Ceremony held in Bankers Hill, Atkins committed to fight for senior health care

By Anthony King | SDUN Editor

St. Paul’s Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) held a small ceremony at their Bankers Hill location to honor Assemblymember Toni Atkins as Legislator of the Year, the fifth award handed out by CalPACE. CalPACE represents all PACE programs throughout California, with two locations in San Diego County.

Awarded in part for her continual support of focusing on health care for seniors, Atkins was also instrumental in moving a bill through the assembly that would have required the Department of Health Care Services to include PACE as one alternative to Medi-Cal managed care. Assembly Bill 2206 was ultimately not signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, though Atkins said she would continue to advocate for a similar bill in the future.

“We will stay focused on finding a way to implement and make sure that this program, which saves money,” she said,”[and] does the job that it should do, [making] sure that citizens have a good quality of life. I’m committed to making sure that we continue.”

The hour-long ceremony focused briefly on the assembly bill, which CalPACE Executive Director Peter Hansel called their “top legislative priority.”

“The administration is committed to PACE and ensuring the viability of PACE,” he said. “We think there is a door to continue to work with the administration and to follow up to make sure we can accomplish the goals.”

In presenting the award to Atkins, Hansel said the assembly member was a “true champion” in keeping PACE at the forefront of the state’s movement to a managed health care system.

“We want to make sure that as the state develops this approach to delivering health care, that PACE continues to be an option,” Hansel said. “[Atkins] has never flinched at any point … in the legislative process. For that reason, we have elected to honor Assemblymember Atkins as our 2012 Legislator of the Year.”

Atkins said she was humbled by the recognition, and thanked the program participants and CalPACE board members, as well as Sen. Christine Kehoe, who attended the ceremony.

“While you brought this piece of legislation to me to introduce, really Sen. Kehoe … managed and presented this bill in the senate for me. I know that she did a lot because of the commitment to the issue and her understanding of this program,” Atkins said before sharing the award with the senator.

“You find partners up in Sacramento … who do this because they’re passionate and they care about this issue,” Atkins said. “I just want to say what a joy it was to work … on this bill. You shouldn’t get an award for something like that.”

A St. Paul’s PACE participant attended the awards ceremony, and spoke about his experience in the program. Richard Brady said he first encountered PACE three years ago when he was close to dying. After coordinating with a hospice program, Brady began working with St. Paul’s on his recovery.

“To understand how PACE really works, you have to examine the people who come here. Each of them have different needs,” he said. “PACE, I found, gave me everything that I needed. It’s like a one-stop shop for seniors.”

Services provided to PACE participants include medical care, ongoing rehabilitative therapies, in-home personal care, day center activities, social case management and transportation. The program serves seniors 55 years of age and older with multiple medical problems who need assistance but wish to remain in their own homes.

“As a senior, I can tell you it’s difficult to keep up with all the things you need,” Brady said. “With home health care, I have someone who comes and helps once a week.”

Brady highlighted the “caring and competent” nurses, saying the day center at St. Paul’s was “the heart” of the program. The Bankers Hill St. Paul’s PACE is located at 111 Elm St.

“There is a spirit that goes on through PACE. There’s a caring from the people who work here,” he said. “It’s a life-saving program.”

Cheryl Wilson, CEO of the St. Paul’s PACE program, said participants like Brady give purpose to their work. Wilson, who gave the award to Atkins with Hansel, first met the assembly member when Atkins was a council member, and said she had a “special heart” for seniors.

Following Brady’s speech, Atkins praised him for participating.

“Mr. Brady, you were the best speaker today by far,” Atkins said, “because you talked about what this program means in terms of integration and how it gives frail seniors … the ability to maintain your quality of life, which is exactly as it should be. It’s what every human being and individual deserves.”