Blog

MHCA Legislative Update

This week continued to be filled with activity at the state house. The biennial continues to progress through the process. Our separate blog post elaborates on the latest updates on the budget. 

The Health and Human Services also held its hearing on LD 451, An Act to Ensure Transparent and Accountable Temporary Nurse Agencies. Leading up to the hearing, 26 advocates answered the call from our Action Alerts and sent a total of 364 messages to the HHS Committee members. At the hearing, Angela Westhoff, Wanda Pelkey, Mike Tyler, and Glen Cyr spoke in support of the bill. In addition, our partners at the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program, Maine Hospital Association, LeadingAge, and the Maine Council on Aging also testified in favor of LD 451. No one spoke in opposition. 

The committee appeared very sympathetic to our stories of skyrocketing agency costs. The work session is yet to be scheduled, and we'll continue to post updates as they come. 

For next week, the biennial budget will continue to be reviewed by the AFA Committee, and the legislature's committees will host several hearings and work sessions for bills, including LD 587, Resolve, to Automatically Increase a Residential Care or Nursing Facility Resident's Personal Needs Allowance Under the MaineCare Program When the Consumer Price Index Increases

Staff contact: bhawkins@mehca.org