MOUNTAIN STATE SPOTLIGHT
Story nudges state officials to help seniors
By Erin Beck Mountain State Spotlight
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CHARLESTON — Last month, Mountain State Spotlight reported that those who are sick and homebound can’t get Meals on Wheels, in large part due to inadequate funding.
Following reports about West Virginia seniors going without this help, a state official is seeking solutions.
Senior centers reported that at least 1,000 people were on waitlists and they’d need an additional $2 million in state funding to serve these residents.
Following media inquiries, new Bureau of Senior Services Commissioner Dianna Graves said investigating the issue moved to the top of her list of job duties.
“My goal is to set foot in every single senior center before the end of the year,” Graves said.
And earlier this month, this news outlet reported that there are too few workers to assist the overwhelmed, grieving families of people with dementia.
The state Alzheimer’s Association estimates there are at least 250,000 unpaid friends and family members caring for an estimated 115,000 people with dementia in West Virginia.
The Lighthouse program was established to provide these families with in-home workers to give them breaks, so they can attend to their own health and other responsibilities.
Senior centers said the challenge is low state funding to pay those workers.
Several said they can only pay $10$12 an hour. And families are also on waitlists for that program.
Graves is digging into that issue as well. She agrees adequate funds are needed, but she doesn’t believe the solution is allocating money in the manner it’s always been allocated.
She anticipates she’ll ask the Legislature for more funds in future years, but she also doesn’t think fixes will be that simple.
“It’s my job to make sure that we run this place the way I feel like it needs to be run and the way I think the governor wants it to be run, which is efficient and appropriate,” Graves said.
An accountant and auditor by trade, she’s looking for creative solutions.
First, that involves working with centers to ensure waitlist numbers are accurate. She said some people aren’t removed from the lists when they get the requested help, move to a nursing home or die. She believes some who don’t meet requirements may also be on lists.
Once she’s confident she has accurate data, Graves can better determine if senior centers need officials to allocate funding in different ways.
For instance, she said she may determine the bureau should distribute funding in block grants — meaning centers could use the money for an array of services based on individualized needs.
But she may have a tough battle ahead.
Del. Vernon Criss, R-Wood, chairs the House of Delegates Finance Committee.
“We can’t be everything for everybody,” he said. “We recognize those services need to be taken care of, but there are other demands on the monies of the state.”
The state Legislature, made up of almost entirely Republican members, maintains a tight budget. It holds the power of the purse.
News outlets also recently reported that because the Trump administration cut federal workers responsible for Meals on Wheels, the national program is sounding the alarm about potential cuts to federal program funding.
Senior center directors have also sought creative solutions. In Gilmer County, they got funds from a pepperoni roll making contest.
But directors remain hopeful as they carry on helping hungry seniors, even on unpaid time.
“If they call us and they are hungry, we’re going to make sure that they get in touch with a food bank,” said Jennifer Brown, director of the Council on Aging. “We’ll take them food ourselves if we have to.”
Reach reporter Erin Beck at erin@mountainstatespotlight.org
Florence Kendall is served a chicken lunch at the Marion County Senior Citizens Inc. in Fairmont in this photo from July 18, 2015.
PHOTO BY CLIFF NICHOLS