Why Dont We Pay Family Caregivers What Theyre Owed?
Advocates are pushing more states to pay and support family caregivers, both to address the workforce shortage and to honor the work that family caregivers provide. Because the federal government is allowing the temporary funding to be used to pay family caregivers, and because the workforce effects of the pandemic linger, advocates argue this is a unique, urgent moment to act. Its an opportunity to create new and easier ways for states to lift restrictions that currently prohibit paying some caregivers, and also to make those programs easier to access for families, who themselves might have left the workforce during the pandemic and might be reluctant to return and abandon their caregiving duties. Denise Brown, who founded the Caregiving Years Training Academy, made paying family caregivers her first priority in discussions with states as they finalize plans for the funding. Theres a change in not only what people are listening to but also what people see as problems, she said. Before, there was a very low level of awareness around the family members who provide care.  Caring for someone with physical or medical needs can be strenuous, sometimes physically dangerous, work, and emotionally taxing. One in-home health aide, recounting the strenuous hours and cut corners enforced by the company where she worked, told The New Republic earlier this year that she struggled with leaving patients after her shift ended. It just didnt make me feel right, doing what I did, she explained. It was definitely really hard to leave them and say, Your time is up. In many states, in-home health care aides are paid minimum wage, or only slightly above, and have few opportunities for advancement. Most can find jobs in other fields for better or equal pay, and they frequently do. Home health care workers were extremely vulnerable to Covid-19 infection, and so many stopped working. In 2020, turnover among the home health aide workforce was 36.5 percent nationwide, even as benefits like hazard pay were instituted. While last year was an unusual one, this was a long-standing problem and will likely continue to be one. In fact, that turnover rate was an improvement over the previous two years: Turnover in the entire home health industry was 64 percent in 2019 and 82 percent in 2018. These jobs are difficult to fill. Many states plan to use the new funding from Congress to try to enhance the pay for in-home professional aides and create other financial incentives to hire workers and keep them employed. We need to elevate and celebrate direct support professionals and the key role they play in helping people stay in their homes and continue to be valued members of their communities, said Natasha Merz, the director of disability services for the Minnesota Department of Human Services. We need to fundamentally assert and say these roles are not just about getting a paycheck, they are about helping us all as a community have the membership we need and want.