For years, the service system that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families rely on, Medicaid, has needed an update. People are stuck on waiting lists, the direct care workforce is underpaid, and too often, unpaid family caregivers are filling in the gaps in service.
The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified these problems and exposed the cracks and gaps in the care infrastructure when it comes to supporting people with disabilities and their families.
Congress must follow President Biden's lead and fund $400 billion for the Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS) system to expand access to HCBS, increase wages for the direct care workforce, and create more of these jobs.
Tell Congress we need:
- A $400 billion investment to fund expanded access to Medicaid HCBS to people with disabilities on waiting lists and address the direct care workforce crisis, including raising wages.
- A national paid leave program to ensure that people with disabilities, family caregivers, and direct care workers don't have to choose between their own health, the health of their families, and their livelihood.
- Improvements to Supplemental Security Income benefits and asset limits to lift people out of poverty.
