SOUTHERN INDIANA — Indiana’s Family and Social Services Administration waitlists of waivers helping people afford home and community- based services has caused issues for some in Southern Indiana.
The two waivers, the PathWays Waiver, which is for people 60 years and older, the Health and Wellness Waiver, which is for people 59 years and younger, provides financial assistance so that they can afford home and community-based assisted living services for those on Medicaid.
FSSA decided to switch to a waitlist model after it reached its approved capacity for the prior waiver year in April since the state reportedly has a Medicaid shortfall of $1 billion.
The new waiver year began on July 1, and according to the FSSA website, as of October, there are 13,598 people on the waitlist for both waivers.
Jenny Brown, executive director of Vivera Senior Living in Jeffersonville, has been working in the industry since the late 1990s. She said they were admitting four people a week, but have admitted that many people within the past two or three months.
“It’s not really moving,” she said about the waitlist.
Brown said that the waiver system was great, especially compared to neighboring states like Kentucky. She said it can help get a caregiver in a person’s home or to stay in an assisted living facility, like Vivera.
“It was known to be a great service for seniors, because they could, even on a low income ... be able to afford an assisted living facility that normally would be four to $5,000 a month,” she said.
With the waiver, seniors then have to only worry about paying the, typically, $1,000 monthly rent. Brown said most of her residents make between $1,000 to $1,500 a month usually through their social security.
She said assisted living ensures some independence for the residents, with specific focus on providing meals, managing and making sure they take their medication and providing social activities.
At this point, Brown said people calling about the waitlist are apparently being told that it will take two years to get on it.
“It’s been a really tough summer for the seniors who ... are trying to understand the process,” she said.
Brown also said that they have around 20 residents who were expecting their waivers to kick in, so they moved in to the facility preemptively. Now, they’re stuck on the waitlist, although Brown is only having them pay for the rent.
“It creates a lot of anxiety for them,” she said.
Tom Haulter, who is from Indianapolis, moved to Hellenic Senior Living of New Albany in August.
Due to some injuries, Haulter has not been able to walk for about five years. He’s also a survivor of colon cancer. His wife, in June, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She had been taking care of him up until that point.
Due to severe pain as a result of the cancer, their family decided to move Haulter to Southern Indiana where his family is located, and his wife stayed in their house with other family members moving in to help her.
He said he talks with her multiple times a day and visits every week. Otherwise, he spends time with the residents. He’s a musician and plays guitar in the lobby with about 18 to 19 other residents. He said the facility is comfortable and that he has made friends.
Haulter took advantage of the waiver, allowing him to afford his stay at Hellenic. He said other options in the area were hard to find.
“When I started looking at places, I found apartments that said they were wheelchair accessible and they weren’t,” he said.
He said he feels lucky that he was able to get the waiver to live in a place that is wheelchair accessible and comfortable. However, he worries for others who wait.
“I know they’re fighting as hard as they can,” he said about his fellow residents.
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