Reports

This report is the first in a series of final reports that RTI will prepare to document the outcomes of the Real Choice Systems Change Grants. The principal sources of data for this report are Grantees semi-annual, annual, and final reports, a 2005 topic paper on the NFT Grantees and Grantee-prepared final reports and evaluation results as well as publications and materials developed under the grant. This report was referenced on page 48 of CMS MFP Demonstration Solicitation Document.

Throughout the development process, programs must consider the steps to sustainability including people, planning and preparation, publicity/public relations, facilities, programs, policies and procedures, and persistence and positive passion. This entry includes a paper by Florene Stewart Poyadue offered to Family to Family grantees during a technical assistance call, plus the transcripts from the session where participants discussed the 7Ps of sustainability.

Practitioners and policy makers who focus on youth must be knowledgeable about youth development concepts, but it is critically important they know how to apply those concepts in the context of specific functions and program responsibilities. The emphasis of this paper is on incorporating youth development into state adolescent health programs however, the information is relevant to other state-funded programs that address various adolescent issues.

This report describes grant activities in three major LTC systems areas: Access to Long-Term Care Services and Supports, Services, Supports, and Housing, Administrative and Monitoring Infrastructure. For each of the focus areas the report describes Grantees’ accomplishments, illustrates the challenges and discusses the consumers’ role in the implementation and evaluation of activities. The report uses information provided during the reporting period October 1, 2004 to September 30, 2005.

This report highlights the work of nine CMS Money Follows the Persons Grantees, with a focus on Texas and Wisconsin. The report describes the initiatives, and discusses policy and design factors states should consider when developing MFP programs, including developing legislation and budget mechanisms for making transfers of funds, assuring availability of services and housing, identifying potential consumers for transition, developing NFT infrastructure, and monitoring and quality assurance.

This report assesses the appeal of the Cash and Counseling demonstration by: (1) estimating the proportions of eligible beneficiaries that participated and comparing the characteristics of participants and nonparticipants; (2) describing beneficiaries’ most common reasons for agreeing or declining to participate; and (3) examining whether the demonstration affected the number of beneficiaries accessing personal care services or home and community-based services over time.

Assessing the well-being of workers hired under consumer direction and addressing their concerns is critical, because the model is sustainable only if workers are satisfied. While care recipients who manage their own care appear to be much more satisfied than others, the primary reason given for dropping out is difficulty finding or keeping a worker. Moreover, tapping consumers’ family members and friends as additional sources of labor could help solve the serious worker shortage.

Family to Family Centers provide information and other supports both to family members and to professionals who serve children and youth with special health care needs. This topic paper highlights innovative strategies developed by individual Family to Family Centers to develop partnerships to expand their reach, to enhance outreach to parents, to serve a culturally diverse clientele, to help youth prepare for transition, and to ensure organizational sustainability.

This report tracks the work of 8 Passport caseworkers from 3 different service organizations. Caseworkers noted that clients experienced mixed feelings about the program; they were excited at the prospect of transitioning into the community but also frustrated at the length of time it took to complete the transition. Throughout the survey period, the biggest success experienced by caseworkers was finalizing a client’s housing and assisting them in moving out of a nursing home.

This report offers the findings of an outreach project conducted with direct-care employers and employees in Maine to help connect them with a new health insurance product called DirigoChoice. The research suggest that “states experimenting with innovative health coverage plans will need to address major challenges -- such as the part-time nature of direct-care work, low wages, and low reimbursement rates -- to ensure coverage for these critical health care workers.”