)

Director

The term Director means the Director of the Corps appointed under section 3(b)(1) of this Act.

(3)

Local Care Corps Program

The term local Care Corps program means a program funded with a grant awarded under section 10(b) of this Act that hosts Corps members and arranges for them to provide approved services to individuals in need.

(4)

Secretary

The term Secretary means the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Establishment of National Care Corps

(a)

In general

There is established in the Department of Health and Human Services a program to be known as the National Care Corps through which Corps members provide approved services to individuals in need via participation in local Care Corps programs.

(b)

Staff

(1)

Appointment of Director

The Secretary, acting through the Administrator for Community Living, shall appoint a Director of the Corps.

(2)

Duties of Director

The Director shall—

(A)

design, develop, and administer Corps programs;

(B)

manage the daily operations of the Corps; and

(C)

report to the Administrator for Community Living.

(3)

Authority to Employ Staff

The Director may employ such staff as is necessary to carry out this Act.

Selection and eligibility of members

(a)

In General

(1)

Selection

The Director shall select eligible individuals for membership in the Corps.

(2)

Nondiscrimination

In selecting Corps members, the Director shall comply with all applicable provisions of State and Federal laws and regulations pertaining to nondiscrimination and equal employment opportunity.

(b)

Eligible Individuals

To be eligible for membership in the Corps, an individual shall—

(1)

be at least 18 years of age on or before December 31 of the calendar year in which the individual begins participation in the Corps;

(2)

agree to participate in the Corps for a period of not more than 24 months;

(3)

submit an application to the Director at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director may require;

(4)

pass a criminal background check as described in subsection (c); and

(5)

agree to comply with such terms and conditions as the Director may require.

(c)

Criminal background check

(1)

In General

Before selecting any individual for membership in the Corps, the Director shall request a criminal background check of such individual.

(2)

Membership Prohibitions

An individual shall be ineligible to be a Corps member if—

(A)

such individual refuses to consent to the criminal background check; or

(B)

the criminal background check does not demonstrate to the Director’s satisfaction that such individual is fit for Corps service.

Authorized Benefits for Corps Members

(a)

In General

The Director shall provide for members of the Corps to receive allowances, health insurance, and post-service educational awards authorized by this section.

(b)

Allowances

The Director shall provide each Corps member with such living, travel, and leave allowances, and such housing transportation, supplies, equipment, and subsistence as the Director may determine to be necessary for the member’s maintenance and to ensure the member’s health and capacity to serve effectively.

(c)

Health insurance

(1)

In general

The Director shall provide for each Corps member to receive health insurance coverage.

(2)

Minimum essential coverage

The health insurance coverage described paragraph (1) shall meet the requirements of section 5000A(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

(d)

Post-Service Educational Award

(1)

In General

The Director shall establish an educational award for Corps members.

(2)

Amounts

(A)

Amount for Full-Time Service

In the case of a Corps member who completes a 12-month term of full-time service as determined by the Director, such member shall receive an educational award having a value equal to the maximum amount of a Federal Pell Grant under section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a) that a student eligible for such grant may receive in the aggregate (without regard to whether the funds are provided through discretionary or mandatory appropriations) for the award year. A Corps member may receive up to 2 such awards.

(B)

Amount for Other Periods of Service

In the case of a Corps member who completes less than a 12-month term of full-time service as determined by the Director, such member may receive a portion of the educational award described in subparagraph (A) that corresponds to the quantity of service actually completed by the member.

(3)

Uses of Award

An educational award shall be used to pay—

(A)

costs of attendance at an institution of higher education; or

(B)

government or commercial loans received by an individual for costs of attendance at an institution of higher education.

(4)

Definitions

For purposes of this subsection, the following definitions shall apply:

(A)

Cost of Attendance

The term cost of attendance has the meaning given such term by section 472 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087ll).

(B)

Institution of Higher Education

The term institution of higher education has the meaning given such term by section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)).

(e)

Regulations

The Director shall issue any regulations that the Director determines to be necessary to carry out this section.

Assignment of Corps Members to Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities

(a)

Assignment of Corps Members

(1)

In General

The Director shall assign each Corps member to participate in a local Care Corps program.

(2)

Priority of Assignment

In assigning Corps members to local Care Corps programs, the Director shall assign not less than 20 percent of members to programs that serve geographic areas in which the Director determines there is a shortage of approved services available to individuals in need, with consideration given to low-income and minority populations.

(b)

Services Provided by Corps Members

(1)

In General

Corps members may only provide approved services to individuals in need through participation in local Care Corps programs.

(2)

Approved Services

Approved services are services provided directly to individuals in need in home-based settings that—

(A)

result in person-to-person, supportive relationships with each individual served;

(B)

support the achievement and maintenance of the highest level of independent living for each individual in need;

(C)

are meaningful to the Corps member; and

(D)

are supported by appropriate orientation, training, and supervision.

(3)

Prohibited Services

In performing duties as a Corps member, no member shall provide—

(A)

professional medical services;

(B)

administrative support services to a local Corps program;

(C)

care in an institutional setting;

(D)

care prohibited under State law; or

(E)

any other services determined by the director to be inconsistent with the purposes of the Corps.

(4)

Guidance Regarding Scope of Services

The Director may issue guidance describing the scope of services that may be provided by Corps members. In issuing such guidance, the Director shall provide for a public notice and comment period of not less than 30 days before issuing the guidance in final form.

(c)

Individual in Need

The term individual in need means an individual who—

(1)

is at least 65 years of age or has a disability as defined in section 3 of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102);

(2)

has difficulty with self-care; and

(3)

meets such other criteria as the Director determines to be appropriate.

Training and Standards of Conduct

(a)

Pre-Assignment Training Program

The Director shall develop a training program that provides Corps members with instruction in the skills necessary to carry out an assignment in a local Care Corps program. Such training program shall include—

(1)

at least 20 hours of instruction for each Corps member; and

(2)

any other requirements the Director determines to be appropriate.

(b)

Standards of Conduct

The Director shall establish and enforce standards to promote proper conduct and discipline within the Corps.

Status of Corps Members Under Federal Law

(a)

In general

Except as otherwise provided in this section, members of the Corps shall not, by reason of their status as members, be treated as Federal employees or be subject to the provisions of law relating to Federal employment.

(b)

Work-Related injuries

(1)

In general

For purposes of subchapter I of chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, relating to the compensation of Federal employees for work injuries, members of the Corps shall be treated as employees of the United States within the meaning of the term employee, as defined in section 8101 of such title.

(2)

Special rule

In the application of the provisions of subchapter I of chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, to a member of the Corps, the member shall not be treated to be in the performance of duty while absent from the member’s assigned post of duty unless the absence is authorized in accordance with procedures prescribed by the Director.

(c)

Tort claims procedure

A member of the Corps shall be treated as an employee of the United States for purposes of chapter 171 of title 28, United States Code, relating to tort claims liability and procedure.

Reporting Requirements

The Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Administrator for Community Living, shall transmit to Congress at least once in each fiscal year a report on the Corps. At minimum, such report shall include—

(1)

a description of the population served by the Corps during the preceding fiscal year;

(2)

an evaluation of Corps operations; and

(3)

recommendations, if any, for improving Corps operations.

10.

Local Care Corps Programs

(a)

Functions of Local Care Corps Programs

Local Care Corps programs shall—

(1)

conduct in-person orientation and training for Corps members;

(2)

develop and monitor member assignments, which shall include selecting the individuals in need to be served by Corps members, matching members to assignments, and supervising members;

(3)

maintain records and prepare reports as required by the Director; and

(4)

carry out any other activities determined to be appropriate by the Director.

(b)

Grants for Local Care Corps Programs

The Director may award grants to qualified entities for the operation of local Care Corps programs.

(1)

Qualified Entity

The term qualified entity means a public or private nonprofit entity that is—

(A)

part of an aging network, as defined by section 102(5) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002(5));

(B)

a time-banking or volunteer organizing agency;

(C)

a State, county, or local government; or

(D)

any other entity determined to be appropriate by the Director.

(2)

Application Process

To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, a qualified entity shall—

(A)

submit an application to the Director at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director may require; and

(B)

abide by such terms and conditions as the Director determines to be appropriate.

11.

Authorization of Appropriations

(a)

In General

There is authorized to be appropriated $350,000,000 for each of the fiscal years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.

(b)

Continued Availability of Funds

Amounts authorized to be appropriated under subsection (a) for a fiscal year are authorized to remain available for that fiscal year and the subsequent fiscal year.