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Santa Cruz Sentinel

September 12, 2009

Elderday cheers federal ruling halting program cuts temporarily

By Jondi Gumz

SANTA CRUZ -- U.S. District Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong issued a ruling in Oakland on Thursday temporarily halting the governor's three-day cap on Medi-Cal's adult day health care benefit.

"This is great news," said Sheri Anselmi, director of Elderday, a program in Santa Cruz providing physical therapy, meals, recreation and mental health and nursing services to 152 seniors. "It remains to be seen how long this will last and it's still cause for celebration."

The ruling affects 78 participants who were attending Elderday four or five days a week.

Elderday costs about $107 a day. About 94 percent of the funding comes from Medi-Cal, according to Anselmi, who oversees a $2 million budget and a staff of 22.

Lillie Brantley, who has Alzheimer's, and two other women receiving services filed a class-action lawsuit in late August alleging the cutback violated the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. The judge granted a preliminary injunction halting enforcement of the cuts. Following the ruling, the state Department of Aging issued a memo indicating services can be restored.

The governor had proposed elimination of adult day health centers as a Medi-Cal benefit to save $117 million. Statewide, about 36,000 families with elderly relatives depend on the services.

Legislators approved the cut, which was signed into law by the governor July 28. It took effect after a required 30-day notice, but the attorney general postponed the effective date to Sept. 7.

Hours of Elderday employees were cut, but because of the Labor Day holiday and the judge's decision, their loss of pay will be limited to a few days.

"There's been a lot of stress," said Anselmi, whose program was threatened with loss of funding in May, putting caregivers on edge.

She expects the cutback will take effect in a few months once participants are given more notice of the change so relatives can make other arrangements.

Participation is up 14 percent since June, Anselmi said.

Anselmi said she made an effort to inform doctors, dentists and community agencies about Elderday, which left a former skilled-nursing facility on Ocean Street four years ago for a location on Pioneer Street.

For information, visit dhcs.ca.gov.