Iowa Department on Aging

CAPABLE is a person-directed, home-based program that addresses both function and healthcare expenses. The four to five-month program integrates services from an occupational therapist (OT), a registered nurse (RN), and a handy worker who work together with the older adult to set goals and direct action plans that change behaviors to improve health, independence, and safety. Participants learn new skills, exercises, and how to work with additional tools/equipment/home modifications to improve function and safety. CAPABLE focuses on prevention and problem-solving, building skills that participants can use in the future.

Title III-B Legal Assistance Program is part of the Older Americans Act (OOA) and provides funds to help states organize and pay for meals and a range of home & community based services through the Area Agency's on Aging (AAA's) and service providers throughout the state. Title III-B legal services network can provide assistance for older persons in accessing long-term care options and other community-based services. Legal services under Title III-B also protect older persons against direct challenges to their independence, choice, and financial security. These services are specifically targeted to “older individuals with economic or social needs.”

The Iowa Department on Aging’s Legal Assistance Program serves individuals aged 60 and older by providing legal advice and representation; information and education; and referrals in civil legal matters throughout the state. The program’s role is to identify legal problems and legal service needs of older Iowans and adults with disabilities, with priority given to those who are most vulnerable due to social and/or economic circumstances.

To meet this goal, the Department works with the six Area Agencies on Aging to contract with legal service providers across the state and increase the quantity and quality of legal assistance available to older Iowans and adults with disabilities. Common legal problems concern housing, consumer fraud, debt collection, elder abuse/exploitation, Social Security/SSI, Medicare, Medicaid, discrimination, guardianships/conservatorships, advanced directives, and wills/estates.

The Iowa Legal Assistance Program also provides individual and group technical assistance to legal service projects conducted by the Area Agencies on Aging, legal assistance providers, and others. It also provides community outreach to help older Iowans and adults with disabilities understand their rights, exercise choice, and benefit from services and opportunities.

In Iowa, the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman (OSLTCO) is authorized by the federal Older Americans Act and the state Older Iowans Act. Operating as an independent entity within the Iowa Department on Aging, its mission is to protect the health, safety, welfare and rights of individuals residing in long-term care facilities by investigating complaints, seeking resolutions to problems and providing advocacy with the goal of enhancing quality of life and care.