Section 217-A. Long term care insurance education and outreach program

1.
  For  the  purposes  of  this section, the term "long term care insurance
  resource center" shall mean a project within an  area  agency  on  aging
  funded  pursuant  to this section that provides direct assistance to the
  general public in choosing and obtaining long term care insurance.
    2. The commissioner of health, in consultation with  the  director  of
  the  office for the aging and the superintendent of insurance, is hereby
  authorized and directed, within amounts allocated therefor  pursuant  to
  paragraph  (qq)  of  subdivision  one  of  section  twenty-eight hundred
  seven-v of the  public  health  law,  to  establish  a  long  term  care
  insurance education and outreach program within the department of health
  for the purpose of informing and educating the general public about long
  term care insurance, including those policies that are available through
  the partnership for long term care program.
    3. The commissioner of health, the superintendent of insurance and the
  director  of  the  office  for  the  aging shall appoint a state program
  coordinator to implement, administer and supervise the  long  term  care
  insurance education and outreach program, and coordinate the development
  of  the  educational  and  informational  materials.  The  state program
  coordinator shall be an employee of the office for the aging  who  shall
  be  selected from among individuals with expertise and experience in the
  fields of long  term  care  insurance,  and  with  other  qualifications
  determined   by  the  commissioner  of  health,  the  superintendent  of
  insurance and the director of the office for the aging to be appropriate
  for the position. The state program coordinator  shall,  within  amounts
  available,   personally   or   through  authorized  representatives,  be
  responsible for training staff persons of the program,  including  staff
  persons  of  the  long  term  care insurance resource centers, and shall
  provide for the collection and dissemination of timely and accurate long
  term care insurance information to said staff persons.
    4. The long term care insurance education and outreach program  shall,
  within  amounts available, consist of the following elements which shall
  be provided by the office for the aging:
    (a) educational and informational materials in print,  audio,  visual,
  electronic or other media;
    (b)  public  service  announcements,  advertisements, media campaigns,
  workshops, mass mailings, conferences or presentations;
    (c) establishment of a  toll-free  telephone  hotline  and  electronic
  services to provide information; and
    (d)  establishment of long term care insurance resource centers within
  each area agency on aging.
    5. Long term care insurance resource  centers  shall,  within  amounts
  available,  provide  the  general  public  with  the  following items or
  services:
    (a) educational and informational materials in print,  audio,  visual,
  electronic or other media;
    (b)  public  service  announcements,  advertisements, media campaigns,
  workshops, mass mailings, conferences or presentations; and
    (c) counseling, information, referral services, and direct  assistance
  in  choosing  and  obtaining long term care insurance. Direct assistance
  shall,  within  amounts  available,  include  but  not  be  limited   to
  assistance with the following:
    (i) planning for the financing of long term care;
    (ii) understanding policy options, benefits and appeal rights;
    (iii) obtaining the coverage needed and the appropriate benefits; and
    (iv)  avoiding  or  reporting illegal billing, fraudulent practices or
  scams.

    Each long term care insurance resource center  shall  be  responsible,
  within  amounts  available,  for  providing a sufficient number of staff
  positions (including volunteers) necessary to provide and carry out  the
  services of the long term care insurance education and outreach program,
  provided that at least one position shall be filled by an individual who
  is  employed  full  time  and paid by the area agency on aging. The long
  term care insurance resource center shall be  responsible  for  ensuring
  that  its  staff  persons  have no conflict of interest in providing the
  services described in subdivision four of this section.
    6. Annually, in order to receive funding, each area  agency  on  aging
  shall  submit  a service plan and proposed budget for the operation of a
  long  term  care  insurance  resource  center  to  the   state   program
  coordinator  for  approval. An area agency on aging shall be eligible to
  receive funds in an amount of up to fifty thousand dollars, except  that
  an  area  agency  on  aging located within a city of one million or more
  shall be eligible to receive funds in an amount of  up  to  one  hundred
  thousand dollars.
    7.  The  department of health shall produce, post on its website, make
  available to others for reproduction, or contract with others to develop
  such materials required by this section. The material produced  pursuant
  to  this  section shall be culturally and linguistically appropriate for
  the communities served by the long term care insurance resource centers.
  These materials shall be made available to the public free of charge.
    8.  In  exercising  any  of  their  powers  under  this  section,  the
  commissioner  of  health and/or the director of the office for the aging
  may consult with appropriate agencies, organizations, and consumers  and
  providers  of  long  term  care  insurance or organizations representing
  them.
    9. In addition to  state  funds  allocated  for  programs  under  this
  section,  the  commissioner  of health and/or the director of the office
  for the aging may accept funding from public sources for these programs,
  and may undertake  joint  or  cooperative  programs  with  other  public
  entities  or  a  private  not-for-profit  corporation which is neither a
  provider or regulator of long term care insurance, or  an  affiliate  or
  unit of such agency or corporation.
    10.  The  commissioner  of  health, the director of the office for the
  aging and the superintendent of insurance shall issue an  annual  report
  to  the  governor,  the  speaker  of  the  assembly,  and  the temporary
  president of the senate. Such report shall contain, at  a  minimum,  the
  following  information:  the  number  of  individuals  who have received
  counseling and assistance by the long term care insurance education  and
  outreach  program,  their  ages  and  their  occupations;  whether these
  individuals have purchased a long term care insurance policy, and if so,
  the policy that was purchased; a description of  all  of  the  services,
  including counseling, education and outreach services, being provided by
  the  long  term  care  education  and  outreach  program, broken down by
  county; the activities used to promote the  partnership  for  long  term
  care  program;  and  a  description  of the long term care education and
  outreach program's funding sources and whether they  are  adequate.  The
  report  shall  also  contain  recommendations for targeting specific age
  groups to  buy  long  term  care  insurance,  creating  new  methods  of
  promoting  the  purchase of long term care insurance, and improving long
  term care insurance products.
    11. An area agency on aging may use up to five percent of the total of
  any funds provided to an area agency on aging pursuant to  this  section
  for administration.
    * NB  Added  Ch.  58/2004  Part  B  §23,  language  juxtaposed per Ch.
  642/2004 §12
    * NB  Section  number  supplied  by  the  Legislative  Bill   Drafting
  Commission