Democratic presidential candidate and South Bend, IN, Mayor Pete Buttigieg has unveiled a plan that seeks to make long-term care more affordable for seniors, increase wages for direct care workers and implement minimum staffing requirements for facilities.
The plan — announced by Buttigieg Monday — proposes developing a long-term services and supports program that would help cover the costs of long-term care for seniors with a high level of need. Under the proposal, benefits would be worth $90 per day for as long as care is needed and would kick in after an income-related waiting period.
It also calls for passing $15 minimum wage legislation for all employees, including direct care workers.
“Lifting the wages of direct care workers will have a multiplier effect in low-income communities and communities of color in particular. We will also provide support for states to adjust Medicaid reimbursement rates accordingly,” he wrote.
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Additional proposals under the plan include: fully-funding the Adult Protective Services and the Long-Term Care Ombudsman programs; setting federal standards for residential care communities; requiring long-term care facilities to notify ombudsmen when an involuntary discharge or eviction takes place; and implementing minimum staffing ratios for long-term care facilities.
“This will make it easy for nursing home residents, their family members and direct care workers themselves to see at a glance whether the facilities they live in are illegally short-staffed,” Buttigieg wrote.
Implementing minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes has been a priority of two other lawmakers.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) last week introduced legislation that would revise revise minimum staffing requirements for skilled nursing facilities that participate in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Providers have heavily criticized this proposed legislation.
Source: Mc Knight’s