Related Initiatives

Kennebec Valley Organization

The Kennebec Valley Organization (KVO) is a broad-based organization of religious congregations, labor union locals, community and small business groups. It brings people together across lines of religion, geography, age, ethnic group, and economic status to take action on issues of shared concern, such as saving, strengthening, and creating good jobs, affordable housing, and critical public services. Last spring, KVO decided to address the crisis of long-term care and personal assistance for elderly and disabled community members in the Kennebec Valley. The KVO long-term care strategy team is currently working to collect personal stories from people who experience direct-care as consumers, workers, providers, or unpaid caregivers in both nursing homes and home care.

Maine Direct Service Worker Demonstration Grant

The Maine Direct Service Worker Demonstration Grant is finding and evaluating ways of increasing health insurance coverage for home care aides. The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services awarded this four-year grant in 2003 as part of an effort to improve recruitment and retention of direct-care workers. The grant helps home care agencies evaluate DirigoChoice, public-private health insurance partnerships, and other health plans and enroll their employees in those that best serve their needs. In addition, the grant has an Employer of Choice for Health and Wellness for Retention Program, in which participating home care agencies establish workplace wellness programs that are covered by insurance. The University of Southern Maine’s Muskie School of Public Service coordinates grant activities.

DirigoChoice

DirigoChoice, a state-sponsored health insurance product aimed at small businesses and low-income workers, was launched in January 2005 as part of Dirigo Health, which aims to provide health care coverage for all Maine citizens. The state is committed to enrolling thousands of direct-care workers and their employers into the program. An effort to expand coverage while controlling costs and improving quality, DirigoChoice is a comprehensive approach to health care that is being carefully watched by policymakers and advocates across the country.