Attorney General James, 1199SEIU Hold Press Conference on Nursing Home Staffing
On March 21st, New York State Attorney General Letitia James held a joint press conference with 1199SEIU calling for stronger protections for nursing home workers. During the press conference, the Attorney General reiterated some of the findings from the report released by her office in January 2021 on nursing home COVID-19 response, and she called for the enforcement of recently enacted nursing home staffing mandates – the 3.5 minimum nursing hours requirement and the “70/40” direct care spending requirement.
“For more than two years, these essential workers have worked around the clock to protect and provide for our most vulnerable residents,” said Attorney General James. “As the pandemic devastated our communities, it became painfully clear that our healthcare industry was ill-equipped to deal with such a crisis. Chronic understaffing, lack of infection control protocols, and poor training contributed to the tragic deaths of nursing home residents and workers alike. These essential workers laid down their lives for the rest of us, and it’s time for us to give them the support they need and deserve.”
During the conference, Attorney General James also called for the Legislature to include funding for nursing home worker wage increases and nursing home capital needs in the final budget. She expressed that the funding that has been proposed thus far is a good start, but is “not enough,” and that there was a great deal more to be done to improve the care and conditions in nursing homes.
Contact: Sarah Daly, sdaly@leadingageny.org