Ahead of the 67th legislative session, advocacy groups are calling on lawmakers to provide more funding for people with disabilities.
The average hourly wage for caregivers who care for people with disabilities is about $14 in Wyoming. Employers are struggling with retention as the price of everything rises. So it’s getting harder to keep people in these jobs.
Executive Director Jeff Gardner Wyoming Community Service Providersaid Medicaid waivers for people with disabilities won’t meet actual costs in 2022.
“Right now, we don’t have enough money to cover our costs. One of the reasons is because it’s always retrospective. The final cost study will be completed in 2021,” Gardner said. “So much has happened in our economy and in the world since 2019.”
Wyoming Community Service Providers state legislature To cover the costs of providing decent care to the state’s disabled population. Without it, people would go without proper care, they say.
Gardner said such jobs are understaffed nationwide, and those who need services are turned away or receive substandard care.
“Some data polled by our National Association 800 providers nationwide92% of them say they struggle to meet quality standards because of workforce issues,” he said. “And it really impacted me: 92% said, ‘We admit we’re struggling to meet our quality standards because we don’t have the workforce.'”
according to Reported by the American Network of Community Options, Providers nationwide turn down new customers 83% of the time. That’s up from his 25.8% since the pandemic began.
