"Rewriting the Myths, Redefining the Realities"
Experiences of 240 of the first clients in New
Jersey’s Cash and Counseling Demonstration program are the subject
of a new report available from Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. The
report, currently available only in the largely-inaccessible PDF
format, is available online at
http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/PDFs/conearlyexp.pdf (titled
“Cash and Counseling: Consumers’ Early Experiences in New Jersey.
Part II: Uses of Cash and Satisfaction at Nine Months — Interim
Memo”).
New Jersey’s Cash and Counseling program, one of several
demonstration programs operating in the nation, is designed to
provide cash grants to disabled enrollees to purchase their own
personal assistance services. (A booklet about the program designed
for its enrollees can be found at
http://www.hhp.umd.edu/
AGING/CCDemo/ccbook/) The demonstration programs are being funded by
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation in an effort to “test... the use of a cash
benefit to enhance Medicaid consumers’ ability to design PAS
services that best meet their needs (while maintaining overall
program budget neutrality).” More about Cash and
Counseling demonstration can be found at
http://www.hhp.umd.edu/AGING/CCDemo/overview.html
A telephone survey conducted by Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.
nine months after New Jersey Medicaid recipients applied to the
program found that 70 percent were satisfied with it. Most enrollees
hired family members to serve as attendants. The biggest complaint
was over the fact that in some cases the monthly cash grant was
delayed due to bureaucratic snafus.
Evaluations of the nation’s other demonstration Cash and Counseling
programs, also from Mathematica and also in PDF format, are online
at
http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/3rdLevel/cashcounselinghot.htm
For more on the general topic of consumer-directed long-term
services, visit the reports website of The Office of Disability,
Aging and Long-Term Care Policy (DALTCP), part of the office of the
Assistant Secretary for Planning & Evaluation within the US
Department of Health & Human Services. DALTCP is responsible for the
development, coordination, analysis, research and evaluation of HHS
policies and programs which support the independence, health and
long-term care of persons with disabilities—children, working age
adults, and older persons. The Office is also responsible for policy
coordination and research to promote the economic and social well
being of the elderly. A good list of reports is available at
http://aspe.hhs.gov/daltcp/reports/01cfpk3.htm
This article was available from the government web site
http://aspe.hhs.gov/daltcp/reports/01cfpk3.htm.
Copyright 2002 A&H Publishing Corporation