STATE HOUSE – Sen. Louis P. DiPalma and Rep. Julie Casimiro were joined today by hundreds of Rhode Islanders impacted by insufficient funding for home and community-based programs for seniors, people with developmental disabilities and other Rhode Islanders who need care.

“For years we have underfunded these vital services,” said Senator DiPalma (D-Dist. 12, Middletown, Newport, Tiverton, Little Compton), who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance. “This bill will ensure we are investing in the care of Rhode Islanders – and, in turn, that we are investing in our health and human services economy. For our providers, the people they serve and the future of our state, this budget item is incredibly important.”

Through Medicaid, the state contracts with private agencies throughout Rhode Island to provide direct support to thousands of seniors, adults living with developmental disabilities and others. The staff working for these agencies help with everything from hygiene to job training to social work, based on the needs of each client.

By keeping people in their homes and communities, the programs improve their quality of life. And by keeping them out of expensive institutions such as nursing homes and hospitals, the programs save the state money.

But because the work is demanding and wages are so low, agencies have been struggling to recruit and retain the staff they need.

Christina Battista is a supported employment coordinator with the agency Skills for Rhode Island’s Future. In that job, she helps individuals with disabilities achieve their job goals by writing resumes, doing mock interviews and providing other supports. Battista, who has disabilities herself, also relies on personal care assistants to help with her care.

“The dedicated staff who help care for me earn under $18/hr. That leads to high turnover and I sometimes worry there won’t be enough trusted staff to provide the care I need,” Battista said. “Our dedicated caregivers should be paid better so we have enough applicants to ensure people like myself always get the support we need.”

Legislation (2023-S 0782, 2023-H 5987) introduced by Senator DiPalma and Representative Casimiro would allocate $200 million for home and community based providers of health and human services. That would provide a 10% rate increase to help these providers stabilize staffing levels and ensure adequate and safe care of residents.

“Our human services system is suffering a crisis of care that’s only worsened since the pandemic,” said Representative Casimiro (D-Dist. 31, North Kingstown, Exeter). “Our system is understaffed and under-supported and it is hurting our most vulnerable residents. This funding is crucial to ensuring our neighbors get the support they need and the staff who care for them are compensated fairly.”
 

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In Photo: Sen. Louis DiPalma and Rep. Julie Casimiro, in lower left corner, are joined by hundreds of patients, caregivers and advocates for a press conference on Thursday.