Executive Director Update
Too Many Ineligible for new CBAS Program
As SteppingStone prepared its Centers to make the transition from Adult Day Health Care (ADHC) to the new Community-Based Adult Services or “CBAS” on April 1 we encountered much worry and confusion among the clients we serve. Of the 292 clients now being served by SteppingStone, 58 have been declined for CBAS. That’s 20% of our population! Many have been coming to our Centers for years, managing multiple chronic diseases, as well as suffering the onset of dementia. That they are being told by the State determination process that they no longer qualify for our services hasn’t made any sense, however we are supporting them through the Fair Hearing process and expect most will qualify for CBAS in the end.
July 1st Managed Care Requirement Added to Eligibility
Initial ineligibility is only the first hurdle. For those CBAS clients who are eligible the next step in staying eligible will be the requirement to enroll in one of San Francisco’s Managed Care plans. We are finding that our clients and their caregivers are growing weary of the many changes they have already had to endure in the transition to CBAS and so making sense of Managed Care often causes fear of losing their current doctor(s) if they are not in the Managed Care network. This is made more difficult by language barriers, confusing letters from the State, and worry that their health care is being eroded. On July 1 if they have not made this transition to Managed Care they will no longer qualify for CBAS, the new payer of services for CBAS.
Change isn’t easy for most of us, but for the elderly and disabled it can be even more difficult. Many who are forced to adjust to quickly to change won’t make it. Too often this whole process feels like a bad board game that is defined by confusing and arbitrary rules, and moving forward has the same outcome as a roll of dice or an unlucky card sending players over and over back to square one. But unlike a board game, losing can have dire consequences for the people we serve.
SteppingStone continues to be there for the clients and caregivers we serve, helping them maintain their health on a daily basis, but also helping them to navigate change so as not to slip through this fragile safety net.
