Grant Period: September 1, 2006 ~ September 30, 2011
Federal Funds: $3,000,000.00
Oversight Agency: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services awarded the California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS) a Real Choice Systems Transformation Grant to support the California Community Choices project.
California Community Choices is a seminal five-year pilot project dedicated to increasing consumer access to home and community-based long-term care services and diverting persons with disabilities and older adults from unnecessary institutionalization through development of California’s long-term care infrastructure. Three strategic goal areas define the project:
Goal 1: Improved access to long-term support services: development of one-stop system
Strategy Establish two one-stop resource center pilot sites to provide a coordinated system of information, referral and assistance for any person seeking long-term care services and supports
Goal 4: Transformation of information technology to support systems change
Strategy Develop a comprehensive, easy-to-use, accessible website prototype for the two one-stop centers to provide up-to-date information on long-term care services and supports
Strategy Commission a study analyzing the elements necessary for developing a long-term care data storage system that would enable comparisons on the quality and outcomes of services provided in non-institutional settings.
Goal 5: Creation of a system that more effectively manages the funding for long-term supports that promote community living options
Strategy Complete a comprehensive study, with recommendations, to improve the State’s understanding of the financial and structural barriers to increasing access to home and community-based services
An active and productive strategic planning process led to the development and successful finalization of the Community Choices Strategic Plan – the project’s comprehensive planning guide. Central to the Plan’s success was the assistance and support the project received from its 15-member Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee was established to advise CHHS on development of the project and to monitor project activities. The committee includes a combination of both consumer and non-consumer stakeholders representing the following types of organizations: consumer advocacy groups; disability advocacy organizations; community-based health and social service organizations; aging advocates; and caregiver advocacy and service support groups. From the Advisory Committee, subcommittees for each of the three goal areas were formed at the outset of the strategic planning process. Subcommittees met during the strategic planning process and will continue to meet throughout project implementation, to review specific objectives, strategies and outcomes for each goal area and report back to the larger Advisory Committee.
A parallel State Department Advisory Group was also created to provide additional project support and guidance. Representatives from the following State departments serve on this group: Mental Health, Public Health, Health Care Services, Social Services, Aging, Developmental Disabilities and Rehabilitation. In addition to these departments, representatives from the State’s housing and transportation departments will participate as ad hoc members to the group during the project period.
The public contributed their ideas and recommendations to the formation of the strategic plan primarily through a series of scheduled public meetings and the project website, which solicited input through two online surveys. As part of a feedback loop, the public was informed about developments to the strategic plan via the project website. The public will continue to have a formative role in reviewing and commenting on implementation of the project.
The project’s mission and vision statements were developed by the project team and the Advisory Committee during the initial phase of the strategic planning process.
We are a statewide partnership committed to developing an infrastructure that will increase access to, capacity of, and funding for home and community-based services to provide all Californians with greater choice in how and where they receive long-term care services, in accordance with the Olmstead Principles.*
California will have strategies and recommendations for its long-term care system, featuring replicable and sustainable models that empower individuals through enhanced opportunities for choice and independence.
A detailed implementation plan and timeline have been developed for the project as part of the Strategic Plan. The implementation plan outlines the specific objectives, major strategies and action steps, and outputs – products or services delivered/produced as a direct result of strategies and major action steps – for each goal. Developed in conjunction with Advisory Committee, State Department Advisory Group, and public input, the implementation plan provides a critical blueprint for the project. Complementing this plan is a detailed implementation timeline. The timeline depicts action steps for each goal, by quarter, for the first 15 months of implementation.
To evaluate the effectiveness of the project in the three identified goal areas, the following key evaluation methods will be used to garner feedback from consumers and service providers:
California Community Choices Strategic Plan represents a dynamic and “living” document reflective of and responsive to California consumers with long-term support needs. Feedback from the public, stakeholders, State departments and subcommittees of the California Community Choices Advisory Committee will inform the ongoing strategic plan review process. Members of the California Community Choices Advisory Committee will evaluate project feedback and progress toward achieving identified goals and objectives and will recommend updates and revisions to the Strategic Plan accordingly. Changes to the plan will be made available to the public on the project website.
California Community Choices is committed to improving California’s long-term care infrastructure. With replicable and sustainable models that empower individuals through enhanced opportunities for choice and independence [Community Choices Vision Statement], Community Choices anticipates presenting California with a unique opportunity to initiate substantive long-term care system change transformation.
* The 1999 U.S. Supreme Court Olmstead Decision affirmed the right of individuals with disabilities to receive public benefits and services in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs.