News And Updates

U.S. Senate Declares Week of September 12, 2010 as National DSP Recognition Week

For the third consecutive year, ANCOR and ANCOR's National Advocacy Campaign is pleased to report that the Senate passed June 16th by unanimous consent Senate Resolution 558 declaring the week of September 12, 2010 as National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week. Senator Nelson (D-NE) introduced this resolution on June 16th and it was immediately placed on the Senate's Unanimous Consent Agenda.

Original co-sponsors of the resolution:

Senator Nelson (D-NE), Senator Kerry (D-MA), Senator Brownback (R-KS), Senator Dodd (D-CT), Senator Binaman (D-NM), Senator Johanns (R-NE), Senator Collins (R-ME), Senator Bunning (R-KY), Senator Carper (D-DE), Senator Brown (D-OH), and Senator Udall (D-CO)

Mosaic agencies across the country are planning special events during this week to honor the direct support professions who support the people Mosaic assists.

Direct Support Professionals bill reintroduced in Congress!

Representatives Lois Capps (D-CA) and Lee Terry (R-NE) reintroduced the Direct Support Professionals Fairness and Security Act of 2009, HR 868, on February 4, 2009.  This critical piece of legislation addresses the low wages paid to direct support professionals. 

The legislation would:
  • Amend title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to provide funds to states to enable them to increase the wages paid to targeted direct support professionals in providing services to individuals with disabilities under the Medicaid program.
  • Direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, to audit a sample from among the states in order to assess the effectiveness of progress made in reducing or eliminating the wage gap between targeted and reference direct support professionals through funds under this Act.
  • Require the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on the wage equalization and recruitment and retention of direct support professionals who are providing services and supports to individuals with disabilities.
You can learn more about the differential in salaries paid to direct support professionals who work for a state-run facility versus one who works for a private provider by reading the 2008 Wage Survey prepared for ANCOR by the Mosaic Collaborative for Disabilities Public Policy and Practice.


ANCOR releases the second annual national direct support

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ANCOR has released the results of a national survey that clearly illustrates the growing need for increased federal funding for direct support workers who provide supports to people with disabilities. The 2009 Direct Support Professionals Wage Study, which was conducted in partnership between ANCOR and the Mosaic Collaborative for Disabilities Public Policy and Practice, continues to support the need for solutions to the national health care workforce crisis.   

Analysis of survey results compared wages among Direct Support  DSPs employed by private providers with those who work for state-run programs, and also included expanded demographics on the size of the community, rural/urban, and the size of the agencies.
 
A key finding of the report shows the national average starting wage for private provider direct service professionals (DSPs) in community programs is $9.37 per hour, compared to the average starting wage of $12.57 for state-employed DSPs. This represents a 34 percent difference.  Annualized, the average entry wage for a private provider DSP is just slightly higher than the federal poverty level - the private DSP entry wage is $19,498 compared to the federal baseline (for a family of three) at $18,454.
 
Renee Pietrangelo, CEO of ANCOR stated that, "This impressive study marks further tangible progress toward the ANCOR National Advocacy Campaign's mission to enhance the lives of people with disabilities by obtaining the resources to recruit, train and retain a highly qualified and sustainable direct support workforce."

By 2016, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that one million new DSP positions will be in demand.  Of those, 38% (388,538) will be for personal and home care aide positions, which is the category under which the DSP are most often included.
 
Facing a current national turnover rate of 38.2% for DSP positions, the private-operated provider must make a difficult decision -- raise wages to ensure people with disabilities continue to receive quality care from people they have grown to know and trust, or spend approximately $4,800 per DSP in total costs to recruit, hire and train a replacement. 
 
Legislation was introduced in the 111th Congress addressing the workforce wage issue. Our legislative champions, Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA) and Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE), have sponsored H.R. 868, a bill 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. There is no federal mandate for participation, but states that choose to participate will realize pay parity between private and public direct support professionals. 
 
Click here to read the 2009 Direct Support Professionals Wage Study.