Op Ed By Thomas M. Biancaniello, MD
The New York State Senate Republicans have made proposals to address the staff shortages in health care facilities. It is good to see proposals that seem to be for the benefit of workers such as increased educational opportunities, training and promises to help with the economic burden of education and training. But the proposals are vague. This could be a good first step, but of course the “devil is in the details.” There are no concrete proposals with dollar amounts and the “forgiveness” mentioned is not quantified in either the amount forgiven or the what specific requirements must be met to obtain such relief.
Furthermore, it fails to address the real-world issue of what actually causes staff to leave or apply for jobs which is inadequate pay and benefits. For example, Bank of America has raised its minimum wage to $21 per hour and plans to increase it to $25 per hour by 2025 with benefits. Walmart is raising its minimum wage from $12 per hour with benefits to $15 the end of this month. Meeting the needs of patients in nursing homes and patients on home care is grueling work both physically and mentally. You need to offer the people who do this work more to keep them on the job.
Other than mentioning addressing the State’s inadequate Medicaid rates, there is no proposal to increase support for these institutions which will guarantee the money will be spent on staff rather than increase the profits of the owners. Many private facilities charge patients much more than Medicaid rates, but still face the same staff retention issues.
Government is doing its job in mandating public health measures to assure the health and safety of the workers and patients, but must also go a step further. It should declare these jobs and functions critical and mandate a living wage and benefit level adequate to recruit and retain people doing these important jobs. Politicians must do more than score points, they should do their jobs and provide the resources necessary to provide quality care to their constituents.
Thomas M. Biancaniello, MD is a pediatric cardiologist who lives in Smithtown. He is also the husband of Smithtown Matters Editor Pat Biancaniello.