Berks County Area Agency on Aging: how to get help

The Berks County Area Agency on Aging is the county office that connects residents 60 and older, and adults with disabilities, to services that help them stay in their own homes. If you are worried about an aging parent, one call to the agency at 610-478-6500 starts a free look at what they need and what help exists to meet it.

An Area Agency on Aging is the local front door to the aging-services network that every Pennsylvania county has, funded by the state Department of Aging and run at the county level. In Berks, that office handles everything from a single question about senior centers to arranging in-home care, and it responds to reports that an older adult is being abused or neglected. You do not need to know which program fits before you call. Sorting that out is the agency's job, and it is the same kind of who-does-what routing our guide to how Berks County government works covers for other services.

What the agency does

The agency's services cover most of what an older adult or a worried family needs:

• Information and referral: staff answer questions and point you to the right program, county-run or not.
• Assessment and care management: a care manager meets with the older adult, reviews their health, daily needs, and income, and builds a plan.
• In-home services: programs such as OPTIONS and the Aging Waiver pay for help at home, such as personal care, homemaking, and home-delivered meals, so people can avoid or delay a nursing home.
• Meals: home-delivered meals for people who cannot shop or cook, and group meals at senior centers.
• Senior community centers: a network of centers around the county, many run by the nonprofit Berks Encore, offering meals, activities, and social contact.
• Caregiver support: help and respite for family members caring for an older relative.
• Medicare counseling: free, unbiased help understanding Medicare, enrollment, and costs, through the PA MEDI program (formerly APPRISE).
• Protective services: help when an older adult may be abused, neglected, or exploited.
• Ombudsman: an advocate for residents of nursing homes and personal care homes who have a complaint.

How to get help for a parent

If you are stepping in for a parent, the process starts with a phone call and moves at the pace their needs require.

1. Call the agency at 610-478-6500 during office hours, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Explain what is going on. This first call, information and referral, is free.
2. Ask for an assessment. A care manager will arrange to meet with your parent, usually at home, to go over their health, what they can and cannot do day to day, and their income.
3. Review the care plan. The care manager proposes services based on the assessment, and your parent has a say in what goes into the plan.
4. Start services. Once the plan is set, in-home help, meals, or other services begin. Some programs have a wait; the care manager will tell you.
5. For an emergency after hours, the agency line at 610-478-6500 reaches 24-hour emergency service for urgent situations involving an older adult's safety.

If your parent lives in Berks County but you do not, you can make the first call yourself. Anyone can contact the agency on an older adult's behalf.

What it costs

Cost depends on the service. Under the state's OPTIONS program rules, the needs assessment and care management are specifically excluded from any cost share, so figuring out what your parent needs does not come with a bill. The costs to watch are the ongoing OPTIONS services themselves, such as personal care or homemaking. Those use a sliding scale tied to income: consumers under 133 percent of the federal poverty level pay nothing for services, the fee rises with income up to 300 percent of the poverty level, and the care manager sets any cost share during the assessment so your parent knows the amount before agreeing to services. Aging Waiver services follow the state's Medicaid rules instead.

Reporting abuse or neglect of an older adult

If you believe an older adult is being harmed, neglected, or financially exploited, you do not have to be certain to make a report. Protective services is one of the agency's listed responsibilities.

• Call Pennsylvania's Elder Abuse Helpline at 1-800-490-8505, staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Reports can be made about an older adult whether they live at home or in a care facility such as a nursing home, personal care home, or hospital.
• You can also report directly to the Berks County agency at 610-478-6500, which reaches its 24-hour emergency service after office hours.

Reports can be made anonymously. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 first.

FAQ

What is the difference between the Area Agency on Aging and the state?

The Pennsylvania Department of Aging sets policy and funds the programs. The Berks County Area Agency on Aging is the local office that delivers them and is who you call for help here. Some related help comes from other agencies rather than the aging office; our guide to how Berks County government works explains who runs what.

Does my parent have to be low-income to get help?

No. Anyone 60 or older in Berks County can call for information and a needs assessment at no cost. Income matters for some specific programs. The OPTIONS in-home program uses an income-based cost share, and Medicaid waiver services have their own financial rules, but the front door is open regardless of income.

Can someone help my parent understand Medicare?

Yes. Free, one-on-one Medicare counseling is available through PA MEDI, the state program formerly known as APPRISE, including help comparing plans and finding programs that lower drug and premium costs. In Berks County this counseling is provided by Berks Encore, a nonprofit funded in part through the Berks County Area Agency on Aging. Call 610-374-3195, ext. 209 to book an appointment.

My parent is in a nursing home and I have a complaint. Who helps?

Ask for the ombudsman. The agency's long-term-care ombudsman advocates for residents of nursing homes and personal care homes and works to resolve complaints about care and conditions.

Where is the office?

The Berks County Area Agency on Aging is at 400 E. Wyomissing Ave., Mohnton, PA 19540, which the county lists as a new office location. Some older directories show a different address, so use the Mohnton address or call 610-478-6500 to confirm before visiting.

Sources and contacts

• Berks County Area Agency on Aging and its resources page
• Report Abuse of an Older Adult and Report Elder Abuse, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
• PA MEDI (APPRISE) Medicare counseling through Berks Encore

Berks County Area Agency on Aging: 400 E. Wyomissing Ave., Mohnton, PA 19540; 610-478-6500 (24-hour emergency service after hours); fax 610-478-6886; open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pennsylvania Elder Abuse Helpline: 1-800-490-8505, 24/7. For an immediate emergency, call 911.

For related help, see our guides to the property tax and rent rebate for Berks County seniors and to Berks Heim, the county's public nursing home.