LTC Leaders Call on California to Provide Living Wage for Nursing Home CNAs

News provided by

California Association of Health Facilities

Mar 02, 2022, 07:00 ET

SACRAMENTO, Calif., March 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The California Association of Health Facilities, representing skilled nursing providers, is calling on the state to provide a living wage for certified nursing assistants (CNAs) in nursing homes. The "Drive to 25" campaign is intended to stem a crippling workforce shortage that is threatening access to skilled nursing care.

CAHF is requesting the Medi-Cal program establish a nursing home CNA minimum wage that will grow to $25 per hour by 2025.

Fifty one percent of direct care staff, the backbone of care delivery in nursing homes, are eligible for public assistance according to a report by the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency.

"For too long skilled care workers have been overlooked, overworked and underpaid," said CAHF CEO Craig Cornett. "This reform is focused 100 percent on strengthening and developing the nursing home caregiver workforce and will not enrich facility operators."

Cornett noted almost 80 percent of the state's direct care workforce is comprised of women. Fifty percent are immigrants and many are single mothers. "A living wage will help workers, increase caregiver retention and benefit resident care," he added.

The Medi-Cal reimbursement level has never adequately provided for the sickest, poorest and often oldest Californians. Medi-Cal reimburses the average nursing home $250 a day to provide an individual 24 hours of care. By comparison, the state pays the average In Home Support Services worker about $130 a day to cover one 8-hour shift to support an IHSS resident in their own home.

Skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) in California are nearly 100 percent government supported. Most SNFs receive 66 percent of their funding from the Medi-Cal program (the rest comes almost exclusively from Medicare). These government payments provide funding for wages for nursing staff (RNs, LVNs, CNAs, etc.), support staff (janitorial, housekeeping, food service, and office support), and payment for operating expenses including utilities, supplies, food and rent.

Under the proposal, SNFs will pay a specified minimum wage with Medi-Cal covering the costs of approximately two thirds of the wage increases. The rest will be covered by facility funds. The Medi-Cal share of this cost will be funded as a direct pass-through from the state to facility employees. The new "CNA living wage" will not be discretionary but required to be paid to all CNAs. www.cahf.org

Contact Deborah Pacyna

SOURCE California Association of Health Facilities