This document includes Senate 2nd Reading Floor Amendments incorporated into the bill on Tue, Feb 11, 2020 at 3:20 PM by lpoole.
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JOINT RESOLUTION SUPPORTING COORDINATION OF

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CARE FOR OLDER ADULTS RECEIVING HOME HEALTH

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CARE SERVICES

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2020 GENERAL SESSION

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STATE OF UTAH

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Chief Sponsor: Jani Iwamoto

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House Sponsor: Stewart E. Barlow

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9     LONG TITLE
10     General Description:
11          This joint resolution expresses support for programs that seek to coordinate transition
12     of care for older adults and other patient populations receiving home health care
13     services.
14     Highlighted Provisions:
15          This joint resolution:
16          ▸     includes statistics about the number of older adult fall-related injuries in Utah;
17          ▸     describes the actions taken by the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance to reduce the
18     number of older adult falls in Utah and improve the coordination of care for older
19     adults;
20          ▸     acknowledges the benefit of efforts to develop and implement technology to assist
21     with coordination of care for older adults and other patient populations receiving
22     home health care services; and
23          ▸     expresses support for the submission of a grant to the Centers for Medicare and
24     Medicaid Services to develop and implement technology that will improve the
25     coordination of care for older adults and potentially other patient populations
26     receiving home health care services.
27     Special Clauses:

28          None
29     

30     Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
31          WHEREAS, falls are the leading cause of injury-related death and hospitalization for
32     Utahns 65 years of age and older;
33          WHEREAS, every week an estimated 200 older adults in Utah seek treatment in an
34     emergency department after a fall-related injury;
35          WHEREAS, older adult falls are preventable with appropriate evaluation, intervention,
36     and coordination of care;
37          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance, a group of diverse stakeholders
38     dedicated to reducing falls and fall-related injuries in Utah's older adult population, including
39     the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), the Utah Commission on Aging, the
40     Utah Medical Association, the Utah Hospital Association, the Utah Association for Home
41     Care, and the Division of Aging and Adult Services, first convened in 2017 after the passage of
42     S.J.R. 8, Joint Resolution Encouraging Study to Reduce Fall-Related Injuries;
43          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance works to increase public awareness of
44     older adult fall prevention and to improve coordination of care for older adults by building
45     connections between health care providers, emergency medical services, aging agencies, and
46     health insurers;
47          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance is the recipient of certain grants that
48     support efforts to reduce the number of older adult falls in Utah;
49          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance developed and implemented a falls
50     prevention program at an apartment complex that houses older adults that decreased 911 calls
51     for falls;
52          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance identified that timeliness in initiating
53     home health care services greatly reduces rehospitalization risk and downstream medical costs;
54          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance identified that the start of home health
55     care services after an older adult's fall is often delayed due to challenges in contacting an older
56     adult's primary care provider to gain approval to begin treatment;
57          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance identified that streamlining
58     communication between a primary care provider and a home health care provider would reduce

59     the wait time before treatment begins and improve coordination of care for older adults;
60          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance identified that streamlining
61     communication between a primary care provider and other care providers may also be
62     beneficial to patient populations other than older adults; and
63          WHEREAS, the Utah Falls Prevention Alliance identified that communication can be
64     streamlined by creating a central electronic location where a primary care provider and a home
65     health care provider can communicate, monitor patient status, and quickly adjust treatment as
66     needed:
67          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah
68     supports programs that improve the coordination of care for older adults receiving home health
69     care services.
70          Ŝ→ [
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah supports the
71     submission of a grant to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to develop
72     and implement technology that will streamline the communication between a primary care
73     provider and a home health care provider and improve the coordination of care for older adults
74     and potentially other patient populations.
] ←Ŝ