Providing care giving is Home Instead's reason for being. It is what we do and we strive to offer the finest care at affordable rates. Some of you are not members of the National Private Duty Association and may be unaware of the catastrophic effect that the proposed changes of the Companion Care Exemption, passed by Congress in 1974, may have on people receiving home care. While we applaud the current administrations desire to ensure that all In-Home Care Workers receive fair compensation, we find the current proposals to be counterproductive in this effort and will have a detrimental affect on the workers it is meant to help, those cared for by them and the industry as a whole.
We oppose the proposed changes 1235-AA05 to the NPRM because:
· It will result in lower pay for caregivers because the majority of clients cannot afford to pay overtime, so hours will be reduced. Caregivers employed by private duty companies currently earn fair compensation—on average, well more than minimum wage.
· It will hurt the continuity of care for fragile seniors and people with dementia or disabilities, who would struggle to adjust to a greater number of people coming into their homes and attending to their personal needs.
· It will force unwanted institutionalization for people who will no longer be able to afford the in-home non-medical care they need to remain in their own homes.
· It will significantly increase federal and state government spending as costs to Medicaid and other government programs would go up, both from an increase in compensation to in-home caregivers, and from increased government-subsidized institutionalization.
· It will encourage an underground “grey market” as people in need seek less expensive—but untrained and unsupervised—workers who will not operate within the rules of the FLSA. It may also result in those most vulnerable being subject to neglect, abuse and/or financial mismanagement.
· It will result in reduced federal and state revenues from unpaid taxes because these underground workers will not be employees; who will most likely be paid in cash and will probably not even know about - much less comply with - their federal and state tax responsibilities.
· It will hurt the small businesses that employ trained, supervised, professional caregivers, causing some companies to go under and many to struggle. It will cost jobs as a result.
· It could virtually eliminate the option of live-in companion care for persons with disabilities and seniors because of the significant additional costs and record-keeping burdens imposed by the NPRM.
THE DEADLINE FOR COMMENTS IS MARCH 21ST!
Related links:
White House Press Release
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to Amend the Companionship and Live-In Worker Regulations
