Long-term care providers in Indiana believe they have unlocked the secret to scoring on legislative priorities: facility tours and serving lunch.
“It’s far more impactful for lawmakers to see the facilities,” said Paul Peaper, president of the Indiana Health Care Association. “They went in with preconceived notions but after spending an hour or two talking with caregivers and residents, it changes their perceptions. It takes them seeing firsthand what our caregivers are doing daily to provide for our residents, and when they see it, they ask, ‘What tools do you need?’”
Peaper’s comments to McKnight’s Long-Term Care News on Thursday followed the unanimous passage in both houses of Indiana’s legislature of a lengthy bill that addresses numerous workforce problems and regulatory issues the sector is facing. Gov. Eric Holcomb (R) quickly signed the bill.
The legislation prohibits conversion fees that staffing agencies have been charging nursing homes and other providers for making temporary staff permanent. Peaper said one mid-sized association member with 15 facilities paid $100,000 in conversion fees last year. In small and mid-sized cities, the staffing agencies would place a temporary worker in a different facility each day, thereby forcing any facility interested in hiring that worker to pay a hefty fee. Those underhanded tactics also locked workers into contracts, Peaper said.
The bill also reduced licensing requirements for long-term care administrators, allowing relevant work experience or education to count toward the overall training hours.
“We’re trying to be competitive for talent,” Peaper said, adding that one person who testified before lawmakers worked at a facility for more than a decade but needed to spend two years in training programs to obtain a license to be the location’s administrator. The legislation creates “reciprocity for those individuals holding a license from the National Association of Long Term Care Administrators,” the association said in a press release.
“There’s no silver bullet that’s going to solve these issues,” Peaper said. “But this legislation is a toolkit that contains a lot of great elements to help residents.”
Another tactic the association used was to show lawmakers the services provided by long-term care facilities: serving lunch catered by one of the facilities. It was the same meal that would be served later to residents, Peaper said, laughing at the memory of lawmakers enjoying the fine dining.
“If I could tell providers nationwide … invite your legislators into your facilities,” he said, noting that he’s proud of the association staff and members for the all-hands-on-deck approach to the legislative win.
