Wages and Benefits

Do you currently employ anyone with a physical or mental disability? Business owners and decision-makers across the state of Maine were asked questions regarding the employment of people with disabilities in that state. This is the summary of the 432 surveys collected.

Review this sample of an MOU between the Alaskan Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and the Alaskan Division of Behavioral Health. It addresses providing equal access to employment, not just as a fundamental right for those affected by behavioral disabilities, but as an essential step towards better behavioral health. Use this sample MOU as a template if your program were trying to craft a similar document.

PHI Policy Works has released an updated State chart book on wages from personal and home care aides, 1999-2008. The chart book tracks wages in all 50 states and the District of Columbia for the period 1999-2008. It shows that nationally, the median real wage (adjusted for inflation) for personal and home care aides has decreased by 3 percent over nine years, from $7.50 to $7.31.

This updated resource provides a state-by-state look at wages and wage trends for PHCAs, the second fastest growing occupation in the country, and a key job title within the direct-care workforce. Review wages over a 9-year period. Prepared as a resource guide on wages for advocates and policymakers concerned with the direct-care workforce, the data underscore the problem of low and declining real wages for PHCAs, factors which contribute to workforce.

This new website supports PHI’s training and organizational development services. PHI works with providers of eldercare and disability services across the nation to deliver quality, relationship-centered care. Find out more about the PHI approach to training and ways to build skills.

Young people and their families are in the best position to make choices about working when they have good information about the impact of work on benefits. The Social Security and Medicaid/MassHealth programs have work incentives that can help young people give work a try, and provide a “safety net” in case the job does not work out. The purpose of this booklet is to give families and professionals working with young people some practical, hands-on information about work incentives.

Minnesota’s Legislative Auditor investigates the state of the personal care workforce and the regulation of these services and presents recommendations for improvement. Information is provided on eligibility and access as well as the demographics of people that are assessed for or receiving personal care services. Program traits examined include regulation, expenditure trends, fiscal integrity, and quality. Family caregivers are looked at in the final section.

This website offers information on the range of funding sources available to State Medicaid and other agencies and stakeholders to support the development of a high quality direct service labor force. It breaks the information down into 5 categories including current, federal, state, foundation and other types of funding and includes examples of sources and strategies for funding future DSW initiatives.

This paper provides an overview of the health coverage interventions tested by CMS DSW demonstration grantees and examines four approaches in more detail through the following four case studies:(1)Subsidizing Employer Based Insurance(North Carolina),(2)Prescription Discounts, Basic Health Insurance and Tax-Free Accounts(New Mexico),(3)DirigoChoice and Outreach to Home Care Agencies(Maine)and (4)Outreach to Consumer-Directed Home Care Workers (Washington).

The authors advise Congress on how to meet the growing demand for long-term care and cope with rising health care costs by supporting HCBS. The main recommendations are: promote care coordination and disease prevention; strengthen the nonprofit home health nurse workforce; and ensure the financial viability of home-based care.