Current Bills

Direct Support Professionals Fairness and Security Act of 2009 (H.R. 868)

In February, Reps. Lois Capps (D-CA) and Lee Terry (R-NE) introduced The Direct Support Professionals Fairness and Security Act of 2009 into the 111th Congress.

The bill, H.R. 868, seeks to amend the Social Security Act to provide funds to states to enable them to increase the wages paid to targeted direct support professionals who are providing services to individuals with disabilities under Medicaid.  H.R. 868 would offer states an option for supplemental Medicaid funding needed to increase DSP wages.

The DSP workforce crisis is real.  Low wages, high turnover and increased demand for the supports DSPs provide has created this national healthcare emergency.  It is essential that Congress must recognize the tremendous work of DSPs; correct wage disparities that exist between public and private DSPs and help this industry address this significant workforce crisis.

Unfortunately, the DSP workforce crisis continues to deepen.  DSPs often cannot make a living on their wages, so turnover and vacancies are high (as high as 86 percent in some residential settings). The national average wage is just over $9 an hour, putting unfair demands on workers already engaged in challenging and stressful work to take second jobs to feed their own families.

DSP numbers can’t match the growing demand for their services.  By 2020, the number of individuals with intellectual and other developmental disabilities in need of residential, in-home and day supports is expected to rise from one million to 1.4 million, a 38 percent increase. Currently there are 875,000 direct support workers to support just this one segment of the disability population, but by 2020 demand will grow to at least 1.2 million workers.

During the 110th Congress, similar legislation gained more than 130 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives, including a significant number of House Energy & Commerce Committee members, which has jurisdiction over the legislation.

Building on its strong advocacy foundation, ANCOR is pursuing a very aggressive and targeted outreach and lobbying program that is designed to raise awareness of the DSP workforce wage crisis on the Hill, leading to a congressional hearing on the greater workforce issue, and securing a reliable and dedicated funding source to realize pay parity between private and public direct support professionals.

Just as important to ANCOR lobbying efforts on the Hill is a strong grassroots push by ANCOR members.  In 2009, ANCOR will rely heavily on its network of activists and supporters to help deliver the message to Congress that DSPs need and deserve a fair and livable wage! This will require a commitment of time, energy and resources by the ANCOR membership and the American public.  Please join us in this effort.