The New York State Assembly is considering legislation introduced this week that would make home care the primary option for patients across the care continuum.
New York Home Care Association President Al Cardillo told McKnight’s Home Care Daily Pulse the New York Home Care First Act is like an enhanced version of the Choose Home Care Act before Congress.
“It’s similar in that the focus and the idea ought to be on home care as an option for people who need it, but it’s much broader in how it addressed the issue.”
While the federal Choose Home bill would provide Medicare beneficiaries 30 days of home care following hospitalization, New York’s bill is more expansive. It would provide program and financial support of home care services, the integration of home care into primary and preventive care, and a protocol to help transition patients from the hospital into home care.
“That is predicated on the fact that so many individuals get discharged from the hospital and are never referred to homecare or even discuss home care,” Cardillo explained.
The New York Home Care First Act comes just weeks after New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) disappointed the home care industry by failing to include the Fair Pay For Home Care Act into the state’s new budget. That legislation would boost the wages of direct care workers to 150% of the state’s minimum wage. The Home Care First bill also includes funding for enhanced wages, but gives home care agencies more flexibility in how they compensate workers.
The New York home care industry is in the midst of a crisis due to a shortage of home care workers, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and a state vaccine mandate. Last year approximately three-quarters of seniors and people with disabilities were unable to retain home care workers. A report by HCA last fall found 17% of home health aide positions in New York were unfilled and 20% of home nursing positions were vacant.
