AGING AND DISABILITY SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

October 17, 2000

AASA: BH 2000-022
Boarding Home Licensing Rules Revisions

Dear Boarding Home Provider:

Aging and Disability Services Administration (AASA) is continuing to solicit input from our various stakeholders regarding revisions to the boarding home licensing rules (Washington Administrative Code 388-78A). AASA has established a website to help keep stakeholders informed of rule revision activities, and to serve as a link for sharing your thoughts with AASA on various aspects of the rule revision process. AASA will periodically update questions for public comment on this website. Feel free to link this site to your home pages. Additionally, please share this letter with boarding home residents and their families so they may also participate in the rule revision process. The website address is:

www.aasa.dshs.wa.gov/Professional/bhrule/

On September 18, 2000, AASA held a “status” meeting to provide a summary of the progress to date of the boarding home licensing rule revision project. A summary of this meeting is linked to the above website. AASA is planning a second “Status Meeting” for Thursday, December 14, 2000 in the Auditorium of State Office Building 2 on the Capital Campus in Olympia. The meeting will be from 9:00 AM to 12:00 noon, and will again review and summarize the work since the last “status” meeting on September 18, 2000. During this meeting, the public will have an opportunity to comment on the project. You and any other interested parties, including residents and their families, are invited to attend this meeting. Please note the directions to the meeting on the attached map.

AASA is also establishing work groups to help clarify various rule revision issues associated with the following six topics that emerged from previous stakeholder comments:

• Endorsements/ Certifications for Specialized Services
• Resident Assessments
• Facility Disclosures
• Negotiated Risk Agreements
• Service Agreements
• Regulation of Services vs. Building Issues

AASA has reached no conclusions or decisions regarding the above topics. The attached Work Group Volunteer form provides more detail regarding these subjects. If you, or other interested parties, would like to participate in a workgroup(s), please return the enclosed Work Group Volunteer Form by October 31, 2000 by FAX to (360) 438-7903 or mail to:

Residential Care Services
Attn : Policy and Training Unit
PO Box 45600
Olympia, Washington 98504-5600

It is anticipated that the workgroups will meet one or two times to identify the issues and report their work back to AASA. In order to ensure a balanced representation on each workgroup, please indicate the topic(s) you would like to discuss, and if you are a boarding home resident or family member/ consumer advocacy representative; a boarding home operator/ staff person/ representative; or a regulator. Staff from the Policy and Training Unit will develop the workgroups and help establish meeting times and dates. Depending on the level of interest in these workgroups, not everyone who indicates a willingness to participate may be chosen.

Thank you for your interest in this matter. Please contact the Policy and Training Unit at
(360) 725-2592 if you have additional questions.

Sincerely,

Patricia Lashway, Director
Residential Care Services

Enclosures