HOME HEALTH CARE WORKERS EARNING POVERTY

WAGES

In a new report by the health care advocacy coalition Alliance for a Greater New York, 62 percent                                 of the city’s home health care aids are earning less than $25,000 a year. One woman, Vivian                               Wegman, has been living with her patient in East New York. She works 24 hours a day and is at                                     her patients every request, while only earning $10 an hour and Medicaid (who she is paid by)                               only pays for 12 hours of work.

Wegman’s contractor, Bhrags Home Care Inc., stated that those other 12 hours are supposed                         to be off the clock, however many would agree that only 12 hours of in­home care service                               everyday is not realistic. According to economists, she belongs to one of the fastest growing                           industries in the city, but this also means their low wages are affecting the quality of care for                                 patients and the workers. New York State’s Policy Director, Carol Rodat, stated, “The more                         experience you have generally, the much better job you do. That’s why you want to be tuned into                                 what the wages are.”

If the wages are increased, the high turnover for the city’s home health care system can be                               reduced, also according to Rodat. Within the next few decades, it is suspected that nearly one                             million New Yorkers will need in­home health care. Due to the fact that the demand is growing for                                 in­home health aide, now would be the time to transform the system, especially with the money                             coming in and the ability to pay the workers