Take Action for Home and Community-Based Services!

​Congressional action on critical funding for home and community based services has been held up in D.C., along with all the other elements of the Build Back Better Act.  But we now have an opportunity for action, and we hope you can help!   

The Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing this morning on "An Economy That Cares: The Importance of Home-Based Services", focusing on the Better Care Better Jobs Act, which was the basis for our advocacy push so many months ago.  The renewed attention on home and community based services (HCBS) indicates Senate leadership's commitment to moving this investment forward in a budget reconciliation package.

And Florida was represented!  Alene Shaheed, who first shared her story about the need for more HCBS resources with Florida Health Justice Project, and has subsequently been featured in The New York Times, presented powerful testimony to the Committee.  Florida Senators Scott and Rubio are both members of the Committee.

Please support Alene by adding your voice to hers.  You can do so by sending the below message (even better if you can personalize it!) to Senators Scott and Rubio.  
 
Send your message to Senator Scott by clicking here.
Send your message to Senator Rubio by clicking here.

Sample Message:

Dear Senator,
​
I am grateful that the Special Committee on Aging has taken up the issue of home and community based services (HCBS).  A significant investment in HCBS is needed across the country, and especially in Florida.  

While we rank second for our rate of residents aged 65 and older, Florida ranked 51st, behind every other state and D.C., on AARP's 2020 State Scorecard Summary of Long Term Services and Supports.  Currently, over 80,000 Floridians are on waitlists for publicly funded HCBS programs.  Once accepted into the program, residents struggle to secure the level of services they require.  At the same time, the underfunded programs do not pay enough to keep their workforce on the job.  This is bad for healthcare workers, as well as those they care for.

As Alene, a Florida resident who is participating in Wednesday's hearing has said: “People in my situation should not have to spend another day alone in their wheelchair without a caregiver. We need funding and incentives to increase the pool of workers willing to provide care for Medicaid patients.”

I urge you to support a significant investment in the infrastructure of Medicaid HCBS and the workforce that provides these essential services. Florida's seniors and our severely disabled residents cannot wait any longer.

Send your message to Senator Scott by clicking here.
Send your message to Senator Rubio by clicking here.