Portage County board hears proposal to host statewide serious-illness information hub

At a Portage County ADRC meeting, Susan presented a proposal to establish the "Wisconsin Information Hub for Serious Illness and Caregiving," a newly formed 501(c)(3) intended to serve statewide consumers and professionals with an 800-number, website, walk-in consultation and an education-and-training demonstration project.

The presenter said the center would operate as a clearinghouse for public education, counseling and referral — complementing but not operating as the ADRC. "We're a 501(c)(3," she said, "and it will serve statewide consumers and professionals through a walk-in consultation at a physical location and also through a website, email, phone, and an 800-number call-in service." She told the board the group hopes to demonstrate reductions in unnecessary emergency-department visits through a pilot project.

Susan said the idea has been discussed with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) and related bureaus and that it aligns with the Wisconsin State Dementia Plan and the Wisconsin State Public Health Plan. She cited demographic numbers from Wisconsin DHS, noting that 18% of Wisconsin residents are age 65 or older today and that those 65 and older will grow substantially by 2040; she also cited figures for people living with Alzheimer's disease and the number of family caregivers in the state.

Board members asked operational questions about staffing, hours and funding. One board member suggested an approach to statewide funding through a dedicated sales-tax mechanism; the proponent summarized that idea as using a small sales-tax increase to finance assisted-living and nursing costs. The ADRC Director described the county's likely contribution as providing office space and basic reception support and said the center's organizers would be responsible for fundraising for phone and technology needs.

Susan characterized the effort as a time-limited pilot intended to collect data that could be used by DHS to consider absorbing the model into state services: "This is a pilot project to prove to them the value of this service specific to a Center. The center as a 501(c)(3) can be dissolved" if DHS adopts the model, she said.

The board was not asked to approve the concept at the meeting; members were asked to "chew on it" and provide input. The presenter said the organizers expect to seek startup grants and to begin operations only after sufficient funding is in place, with a tentative operational launch not expected until October. The board agreed to discuss the proposal again at its April meeting.