Chapter 161-E: Personal Care for the Severely Physically Disabled

In this chapter:

I. "Department" shall mean the department of health and human services.

II. "Personal care attendant" shall mean a qualified non-family member whether or not that person is a professional or paraprofessional and who, in accordance with a plan of care prescribed by a physician and developed in conjunction with and reviewed by a registered nurse, assists severely physically disabled persons to maintain themselves in their homes and gain greater control over their own lives by providing medically oriented long-term maintenance and supportive care.

III. "Severely physically disabled person" shall mean an adult individual over the age of 18 who has been approved to participate in an independent living program and who requires a minimum of 2 hours of medically necessary personal care per day in order to maintain himself or herself in a noninstitutional setting. Such care may include assistance in the following areas: basic personal care and grooming, assistance with bladder and bowel care, assistance with medications, assistance with nutrition including meal preparation and essential household services.

The commissioner of the department of health and human services shall develop a program under which severely physically disabled persons eligible for coverage under medical assistance programs are provided with personal care attendants to provide medically necessary long-term maintenance and supportive care to assist them, as is required in each individual case, to maintain themselves in their homes and gain greater control over their own lives. Personal care services under this chapter may be delivered in noninstitutional locations in which normal life activities occur.

The commissioner of the department of health and human services shall attempt to obtain such federal funds as are available to provide the services authorized under this chapter. The commissioner shall be authorized to expend such monies as he receives from the federal or state government or any other source for the purposes of this chapter.