§ 215-A — Senior vision services program

§ 215-a. Senior vision services program. 1. Definitions. As used in\nthis section:\n (a) "Senior vision services" shall mean the provision of\nnon-vocational services to elderly persons who have a functional visual\nimpairment. These services may include, but not be limited to, client\nassessment, information and referral, client and family counseling,\nreferrals for opthalmological, optometric or other health care services,\ntechnical assistance and training for human services personnel to serve\npersons who are blind or visually impaired, and low vision screening.\n (b) "Functional visual impairment" shall mean an impairment of sight\nthat substantially interferes with an elderly person's ability to\nperform specific daily living skills and tasks. Persons who are not\nregarded as legally blind, pursuant to this section, but who experience\nsuch an impairment of sight, shall be deemed eligible for senior vision\nservices pursuant to this section.\n (c) "Elderly" shall mean an individual over sixty years of age.\n (d) "Director" shall mean the director of the office for the aging.\n 2. The director, in consultation with the New York state commission\nfor the blind, is hereby authorized and directed, subject to the\navailability of appropriations, to establish a program of senior vision\nservices grants to assist in the provision of vision services to elderly\npersons with functional visual impairments.\n 3. The director, in consultation with the New York state commission\nfor the blind, shall award senior vision services grants to\nnot-for-profit corporations which demonstrate:\n (a) the ability to provide senior vision services;\n (b) a commitment to provide such services to visually impaired persons\nor specialized training in providing such services to persons who are\nblind or visually impaired; and\n (c) other such factors as may be determined by the director in\nconsultation with the state commission for the blind.\n 4. Grant awards shall take into consideration the lack of\nnon-traditional and non-vocational services for elderly persons in need\nof senior vision services and the ability of such senior vision services\ngrants to establish or to expand existing blind or visually impaired\nservices currently provided or available in the county or region served\nby the not-for-profit corporation or through another source.\n 5. The director shall ensure that in awarding the grants pursuant to\nthis section that due consideration is given to the geographic and\nexisting service demands for senior vision services within a county or\nregion of the state.\n 6. The director shall promulgate any rules and regulations necessary\nto carry out the provisions of this section. Additionally, the director\nshall submit a report to the governor, the temporary president of the\nsenate and the speaker of the assembly, prior to, but in no event later\nthan, December thirty-first, in the year following enactment of this\nsection, and annually thereafter, which shall include, but not be\nlimited to:\n (a) financial reports of the grant project operations established\npursuant to this section;\n (b) an analysis of the grant project's ability to provide such senior\nvision services to elderly persons with functional visual impairments;\n (c) recommendations on the continuation of such grants and the need\nfor program expansion, if appropriate;\n (d) a profile of the grant recipient; and\n (e) other information deemed necessary by the director.\n