Since I started with the Health Care for Health Care Workers Campaign a little over a year ago, it has become apparent that it is the stories, letters, and advocacy efforts of direct-care workers that ultimately resonate with policy makers as well as the public.
The article in the Philadelphia Inquirer about Karen Goroncy and her lack of health insurance highlighted how it impacts her ability to care for her consumer. Melva William’s letter to the editor in response to Karen’s story voices her own fears about getting sick and not being able to continue to take care of her ailing mother due to her own lack of health insurance. It is these stories that provide a face for the HCHCW Campaign mission.
It is the passion that workers have about improving wages, benefits, and overall perception of their work and the industry that make a difference in our campaign. If it had not been for one hundred workers across the state who called their legislators back in March demanding that health care be made affordable and accessible, the health insurance reform legislation “PA ABC” may never have passed the House with such success. Next session, we’ll need that same passion to try and get an affordable health insurance plan passed by both Houses.
In order to continue these efforts, I am looking to meet direct-care workers who are willing to share their personal stories regarding health insurance, participate in “come care with me days” where they invite a policy maker to their place of work, and ultimately form a committee of workers from across the state who will work together to advocate for affordable and accessible health insurance the direct-care workforce.
In the next few months, I will be traveling to different nursing homes, assisted living facilities, home health agencies, and the homes of direct-care workers to hold a series of brown bag lunches and small gatherings to talk with workers about the campaign and the variety of activities listed above. With the help of members from the Direct Care Worker Association, I have already scheduled several meetings and brown bag lunches for the fall, as well as collected several new stories to add to the campaign’s story bank.
If you are interested in getting involved, please contact me, Simone Baer, at (412) 450-8080 or by email at sbaer@phinational.org. I’d love to talk with you about joining us in these activities and how your story can make a difference.
Simone Baer
PA Community Organizer
sbaer@phinational.org
Simone,
I agree wholehartedly that direct care workers deserve to be paid a living wage and have affordable health insurance. The problem, however, is not a single issue.
I own a small home care agency. I pay my employees the most money I can based on the reimbursement rates I receive. If the State of PA offered me $10 more per hour to raise my workers wages and provide health insurance, I would have to say “no thank you”. It would price our services out of range for all of my private duty clients thus forcing them into bankrupcy and into nursing homes. It would also take away all of the state welfare subsidies my employees presently enjoy (housing, childcare,food stamps, medical benefits for their children and sometimes themselves…). It would also force many of my women employees who already have health insurance to take ours verses the insurance that they presently enjoy by benefit of their spouses.
When anyone tries to help direct care workers, they have to look at all sides of the coin. Not everyone is low income and uninsured.
If Governer Rendell gets his way, the waiver consumers (those who receive home care services paid for by the state/medical assistance programs) will all be served by union represented “employees” but exempt from overtime laws and home care agency regulations AND PAYING UNION DUES. No one will work for a private duty agency providing services to the middle class since the state will be paying premium rates to pay higher wages and benefits to unsupervised and often unskilled “employees”. Again, the middle class loses by being forced to spend their last dime, end up without the care they need, forced into a nursing home or worse yet–dead. What happend to the 50/50 goal of a balanced long term care system or is that only for the poor?
Please do not persist in excluding service providers from your discussions and lobbying on behalf of direct care workers. Health care workers are not the only low income workers who lack health insurance and other benefits. Look at sales clerks at the local mall, waitresses, bank tellers to name a few. Workers with little more than a high school diploma can’t expect to earn big bucks. Casemanagers for our local senior services office earn only slightly more (but do have benefits) but are required to have a bachlors degree.
My suggestion is to allow a fast track for direct care workers to access PA Adult Basic (with some improvements in coverage and dental). Direct care is a much needed occupation and fast tracking DCWs into a healthcare plan will help attract and keep workers that are responsible enough to know that they must have health coverage. It would help to stabalize our industry.
Please look for a balanced solution to the problem of lack of affordable health insurance for low income workers. Talk to all involved, learn all sides of the issue and propose a fair solution for everyone involved–consumers, employees and employers.