OOIE Outreach focuses on Community Service

Ombudsman James McCracken and staff at the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen.

Anticipating Governor Chris Christie’s annual “Season of Service,” the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly lent a hand to two major social service
organizations in the Trenton area.

OOIE staff are pictured with Crisis Ministry
Directors Carolyn Biondi and Mark Smith.

On November 12th, Ombudsman James McCracken and staff served New Jersey residents at the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen. Also, on November 22nd Ombudsman staff assisted the
Crisis Ministry food pantry by preparing food packages for distribution to local needy families.

The OOIE Outreach Office schedules these volunteer activities not only to give back to the local community but also to increase awareness about OOIE services among the state's most vulnerable and at-risk populations.

NJ Governor Signs Resident Bill of Rights

On October 17, 2013, Governor Christie signed into law a bill of rights for independent residents living in Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs). The bipartisan legislation, bills S2052 / A3132, will ensure that residents of independent living sections of CCRCs have an active role in decisions that impact their daily lives. It clarifies that a resident has the right to express a complaint without fear of interference, discharge or reprisal and has the right to contact the New Jersey Long-Term Care Ombudsman (known in the state as the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly). It also enumerates certain legal, medical and financial rights. New residents will receive a written copy of the resident's rights prior to the execution of a continuing care residency agreement and a statement of resident's rights entitled "Bill of Rights for Continuing Care Retirement Community Residents in Independent Living" must be posted in a conspicuous place and distributed to all residents. The Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs may levy and collect penalties in the amount of not less than $250, and not more than $50,000, for each violation of the act. The act shall take effect May 1, 2014.