Direct Care Workforce

The Shirley Ryan Ability Lab released an article about how to address the direct support professional (DSP) workforce crisis. This will include increasing the wages to attract and retain workers. The article reviews the impact of the Access Rule and ways to improve wages for DSPs. In Minnesota legislators and policy makers are working together to link direct support professional certification to increased pay.

This infographic provides information on the direct care workforce, including demographic data, challenges direct care workers face, and resources that states can use to learn more about and support their direct care workforce.

On Thursday, December 7, the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) issued a report to address issues related to the long-standing shortage of direct care workers. Through research, interviews with stakeholders and federal policy experts, and private roundtable discussions, BPC identified three major challenges to recruiting and retaining direct care workers...

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released seven new resources focused on strengthening the DSW. The online training, Recruiting, Selecting, and Retaining Direct Service Workers to Provide Self-directed Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS), provides guidance and information for people who self-direct, or wish to self-direct, their HCBS, as well as others interested in information on finding, hiring, and retaining direct service workers. You can access all of these resources from CMS’ Direct Care Workforce page and ADvancing States' HCBS Clearinghouse.

The Center for Health Care Strategies has released a summary of its top 10 resources from 2022 that outline opportunities to strengthen the U.S health care system, particularly for Medicaid beneficiaries.

The Commonwealth Fund has published a compilation of state successes in transforming long-term care as a resource to support policymakers. This policy guide is the result of a nine-month partnership between CSG and the Commonwealth Fund. Subject matter experts and stakeholders from Arizona, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia examine the following focus areas in long-term care: Addressing State Regulation of Long-Term Services and Supports Facilities; Optimizing American Rescue Plan Act Spending on Home- and Community-Based Services Under Medicaid; and Revitalizing the Direct Care Workforce and Supporting Family Caregivers.

ACL has awarded a five-year grant totaling over $6 million to establish a national center to expand and strengthen the direct care workforce across the country. In support of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to strengthening the care economy, this initiative will provide technical assistance to states and service providers and facilitate collaboration with stakeholders to improve recruitment, retention, training, and professional development of the direct care workers who provide the critical services that make it possible for people with disabilities and older adults to live in their own homes and communities.

New data from USAging shows that existing shortages in the caregiving workforce have grown during the COVID-19 pandemic and make it difficult for older adults to age well in their homes. This new report from USAging reveals that many AAAs and their direct care provider partners across the country are facing workforce shortages hindering their ability to provide home and community-based services to older adults.

ANCOR has announced a new campaign, As a DSP It's Up to Me!, designed to increase vaccine acceptance among direct support professionals (DSPs) so they can protect people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. A new COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit has been designed to reduce vaccine hesitancy among DSPs and offer a range of resources to help community providers engage in conversations with DSPs that encourage them to get vaccinated.

In February 2022, ODEP and its LEAD Center convened national experts to discuss potential policy solutions for supporting Direct Support Professionals (DSPs). This report outlines recommendations across four areas: DSP Career Pathways and Training; Professionalization of DSPs as a Distinct Occupation; Enhancing Wages and Benefits; and DSPs as a Career Path for People with Disabilities.