Urge Congress to Strengthen Long-Term Care

May 7th, 2013

Category:

Labor Leaders, Celebrity Consumers, Activists Urge Congress to Strengthen Long-Term Care

WASHINGTON, DC –

In celebration of Mother’s Day and the central role that women play in providing and supporting long-term care, Caring Across Generations will host a Hill Briefing and panel discussion on improving long-term and in-home care. Every eight seconds, someone in America turns 65, and 1.6 million additional direct care workers will be needed to by 2020 to keep up with demand.  Care workers represent one of the fastest growing workforces in America, and long-term care reform could reinvigorate the US economy while providing much-needed care for those who need it.    

The same week, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-9) will introduce concurrent Sense of the Senate and Sense of the House resolutions supporting the need to expand and support a strong home care work force and make long-term, in-home care affordable and accessible for aging Americans and those with disabilities.  

WHEN:

Tuesday, May 7, 2013; 9:30-11 am

WHERE:

325 Russell Senate Building

WHAT:

Senate briefing and panel discussion in honor of Mother’s Day, celebrating women’s various roles in long-term care.  During the discussion, leading labor experts, activists, and care consumers will share their stories and call on Congress to adopt the Caring Across Generations platform for improved in-home and long-term care, which includes: job creation; job quality; training and career ladders for workers; roadmap to citizenship; and support for consumers and families.

WHO:

Leading labor experts and activists and care consumers, including:

• Ai-jen Poo, co-director of Caring Across Generations and director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance
• Gilda Brown, personal assistant with the Illinois Department of Rehabilitative Services program
• Jill Eikenberry (Golden-Globe winning actress) and her husband Michael Tucker (award-nominated actor), who are currently employing in-home care workers to help support Jill’s mother
• Julia Feinberg, long-term care consumer and Leadership Development Associate for a Virginia Beach Medicaid-managed care organization for low-wage workers and low-income families
• Kimi Lee, Executive Director of the Garment Worker Center (GWC), who manages care for her mother while raising two young children
• Laura Reyes, Secretary-Tresurere of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)
• Sarita Gupta, co-director of Caring Across Generations and executive director of Jobs with Justice and American Rights at Work
• Wendy Chun-Hoon, DC Director for Family Values @ Work