IHSS UPDATE!!!! Two weeks ago I began calling multiple departments within the IHSS system to get a solid answer as to the status of my sons case. Nobody could answer my questions. Not one person. I couldnt get an answer about back pay. I couldnt get a solid answer as to why Fintans hours had been restored. On Wednesday I decided to personally go into the supervisors office at the IHSS department. I asked the receptionist if I might speak to the head supervisor. She did not know if any where available, but said she would email the top supervisors and see who was in. I then asked who the head supervisor was and to whom she reported. I was told that this person is Sherri Heller who is the director of Human Health services for Sacramento County. I waited for ten or fifteen minutes. No one came down. The receptionist told me again that she had sent an email, but hadnt heard back yet. I told her that I would wait another ten minutes, and then I was heading over to the office of Human Health Services. A supervisor came down. The conversation started out heated. I was to that point. The conversation turned into a 2 1/2 hour discussion about IHSS and the autistic population. The supervisor is concerned as well. She explained IHSS was originally designed to care for the elderly with dementia. The system is overloaded. It is not just autism exploding on their caseload, individuals with mental Health issues are needing their services, as well. She told me she was to be in a meeting the next day to discuss these concerns. The evaluation tools to assess need dont fit our children. Families are not getting care. In addition, the workers are poorly paid with no training. They are not skilled to be caring for some of these complicated cases. Many of our children have seizures and other complicated medical issues. Parents are needing to provide the care to ensure safety. You cant find someone to work for about ten dollars an hour under these circumstances. They also accrue no sick time, no vacation time, and in our county the current wait for health care insurance is three years. In the meeting she told me that Fintans case was still going to hearing. He had not met criteria for severe impairment. The reason his hours were increased as of September 1st was because of a new program that went into effect. She informed me we would not get our pay. I went through the case with her and the judges ruling. I showed her that Fintan did meet criteria as it stood now. I informed her that I fully intended to show up in court and go the distance until my son got the care he deserves. I got the phone message that the Supervisor I spoke with left on Wednesday afternoon. She informed me of changes made by IHSS to Fintans case. His hours of care now reflect severely impaired by their criteria. I will be receiving a check within a week for the hours not given to my son. CASE CLOSED!!!
Posted on: Sat, 20 Sep 2014 17:33:41 +0000
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