Human services director summarizes year-round elder, transportation and program needs; PACE outreach ongoing

Allison Carley, the town’s director of human services, briefed the council Sept. 17 on senior services, volunteer-dependent medical transport, and long-running efforts to get a PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) program serving island residents.

Carley said the department saw increased demand in summer for in-home caregiving, mobility aids and occasional emergency transport, and she described a successful DM parking-pass pilot that helped residents and seasonal caregivers manage short-term visits for medical appointments. She praised local partners — the rescue squad and the medical center — for help with lift assists and wheelchair transports.

On PACE, Carley said the town’s repeated applications have been denied in part because of the program’s requirement to make assessments within 72 hours and the logistic limits posed by island weather and ferry runs. She and staff have escalated the matter to state legislators and Medicaid leadership and are awaiting further meetings with Medicaid officials.

Carley said she submitted a home-care safety checklist jointly developed with the Rhode Island Coalition on Elder Justice and that she expects to convene an age-friendly committee and a senior advisory body focused on transportation, outdoor spaces, social participation and housing features that support aging in place.

She discussed WIC and SNAP online-ordering limitations and ongoing efforts to work with state health officials and retailers to improve remote ordering and delivery options for island residents.

Carley requested council support for continued coordination as the department explores PACE, senior ride vouchers and other programs to expand services for year-round and seasonal residents with care needs.