[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 24, Volume 4]
[Revised as of April 1, 2005]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 24CFR700.135]

[Page 9-11]
 
                 TITLE 24--HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
 
 CHAPTER VII--OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN 
 
PART 700_CONGREGATE HOUSING SERVICES PROGRAM--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 700.135  Professional assessment committee.

    (a) General. (1) A professional assessment committee (PAC), as 
described in this section, shall recommend services appropriate to the 
functional abilities and needs of each eligible project resident. The 
PAC shall be either a voluntary committee appointed by the project 
management or an agency in the community which provides assessment 
services and conforms to section 802(e)(3)(A) and (B). PAC members are 
subject to the conflict of interest provisions in section 700.175(b).
    (2) The PAC shall utilize procedures that ensure that the process of 
determining eligibility of individuals for congregate services affords 
individuals fair treatment, due process, and a right

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of appeal of the determination of eligibility, and shall ensure the 
confidentiality of personal and medical records.
    (3) The dollar value of PAC members' time spent on regular 
assessments after initial approval of program participants may be 
counted as match. If a community agency discharges the duties of the 
PAC, staff time is counted as its imputed value, and if the members are 
volunteers, their time is counted as volunteer time, according to 
sections 700.145(c)(2) (ii) and (iv).
    (b) Duties of the PAC. The PAC is required to:
    (1) Perform a formal assessment of each potential elderly program 
participant to determine if the individual is frail. To qualify as 
frail, the PAC must determine if the elderly person is deficient in at 
least three ADLs, as defined in section 700.105. This assessment shall 
be based upon the screening done by the service coordinator, and shall 
include a review of the adequacy of the informal support network (i.e., 
family and friends available to the potential participant to assist in 
meeting the ADL needs of that individual), and may include a more in-
depth medical evaluation, if necessary;
    (2) Determine if non-elderly disabled individuals qualify under the 
definition of person with disabilities under section 700.105. If they do 
qualify, this is the acceptance criterion for them for CHSP. Persons 
with disabilities do not require an assessment by the PAC;
    (3) Perform a regular assessment and updating of the case plan of 
all participants;
    (4) Obtain and retain information in participant files, containing 
such information and maintained in such form, as HUD or RHS shall 
require;
    (5) Replace any members of the PAC within 30 days after a member 
resigns. A PAC shall not do formal assessments if its membership drops 
below three, or if the qualified medical professional leaves the PAC and 
has not been replaced.
    (6) Notify the grantee or eligible owner and the program 
participants of any proposed modifications to PAC procedures, and 
provide these parties with a process and reasonable time period in which 
to review and comment, before adoption of a modification;
    (7) Provide assurance of nondiscrimination in selection of CHSP 
participants, with respect to race, religion, color, sex, national 
origin, familial status or type of disability;
    (8) Provide complete confidentiality of information related to any 
individual examined, in accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974;
    (9) Provide all formal information and reports in writing.
    (c) Prohibitions relating to the PAC. (1) At least one PAC member 
shall not have any direct or indirect relationship to the grantee.
    (2) No PAC member may be affiliated with organizations providing 
services under the grant.
    (3) Individuals or staff of third party organizations that act as 
PAC members may not be paid with CHSP grant funds.
    (d) Eligibility and admissions. (1) Before selecting potential 
program participants, each grantee (with PAC assistance) shall develop a 
CHSP application form. The information in the individual's application 
is crucial to the PAC's ability to determine the need for further 
physical or psychological evaluation.
    (2) The PAC, upon completion of a potential program participant's 
initial assessment, must make a recommendation to the service 
coordinator for that individual's acceptance or denial into CHSP.
    (3) Once a program participant is accepted into CHSP, the PAC must 
provide a supportive services case plan for each participant. In 
developing this plan, the PAC must take into consideration the 
participant's needs and wants. The case plan must provide the minimum 
supportive services necessary to maintain independence.
    (e) Transition-out procedures. The grantee or PAC must develop 
procedures for providing for an individual's transition out of CHSP to 
another setting. Transition out is based upon the degree of supportive 
services needed by an individual to continue to live independently. If a 
program participant leaves the program, but wishes to retain supportive 
services, he or she may do so, as long as he or she continues to live in 
an eligible project, pays the full

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cost of services provided, and management agrees (section 802(e)(4) and 
(5)). A participant can be moved out of CHSP if he or she:
    (1) Gains physical and mental health and is able to function without 
supportive services, even if only for a short time (in which case 
readmission, based upon reassessment to determine the degree of frailty 
or the disability, is acceptable);
    (2) Requires a higher level of care than that which can be provided 
under CHSP; or
    (3) Fails to pay services fees.
    (f) Procedural rights of participants. (1) The PAC must provide an 
informal process that recognizes the right to due process of individuals 
receiving assistance. This process, at a minimum, must consist of:
    (i) Serving the participant with a written notice containing a clear 
statement of the reasons for termination;
    (ii) A review of the decision, in which the participant is given the 
opportunity to present written or oral objections before a person other 
than the person (or a subordinate of that person) who made or approved 
the termination decision; and
    (iii) Prompt written notification of the final decision to the 
participant.
    (2) Procedures must ensure that any potential or current program 
participant, at the time of initial or regular assessment, has the 
option of refusing offered services and requesting other supportive 
services as part of the case planning process.
    (3) In situations where an individual requests additional services, 
not initially recommended by the PAC, the PAC must make a determination 
of whether the request is legitimately a needs-based service that can be 
covered under CHSP subsidy. Individuals can pay for services other than 
those recommended by the PAC as long as the additional services do not 
interfere with the efficient operation of the program.