Bill > HB96

This bill establishes the Home Care Employment Standards Advisory Board within the Department of Health to advise on payment rates and working conditions for individuals providing "covered services," which include personal care services, habilitation services, chore services, and respite services, often funded through Medicaid. The board will be composed of state officials, representatives from home care providers, direct care workers (including union representatives), service recipients, and organizations representing seniors and individuals with disabilities, with the Commissioner of Health serving as chair. The board is tasked with investigating issues like wage adequacy, recruitment and retention of workers, training requirements, and the impact of workforce shortages, and will submit biennial reports with findings and recommendations to the legislature and the public. Additionally, the bill mandates that agencies providing home and community-based services must allocate a progressively larger percentage of their funding to employee compensation and benefits for personal care services, starting at 70% in July 2027 and increasing to 80% by July 2030, with provisions for hardship exemptions that have slightly different timelines. The implementation of these compensation requirements is contingent on federal approval of necessary amendments to the state's Medicaid plan.