Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Officials in three agencies are attempting to keep the program open without the health department subsidy.
YOUNGSTOWN — There been many expressions of support and concern — but no offers of money — to keep open the Adult Day Services program run by the Mahoning County District Board of Health.
Health Commissioner Matthew Stefanak said the health board will end its $60,000 subsidy of the program May 1 as planned.
Officials in three agencies, however, including the board of health, are attempting to keep the program open without the subsidy.
Stefanak said the agency’s bookkeepers are trying to determine if revenue from new-found Passport-eligible clients is enough to keep the program running.
Passport is a Medicaid waiver program that provides home and community-based services and support to older Ohioans.
The Area Agency on Aging and Mahoning County Office of Job and Family Services are working to determine if more of the Adult Day Services clients are eligible for Passport benefits, said Donald Medd, executive director of the Area Agency on Aging office here.
Once that process is complete, it will be up to the health board to determine if it can keep the day-services program operating, Medd said.
About 60 low-income and frail seniors attend the program, located at the county’s South Side Annex, 2801 Market St. It has been operated by the health department, in collaboration with the Area Agency on Aging, for 30 years.
Clients are bused to the annex, where they spend about five hours a day, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. They play cards, make crafts and have daily exercise and a meal — all for $5 a day out-of-pocket.
The Area Agency on Aging provides $30,000 a year for its operation, and the health department has subsidized it for many years in the amount of $60,000 annually.
Stefanak said a cash-flow problem, caused by a downturn in the economy, is the reason for ending the subsidy. The stagnant economy has resulted in less income from licensing and permit fees, and a reduction in revenue from state and federal sources and county real estate tax revenue, he added.
To stay open, the program needs income from another source, one with deeper pockets than the health department has. There is a safety net of services available should the program end that clients won’t go wanting, Stefanak said. Still, he said, “It is heartbreaking.”
alcorn@vindy.com