This month, I am so excited to share with you a new study that was recently released confirming the successes of Ohio’s Area Agencies on Aging.

The report, “Coming of Age: Tracking the Progress and Challenges of Delivering Long-Term Services and Supports in Ohio,” was conducted by the Scripps Gerontology Center of Miami University, located in Oxford, Ohio.

This particular organization has been a great asset to Ohio’s aging network with the research they conduct.

We certainly appreciate their expertise in collecting data and producing reports that have helped illustrate the need for continued and increased support for home and community-based services.

The report shows that the proportion of Ohioans receiving long-term care Medicaid services in their own homes and communities to those cared for in nursing homes has increased from less than 10 percent in 1993 to 42 percent in 2009.

Through this shift, the report explains, Ohio’s long-term care Medicaid spending on older adults (when adjusted for inflation) has actually lowered over the past 12 years while raising the average number of persons served each day by nearly 10,000.

Basically, more Ohioans are being served at home and in the community than a decade ago, but the state is spending less money for their care, thanks to programs managed by Ohio’s network of Area Agencies on Aging.

Our Agency, which covers Adams, Brown, Gallia, Highland, Jackson, Lawrence, Pike, Ross, Scioto and Vinton, is available to help older adults and those with disabilities remain in their homes by services through our contracted providers.

These could include care management, home-delivered meals, emergency response systems, homemaking services, and transportation just to name a few.

Our PASSPORT program, a Medicaid-waiver program that helps Medicaid-eligible older Ohioans receive the long-term services and supports they need to stay in their homes, has grown in Ohio from serving 4,200 individuals daily in 1992, to an incredible 30,000 a day in 2010.

The increasing popularity is evidence of PASSPORT’s high quality and effectiveness in meeting consumer needs.  Of PASSPORT’s service dollars, 86 percent go for services such as help with bathing and meals.

Combined with skilled care management, these basic supports mean even very frail older adults no longer have to leave their homes to receive the care they need.  The Area Agency on Aging District 7 can help those individuals in our ten-county region who want to stay in their homes receive services that allow them to do just that.

If you know an older adult or someone with a disability who wants so to stay in his or her home, or if you have questions about home and community-based services, please do not hesitate to give us a call.

We have trained nurses and social workers who are ready to assist you with determining what services are best suited for your situation and developing a care plan that meets your needs.

Pamela K. Matura is executive director of the Area Agency on Aging District 7. The non-profit agency serves senior citizens in Adams, Brown, Gallia, Highland, Jackson, Lawrence, Pike, Ross, Scioto and Vinton counties. She can be reached toll free at toll-free at 1-800-582-7277.