S 3358 ISCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

112th CONGRESSCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

2d SessionCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

S. 3358CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to provide social service agencies with the resources to provide services to meet the unique needs of Holocaust survivors to age in place with dignity, comfort, security, and quality of life.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATESCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

June 28, 2012CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. KIRK, and Ms. MIKULSKI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and PensionsCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

A BILLCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to provide social service agencies with the resources to provide services to meet the unique needs of Holocaust survivors to age in place with dignity, comfort, security, and quality of life.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

(a) Short Title- This Act may be cited as the ‘Responding to Urgent needs of Survivors of the Holocaust Act’ or the ‘RUSH Act’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(b) Table of Contents- The table of contents for this Act is as follows:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 2. Purposes.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 3. Findings.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

TITLE I--RESPONDING TO THE NEEDS OF HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS

Subtitle A--Definition, Grants, and Other Programs

Sec. 101. Definition.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 102. Organization.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 103. Area plans.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 104. State plans.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 105. Consumer contributions.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 106. Program authorized.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 107. Prevention of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Subtitle B--Activities for Health, Independence, and Longevity

Sec. 111. Innovation to improve transportation for older individuals who are Holocaust survivors.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Subtitle C--Functions Within Administration for Community Living to Assist Holocaust Survivors

Sec. 121. Designation of individual within the Administration.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





Sec. 122. Annual report to congress.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

TITLE II--NUTRITION SERVICES FOR ALL OLDER INDIVIDUALS

Sec. 201. Nutrition services.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

The purposes of this Act are--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) to include ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors’ to the list of groups that receive preference for services as defined in section 305(a)(2)(E) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3025(a)(2)(E));CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) to designate within the Administration on Aging an individual to have responsibility for older individuals who are Holocaust survivors; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) to create a grant program to increase and improve transportation services for older individuals, with preference to those older individuals who are Holocaust survivors.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) During the Holocaust, which took place between 1933 and 1945, an estimated 6,000,000 Jews, as well as millions from other targeted groups, were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) Approximately 127,000 Holocaust survivors remain in the United States, and thousands pass away each year.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) Holocaust survivors are getting older and frailer, and will be seeking additional support and assistance from social service providers to enable them to age in place. Providers face increased levels of demand from vulnerable individuals without any additional revenue to cover needed services.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) All Holocaust survivors are at least 65 years old, with approximately 3/4 of them older than 75 and a majority in their 80s and 90s.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(5) More than half of all Holocaust survivors who emigrated to the United States from the former Soviet Union after 1965 fell beneath 200 percent of the Federal poverty threshold in 2010 and constitute an extremely vulnerable at-risk population in the United States.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(6) Holocaust survivors continue to live with the mental and physical scars of the unconscionable trauma caused by the Holocaust.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(7) While institutionalized settings are beneficial for some older people, long-term care facilities can have an adverse effect on Holocaust survivors. For many Holocaust survivors, institutionalized settings reintroduce sights, sounds, smells, emotions, and routines which can induce panic, anxiety, and re-traumatization as a result of experiences resulting from the Holocaust.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(8) Approximately 2/3 of Holocaust survivors live alone and living alone is a risk factor for institutionalization.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(9) Low-income Holocaust survivors are more reliant on social service programs than most other older Americans, with proportionally more Holocaust survivors needing services such as personal care, home-delivered and congregate meals, transportation, counseling, and mental health support.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

TITLE I--RESPONDING TO THE NEEDS OF HOLOCAUST SURVIVORSCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Subtitle A--Definition, Grants, and Other ProgramsCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 101. DEFINITION.

Section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in paragraph (24)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘and’;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(B) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by striking the period at the end and inserting ‘; and’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(C) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(D) status as a Holocaust survivor.’;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) by redesignating paragraphs (26) through (54) as paragraphs (27) through (55); andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) by inserting after paragraph (25) the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(26) The term ‘Holocaust survivor’ means an individual who--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(A)(i) lived in a country between 1933 and 1945 under a Nazi regime, under Nazi occupation, or under the control of Nazi collaborators; orCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(ii) fled from a country between 1933 and 1945 under a Nazi regime, under Nazi occupation, or under the control of Nazi collaborators;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(B) was persecuted between 1933 and 1945 on the basis of race, religion, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, political affiliation, ethnicity, or other basis; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(C) was a member of a group that was persecuted by the Nazis.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 102. ORGANIZATION.

Section 305(a) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3025(a)) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in paragraph (1)(E), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’ each place it appears; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in paragraph (2)(E), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 103. AREA PLANS.

Section 306 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3026) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in subsection (a)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’ each place it appears;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(B) in paragraph (4)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(i) in subparagraph (A)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(I) in clause (i)(I)(bb), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(II) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’ each place it appears;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(ii) in subparagraph (B)(i)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(I) in subclause (VI), by striking ‘and’ at the end; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(II) by inserting after subclause (VII) the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(VIII) older individuals who are Holocaust survivors; and’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(iii) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ‘subclauses (I) through (VI)’ and inserting ‘subclauses (I) through (VIII)’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(C) in paragraph (7)(B)(iii), by inserting ‘, in particular, older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘placement’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in subsection (b)(2)(B), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘areas,’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 104. STATE PLANS.

Section 307(a) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3027(a)) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in paragraph (16)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(A) in subparagraph (A)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(i) in clause (v), by striking ‘and’ at the end; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(ii) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(vii) older individuals who are Holocaust survivors; and’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘clauses (i) through (vi)’ and inserting ‘clauses (i) through (vii)’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) in paragraph (28)(B)(ii), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘areas,’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 105. CONSUMER CONTRIBUTIONS.

Section 315 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3030c-2) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in subsection (c)(2), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘older individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’ after ‘proficiency,’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 106. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

Section 373(c)(2)(A) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3030s-1(c)(2)(A)) is amended by striking ‘individuals)’ inserting ‘individuals and older individuals who are Holocaust survivors)’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 107. PREVENTION OF ELDER ABUSE, NEGLECT, AND EXPLOITATION.

Section 721(b)(12) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3058i(b)(12)) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘or’ at the end;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end and inserting ‘; or’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(D) older individuals who are Holocaust survivors.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Subtitle B--Activities for Health, Independence, and LongevityCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 111. INNOVATION TO IMPROVE TRANSPORTATION FOR OLDER INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS.

Part A of title IV of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3032 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

‘SEC. 423. INNOVATION TO IMPROVE TRANSPORTATION FOR OLDER INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS.

‘(a) In General- The Assistant Secretary shall award grants or contracts to nonprofit organizations to increase and improve transportation services, including affordable non-emergency transportation to medical appointments and shopping for food and other essential items, to enable older individuals to remain in the community, with preference toward those older individuals who are Holocaust survivors. The Assistant Secretary shall make grants or enter into such contracts for period of not less than 5 years.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(b) Use of Funds-CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) IN GENERAL- A nonprofit organization receiving a grant or contract under subsection (a) shall use the funds received through such grant or contract to carry out a demonstration project, or to provide technical assistance to assist local transit providers, area agencies on aging, senior centers, and local senior support groups, to encourage and facilitate coordination of Federal, State, and local transportation services and resources for older individuals who are Holocaust survivors. The organization may use the funds to develop and carry out an innovative transportation demonstration project to create transportation services for older individuals.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES- In carrying out a demonstration project or providing technical assistance under paragraph (1) the organization may carry out activities that include--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(A) developing innovative approaches for improving access by older individuals to transportation services, including volunteer driver programs, economically sustainable transportation programs, and programs that allow older individuals to transfer their automobiles to a provider of transportation services in exchange for the services;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(B) preparing information on transportation options and resources for older individuals and organizations serving such individuals, and disseminating the information by establishing and operating a toll-free telephone number;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(C) developing models and best practices for providing comprehensive integrated transportation services for older individuals, including services administered by the Secretary of Transportation, by providing ongoing technical assistance to agencies providing services under title III and by assisting in coordination of public and community transportation services; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(D) providing special services to link older individuals to transportation services not provided under title III.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(c) Preference- In awarding grants and entering into contracts under subsection (a), the Assistant Secretary shall give preference to organizations and institutions that have previous extensive experience working with and conducting assessment of the needs of Holocaust survivors who are older individuals.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(d) Consultation- In determining the type of programs and activities used to improve and increase transportation assistance for Holocaust survivors, the Assistant Secretary shall consult with the individual designated under section 122 of the Responding to Urgent needs of Survivors of the Holocaust Act and with national organizations with special expertise in serving Holocaust survivors who are older individuals.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(e) Eligible Entities- To be eligible to receive a grant or enter into a contract under subsection (a), an entity shall have previous extensive experience working with and conducting assessment of the needs of older individuals.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Subtitle C--Functions Within Administration for Community Living to Assist Holocaust SurvivorsCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 121. DESIGNATION OF INDIVIDUAL WITHIN THE ADMINISTRATION.

The Administrator for Community Living is authorized to designate within the Administration for Community Living a person who has specialized training, background, or experience with Holocaust survivor issues to have responsibility for implementing services for older individuals who are Holocaust survivors.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 122. ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.

The Administrator for Community Living, with assistance from the individual designated under section 121, shall prepare and submit to Congress an annual report on the status and needs, including the priority areas of concern, of older individuals (as defined in section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002)) who are Holocaust survivors.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

TITLE II--NUTRITION SERVICES FOR ALL OLDER INDIVIDUALSCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 201. NUTRITION SERVICES.

(a) In General- Section 339(2) of the Older Americans Act of 1065 (42 U.S.C. 3030g-21(2)) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in subparagraph (A), by amending clause (iii) to read as follows:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(iii) to the maximum extent practicable, are adjusted and appropriately funded to meet any special health-related or other dietary needs of program participants, including needs based on religious, cultural, or ethnic requirements,’;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in subparagraph (J), by striking ‘, and’ and inserting a comma;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) in subparagraph (K), by striking the period and inserting ‘, and’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(L) encourages individuals who distribute nutrition services under subpart 2 to engage in conversation with homebound older individuals and to be aware of the warning signs of medical emergencies, injury or abuse in order to reduce isolation and promote wellbeing.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(b) Study of Nutrition Projects- Section 317(a)(2) of the Older Americans Act Amendments of 2006 (Public Law 106-365) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘; and’ and inserting a semicolon;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end and inserting ‘; and’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(D) an analysis of service providers’ abilities to obtain viable contracts for special foods necessary to meet a religious requirement, required dietary need, or ethnic consideration.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink