The Pennyrile Area Development District played host to Kentucky’s Department of Aging and Independent Living Commissioner Victoria Elridge during Monday’s meeting, in which she detailed important regulatory updates concerning the Commonwealth — and west Kentucky.
At the top of her list: the touting of Governor Andy Beshear and the Kentucky General Assembly, who after COVID-19 coalesced efforts and put $14 million in the biennium budget to increase senior meal provisions across the state.
Prior to the pandemic, Elridge said more than 2,500 adults statewide aged 60 and older sat on waiting lists for dinners.
When COVID-19 first arrived in Kentucky, Beshear and state health officials closed community senior centers — moving all meals to drive-thru.
In fiscal year 2023, more than 3.2 million meals were provided for Kentucky’s seniors, and Elridge noted this was more than 1.2 million from prior to COVID.
This is a two-fold revelation: that there’s a need, and that the state’s budget is currently supporting it.
In Caldwell County, 23 are waiting for home-delivered meals, 15 are seeking homemaking and three need personal care.
In Christian County, 90 are waiting for home-delivered meals, 122 are seeking homemaking and 34 need personal care.
In Lyon County, five are waiting for home-delivered meals, four are seeking homemaking and two need personal care.
In Todd County, nine are waiting for home-delivered meals, eight are seeking homemaking and one needs personal care.
And in Trigg County, 11 are waiting for home-delivered meals, and three are seeking homemaking.
And that’s as of the first week of August.
Elridge also mentioned that the needed “Caregiver Program” has been reinstated and refunded for fiscal year 2024. Used to assist grandparents raising grandchildren, local referrals can be made to Pennyrile ADRC at 1-866-844-4396.
Elridge said the biggest reason for grandparents raising grandchildren in Kentucky continues to be the opioid pandemic, which is putting parents and caretakers in jail — and leaving family members the task of child-rearing once again.
In a side presentation, Jill Collins, director of the Pennyrile’s Area Agency on Aging and Independent Living, said there is no age minimum for the grandparent, the grandchildren must be under 18 years of age, the grandparent must be the primary caregiver, neither birth parent can live in the home, the grandparent can’t be receiving “Kinship Care” benefits, but they can receive KTAP benefits, and assistance could be up to $500 per child.
Elridge said two weeks ago that the state DAIL office hired a veterans, families and caregivers support coordinator — and that the office also recently received a $2 million grant over five years to help support people with dementia.
This is especially for the Commonwealth’s military veterans.
PACE, or the Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, is also soon coming to west Kentucky, after an effective pilot took root in Lexington.
PADD serves nine counties: Caldwell, Christian, Crittenden, Hopkins, Livingston, Lyon, Muhlenberg, Todd and Trigg.