​N95 masks are still hard to find around the United States, but Nexvoo has them in stock and ready to ship! They are running a few new deals, including: ​

Continue to kick off this new year with monumental savings of up to 45% off during Dell's President's Day Sale February 8-17! Call in today to speak with a Small Business Advisor for a custom-built business solution at 855-900-5548, be sure to mention you are a member of HCAOA. Also, you may visit www.dell.com/hcaoa to shop tech must-haves online. 

​Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Pelosi, and Minority Leader McCarthy:
 
I write to request the assistance of the Congress to meet the needs of home care providers and their employees as they strive to care for seniors and individuals with disabilities in the face of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. As the number of cases and fatalities continues to rise to record levels, particularly for seniors, the Congress must act now to provide necessary support to businesses and individuals attempting to care for those most vulnerable. At the same time, Congress must take care not to burden employers with unnecessary regulation that will increase the cost of care and force some to go without needed caregiving.

Driven by a heightened emphasis on cost-effectiveness and cost-containment, the home infusion and specialty pharmacy markets are set to experience record growth. That’s why it's so important for home infusion therapy organizations to have the tools in place to manage both in-house nurses and subcontracted provider operations.

​In recent days both the House and Senate passed respective budget resolutions for the fiscal year, which marks the start of a legislative process in Congress called budget reconciliation. Key congressional committees are not preparing legislation to reconcile the budget resolution that was passed. A budget reconciliation process is a powerful tool that allows lawmakers to advance spending and tax policies through the Senate with a simple majority.

On January 27, 2021, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced that he had approved a Final Permanent Standard (Permanent Standard) for preventing COVID-19 in the workplace, making Virginia the first state in the nation to implement a permanent COVID-19 workplace safety and health standard. The Permanent Standard, which applies to all employers in the Commonwealth, supersedes the Emergency Temporary Standard that had been in place since July 2020 but expired on January 26, 2021. read more

Need a COVID vaccine authorization form for your employees? These forms, provided by Littler, are intended to be used to obtain employees’ consent for the release of their vaccination information by the employer to a third party. If you would like to offer this option to your employees, you can download the forms below. 

Generating new clients and recruiting caregivers online is more important than ever! Without the right strategy and the right tools for measuring results, you could be wasting money and missing great opportunities.

1,167 bills have been introduced this session. Legislators were concerned about the ability pass bills in the virtual environment in a timely manner and limited the number of bills to be heard by House of Representatives to seven bills, requested that they do not file “Companion” bills in the opposite house and focus on COVID-19, the two-year operating budget, social justice, and climate issues. The first bills passing the legislature this session was COVID-19 related, such as extending the month-to-month waivers until the end of the state emergency orders under the Governor. There are several bills that direct the use of federal dollars for COVID-19 into various state funding accounts, much of which came into the state under the CARES Act. read more

HCAOA is a proud member of the Partnership for Medicaid Home-Based Care (PMHC) and recently joined the organization to send a letter to the Biden Administration to advocate for an increase in rates for Medicaid-funded home care. PMHC strongly supports policy reform that recognizes and protects this dedicated workforce. At present, however, inadequate Medicaid rates prevent these professionals from receiving compensation commensurate with the value they produce for our nation with the majority earning just above current state minimum wage levels. Click here to read the letter from PMHC to Speaker Pelosi. 

Unemployment has been a big problem during the pandemic, but there’s one industry working to hire people fast. Companies that run home care and hospice facilities are struggling to get folks hired. It’s simply that more people are choosing to receive care from their home, rather than at a facility full of people. HCAOA member and owner of Home Instead in Augusta, Mark Barlow, said: “We have an immediate need for 30 caregivers. That need will grow as the population continues to age particularly baby boomers.” read more

For years, Philadelphia has maintained ordinances substantially restricting employers’ use of criminal record and credit histories in employment screening. On January 20, 2021, Mayor Jim Kenney signed three bills amending Philadelphia’s Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards (FCRSS) and credit ban ordinances. Taken together, the bills: (1) expand coverage; (2) eliminate exceptions; and (3) change certain procedures required by the ordinances. The amendments become effective March 21, 2021 and April 1, 2021. read more