News Article

Long-Term Care Providers Put Residents at Risk by Weakening Staffing Standards

February 18, 2022

Long term care providers and state governments should be investing in ways to attract and retain qualified staff, not weakening staffing requirements. After over 200,000 residents and staff of long-term care facilities have died from COVID-19 and countless others suffered from isolation and neglect, some states, instead of finding real solutions and ensuring that residents receive needed care and services, are suspending staffing standards (NY, RI) or introducing legislation to roll back standards (FL).

Long-term care residents, their families, and advocates know what research confirms - there is a direct relationship between adequate staffing and quality care and quality of life for residents. Numerous studies have shown that facilities with higher levels of staffing had better COVID-19 outcomes during the pandemic. And there is well-documented evidence that inadequate staffing contributes to poor quality of care and poor health outcomes for residents.

States and the federal government should be putting the needs of residents first by:

• Implementing policies that support staff - raising wages, requiring benefits, supporting training programs;
• Implementing minimum staffing standards that meet the needs of all residents, either through legislation or administrative action; and,
• Holding facilities accountable for ensuring that additional funding goes to support staff and direct care needs, and for ensuring that residents receive necessary care and services.

Consumer Voice is calling on states and the federal government to act now to better protect residents of nursing homes by requiring minimum staffing requirements and accountability for the spending of public money. These critical measures will help ensure the tragic events of the COVID-19 pandemic do not recur.

Read more in our press release.