Proposal Presented for the Master Plan for Aging (#62)
Disclaimer
Throughout the MPA process, more than 100 proposals were developed thanks in particular to thousands of hours of work by external stakeholders and members of the public. These proposals and the MPA Council commentary are being submitted to the Governor and shared with policymakers and the public to inform policymaking. These proposals represent a starting point for discussion. Further discussion is necessary between relevant state agencies and stakeholders to both refine these proposals and assess which may be appropriate to adopt and implement.
Summary
Support older kinship caregivers through identifying unmet needs and providing assistance by establishing an Interagency Council on Kinship Care and Kinship Legal Network that would leverage the existing Kinship Navigator program to collect data and recognize trends. These would serve as a means to identify success stories as well as identify unmet needs related to: housing, mental health access, financial assistance, childcare and respite care for kinship caregivers, including systemic challenges and solutions, as well as to document the benefit of the program.
Justification
Kinship caregivers often face restrictions and limited access to necessary resources making it challenging to care for themselves and their loved ones. Limited coordination across systems concerning the needs of kinship caregivers can create silos and limited-service integration. The establishment of an interagency council would aid in eliminating silos across systems and uplifting supports for kinship caregivers. Kinship caregivers frequently find themselves engaging in legal proceedings regarding custody and guardianship situations. New York State should develop a coordinated kinship legal network that will provide informed legal assistance from counsel experienced in kinship issues to help caregivers effectively navigate these challenging situations. Safe, affordable housing is a critical element in overall well-being for both kinship caregivers and the children they are caring for. The existing housing needs and obstacles for kinship caregivers need to be better understood and analyzed to inform appropriate action and future policy decisions with this unique population in mind.
Full Proposal
Put administrative infrastructure in place to support kinship caregivers:
- Establish an Interagency Council on Kinship Care (Council) under the auspices of the NYS Caregiver and Respite Coalition and NYSOFA. This Council would invite representation from each agency that is involved in the kinship experience including Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS), DOH, Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA), Office of Court Administration (OCA), OMH, SED, Division of Housing and Community Renewal (HCR), Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS)as well as representation from kinship caregivers and kinship service providers throughout the state, both rural and urban. The role of this Council is to focus on and to amplify unique issues of kinship caregivers.
- Establish a Kinship Legal Network, a program to provide legal representation, information and advice to non-parent caregivers interfacing with New York’s justice and social services systems.
- The Kinship Legal Network would use a proven model that has been replicated in a variety of legal services areas; it will develop a network of legal services providers who will serve clients, as well as look across the state to collect data and recognize trends as a means to identify success stories, systemic challenges and solutions, and to document the benefit of the program to NY families and the State. The program will leverage the existing Kinship Navigator, a successful statewide program which provides an information and referral network for kinship caregivers across all of New York State.
- Kinship housing: Conduct a statewide needs assessment to identify unmet needs of related to housing, mental health access, financial assistance, and childcare and respite care access for kinship caregivers.
- Once unmet needs are identified, plans should be developed to meet those needs, including any funding, set asides for kinship families in new projects, and applying for federal funds available for kinship housing (such as the Legacy program).
- Provide funding assistance to assist low-income older adults with moving expenses in the event they need to relocate to larger housing due to becoming a kinship family.
MPA Council Commentary
This proposal is categorized as long-term. Policymakers may reference this proposal during the legislative session, as implementation would require legislative action to grant authority to NYSOFA to establish and administer the items proposed. Before implementing this proposal, relevant state agencies would likely need to do a comprehensive review of existing state and federal efforts to improve the kinship system of care (e.g., OCFS’ kinship caregiver efforts across age cohorts), in order to avoid duplication of effort and ensure that implementation of this proposal would complement and build on these existing efforts. Any additional funding would need to be considered through the annual State budget process and would be subject to the availability of resources.