Social worker; family-services specialists & qualified equivalent workers allowed to perform tasks. (HB890)
Introduced By
Del. Chris Peace (R-Mechanicsville) with support from co-patron Del. David Toscano (D-Charlottesville)
Progress
✓ |
Introduced |
✓ |
Passed Committee |
✓ |
Passed House |
✓ |
Passed Senate |
✓ |
Signed by Governor |
☐ |
Became Law |
Description
Social worker. Allows family-services specialists and qualified equivalent workers to perform tasks previously limited to social workers. The bill expands the authority of the Adult Protective Services Unit to establish minimum standards of training and educational opportunities for all workers in the field of adult protective services, which minimum standards currently apply to social workers. The bill changes the Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) employment requirement for a baccalaureate degree from "social work" positions to "family-services-specialist" positions. The bill adds family-services specialists to the list of individuals required to report suspicions of child abuse or neglect. The bill contains an emergency clause. Read the Bill »
Outcome
History
Date | Action |
---|---|
01/08/2014 | Committee |
01/08/2014 | Prefiled and ordered printed with emergency clause; offered 01/08/14 14101234D |
01/08/2014 | Referred to Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions |
01/17/2014 | Assigned HWI sub: Subcommittee #3 |
01/21/2014 | Impact statement from DPB (HB890) |
01/22/2014 | Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (5-Y 0-N) |
01/23/2014 | Impact statement from DPB (HB890) |
01/28/2014 | Reported from Health, Welfare and Institutions with amendments (22-Y 0-N) (see vote tally) |
01/29/2014 | Read first time |
01/30/2014 | Read second time |
01/30/2014 | Committee amendments agreed to |
01/30/2014 | Engrossed by House as amended HB890E |
01/30/2014 | Printed as engrossed 14101234D-E |
01/31/2014 | Read third time and passed House BLOCK VOTE (96-Y 0-N) |
01/31/2014 | VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE (96-Y 0-N) (see vote tally) |
01/31/2014 | Impact statement from DPB (HB890E) |
02/03/2014 | Constitutional reading dispensed |
02/03/2014 | Referred to Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services |
02/21/2014 | Reported from Rehabilitation and Social Services (13-Y 0-N 2-A) |
02/24/2014 | Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N) |
02/25/2014 | Read third time |
02/25/2014 | Passed Senate (37-Y 0-N) |
02/27/2014 | Enrolled |
02/27/2014 | Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB890ER) |
02/27/2014 | Impact statement from DPB (HB890ER) |
02/27/2014 | Signed by Speaker |
03/01/2014 | Signed by President |
03/24/2014 | G Approved by Governor-Chapter 285 (effective 3/24/14) |
03/24/2014 | G Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0285) |
Comments
Minimum standards for Adult Protective Services workers sound like a great idea, but does this bill strengthen or water down these requirements?
While we're at it, how about some actual standards for social workers with our out of control public guardianship programs?
Currently, under regulations from the Virginia Public Guardian and Conservator Advisory Board, these workers must have a .... drumroll ...
GED!!!
Publicly funded programs like Jewish Family Service of Tidewater and Catholic Charities of Eastern Virginia make life and death decisions, control the property and living circumstances of about 800 vulnerable elderly and disabled citizens, under court orders of extremely questionable validity, without any of the oversight or accountability that were supposed to be an important part of these programs.
Instead, the Virginia Public Guardian and Conservator Advisory Board and the Virginia Department for the Aging whiff each and every ball that comes their way, even going so far as to cover up serious complaints of mistreatment, abuse and neglect of public guardianship clients, in their meeting minutes and elsewhere.
These agencies disingenuously contend that so-called "private" guardianship cases, which include many, many publicly funded cases that originate with and are funded by local social services departments, Adult Protective Services units, Community Services Boards, and hospitals are outside their jurisdiction and control. These agencies cannot even bother to stifle a yawn and listen to the problems their abdication of responsibility creates in the real lives of some very vulnerable, totally helpless people.
About 133 JFS and CCEVA cases are subject to Virginia Public Guardian and Conservator Advisory Board oversight. Over 600 (the numbers are not even clear) are subject to NO OVERSIGHT WHATSOEVER. These two programs hand-pick the same guardian ad litem "for" the incapacitated person, over and over in hundreds of cases, who always agrees with them and who illegally blocks any review by the courts.
In Virginia, you cannot cut hair or do manicures without a license and a complaint process, but you can operate a public guardianship program with GED-educated employees and without any oversight or accountability at all. Got a complaint? Too damn bad, you are a victim of a "private" guardianship, and must continue to suffer in enforced silence. For some inkling of the depth of this suffering, please google "Scott Schuett," to learn about the appalling conditions these victims must endure.
Until this problem is fixed, the General Assembly should refuse any further funds to these out of control programs.