WBFO Older Adults News Desk

Most prospective and active care workers are low-income women of color balancing family commitments and multiple jobs. So unpaid training can be a barrier for them to join the field, while tuition costs can be a barrier to eventually advancing to higher-paid care positions.

Reaction to the 2023 New York State budget continues, and older adult advocates are pleased that the $220 billion plan passed by lawmakers earlier this month expands Medicaid eligibility.

After a failed sale to a for-profit provider, Weinberg Campus officials say they have no plans to find another buyer and are committed to continuing to operate the over-century-old campus as an independent nonprofit.

New York nursing homes will see a Medicaid reimbursement rate increase under the new state budget passed over the weekend, but they argue it's still not enough.

Lewiston nursing home workers, who held a one-day strike last month, have a new contract.

Nursing homes argue they can't meet the safe staffing law's standards and have a pending lawsuit against the profit cap, while union leaders and resident advocates are concerned with how the laws will be enforced and still want even stricter laws.

Advocates for the law -- which creates minimum staffing ratios and requires that nursing home residents get at least 3.5 hours per day of direct nursing care -- said they're relieved that the delay is over.

Longer life spans mean women need more money for retirement than men, yet their increased caregiving responsibilities, coupled with the gender pay gap, make it difficult for them to save as much as men.

The law would, among other things, require that nursing home residents get at least 3.5 hours of direct nursing care per day.

1199 SEIU United Health Care Workers East, the union representing more than 150 workers at the Lewiston nursing home, said Tuesday that several employees received disciplinary notices for participating in its March 9 strike.