Unionization could help home health care workers with wages, experts say

Unionization could help home health care workers with wages, experts say For Susie Young, the days before she was a unionized caregiver weren’t ones to cheer about.   “Before the union came in, we had nothing,” she said. “No training. Forget about a paid holiday or vacation. … There’s many workers in this country today… Continue reading Unionization could help home health care workers with wages, experts say

Voices of Paid and Family Caregivers for Medicaid Enrollees Receiving HCBS

AUTHORS: MaryBeth Musumeci, Meghana Ammula, and Robin Rudowitz

SUBJECT: solutions, unions, wages, benefits, invest in care, job quality, pandemic, Medicaid, home care, workforce

Home Health Care News: ‘The Conversation Is Way Overdue’: Why the Home Care Staffing System Is Broken

Families trust home-based care workers with the lives of their loved ones during some of the most vulnerable stretches of their lives. But as at-home care becomes more popular in the U.S., supporting the individuals that make up the workforce will have to be a priority.

The New York Times: Covid-19: The U.S. Is Edging Toward Normal, Alarming Some Officials

A single dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine can protect older people, a study shows. California reaches a deal that encourages schools to reopen.

NJ.com: They risk their lives nursing grandma through COVID. Now they can’t afford health care

Nursing home staffers are still falling ill at an alarming rate in New Jersey. There were 4,117 such workers with coronavirus as of Friday, which is actually more than the number of residents currently afflicted in those long-term care facilities. More than 17,500 have recovered, but 143 have died.

KTVZ: Union hails new contract with Oregon’s largest nursing home chain

Workers at Avamere, Oregon’s largest nursing home chain, have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract that aims to address long-standing problems in the industry, their union announced Monday.

19th News: Caregiving advocacy groups launch $20 million campaign on infrastructure bill

Caregiving advocacy groups launch $20 million campaign on infrastructure bill Ahead of President Joe Biden’s expected rollout on Wednesday of a wide-ranging infrastructure plan, a coalition of advocacy groups focused on caregiving announced a $20 million campaign aimed at shoring up support for their priorities. The #CareCantWait coalition is calling on the administration and Congress… Continue reading 19th News: Caregiving advocacy groups launch $20 million campaign on infrastructure bill

The New York Times: Manufacturing Isn’t Coming Back. Let’s Improve These Jobs Instead.

In Congress and the White House, policymakers are developing a bill that is expected to pour trillions into updating American transit, energy and utility systems. Repairs are certainly necessary, and it’s impossible to overstate the urgency of such a program in terms of the transition to a more sustainable economy.

The New York Times: Maggots, Rape and Yet Five Stars: How U.S. Ratings of Nursing Homes Mislead the Public

Twelve years ago, the U.S. government introduced a powerful new tool to help people make a wrenching decision: which nursing home to choose for loved ones at their most vulnerable. Using a simple star rating — one being the worst, five the best — the system promised to distill reams of information and transform an emotional process into one based on objective, government-blessed metrics.

Politico: Nursing homes need fixing. Here’s where to start.

When the Covid-19 pandemic came to America, nursing homes became “ground zero” for the pandemic. Although less than half of 1 percent of the U.S. population resides in nursing homes, they account for nearly 40 percent of all Covid deaths.