SR 9: REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES AND DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH TO ESTABLISH A PROGRAM TO INCENTIVIZE COMMUNITY CARE FOSTER FAMILY HOMES IN THE STATE TO ACCEPT INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE ELIGIBLE FOR ASSISTANCE PURSUANT TO THE STATE'S MEDICAID I/DD WAIVER PROGRAM.

SENATE RESOLUTION

requesting The Department of human services and department of health to establish a program to incentivize Community Care Foster Family Homes in the State to accept individuals who are eligible for assistance pursuant to the State's Medicaid I/DD waiver program.

     WHEREAS, a Community Care Foster Family Home (CCFFH) is a home that is regulated and certified by the Department of Health to provide, for a fee, twenty-four-hour living accommodations, including personal care and homemaker services, to certain individuals who need nursing facility level of care; and

     WHEREAS, CCFFH is a more affordable alternative to institutionalized care, such as intermediate care facilities or skilled nursing facilities, enabling individuals to receive care and support in their own homes and communities; and

     WHEREAS, Medicaid is a jointly funded, federal-state health insurance program for individuals with limited income and resources who meet eligibility requirements; and

     WHEREAS, the State's Medicaid program, also known as Med-QUEST, is administered by the Med-Quest Division of the Department of Human Services; and

     WHEREAS, Medicaid's Home- and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver program, established pursuant to section 1915(c) of the federal Social Security Act, allows states to waive certain Medicaid requirements to provide medical assistance to eligible individuals in the form of reimbursing HCBS providers for part or all of the costs for their services; and

     WHEREAS, the Med-Quest Division works in partnership with the Developmental Disabilities Division of the Department of Health to design and implement the State's HCBS waiver program (Medicaid I/DD waiver program) that meets the needs of its residents with intellectual or developmental disabilities; and

     WHEREAS, there is an insufficient number of CCFFHs in the State that accept individuals eligible for assistance under the State's Medicaid I/DD waiver program; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, that the Department of Human Services and Department of Health are requested to establish a program to incentivize Community Care Foster Family Homes in the State to accept individuals who are eligible for assistance pursuant to the State's Medicaid I/DD waiver program; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Human Services and Director of Health.

Report Title: 

DHS; DOH; Community Care Foster Family Homes; Home- and Community-Based Services Waiver Program; Medicaid I/DD Waiver Program