Seventy Massachusetts Representatives & Senators Sign Letter to Governor Baker in Support of PCAs

May 26, 2015

Seventy Massachusetts state representatives and senators have signed a letter to Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker in support of the state’s personal care attendants and funding for homecare services.

In the letter, legislators discuss the importance of homecare services and express their hope that the new contract for the state’s Personal Care Attendants (PCAs) will include key provisions to strengthen the critical program – such as a living wage, health insurance and paid-time off for caregivers.

“Despite caring diligently for seniors and people with disabilities throughout the Commonwealth, their career choice rarely carries them beyond the poverty line,” wrote legislators in the letter.

The letter comes as 35,000 PCAs begin bargaining with the state. The PCA contract is set to expire on July 1, 2015. Homecare is one of the fastest growing industries in the nation, and the already high level of demand for long-term care services is expected to soar another 20 to 35 percent over the next decade. In the letter, legislators discuss how investing in local workers is necessary to ensure that high quality homecare services remain available in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts is home to more than one million seniors and almost 500,000 adults living with a disability, including more than of these 44,000 individuals in Worcester alone.