Sacramento County to Consider Adult Foster Care
Sacramento County officials are considering a pilot adult foster care program for seniors similar to foster care for children, the Sacramento Bee reports. As an alternative to nursing home care, seniors would move into private homes where guardians would receive a monthly stipend to care for them. At least 26 other states -- including Oregon -- have enacted similar programs. AARP consultant Richard Ladd, a former Oregon official who supervised the state's adult foster care program, briefed California and county officials last week, warning that "extensive" regulations associated with foster care might prove "daunting" for those willing to provide care. "It's this whole continuum of care," Maxine Milner Krugman, chair of the Sacramento Adult and Aging Commission, said, adding, "We really want to offer more options to people ... It's win, win, win." If the county chooses to pursue the plan, officials will launch the program within the next few years (Teichert, Sacramento Bee, 1/12).