Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D, NY)
A bill to increase job opportunities for public housing residents and to respond to the growing need for more direct-care workers was officially introduced by Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D, NY) on December 8.
The “Together We Care Act of 2009″ (H.R. 4224) establishes a three-year federal pilot training program to give public housing residents the opportunity to be become trained and certified as home care aides. The bill was co-sponsored by Reps. Barney Frank (D, MA) and Maxine Waters (D, CA).
The newly trained aides would be assigned to elderly clients and people living with disabilities who are Medicaid-eligible and reside in public housing, according to the terms of the bill.
Bill Would Help Economy
“This effort meets the needs of our community by helping to lift public housing residents out of poverty and providing care for those who need it most,” Velázquez said.
“Home care is a profession that will be in high demand for years to come and this legislation will offer hard-working public housing residents the tools they need to enter this field,” she continued. “By training New Yorkers in a certified trade, we can help turn the local economy around.”
The training would be conducted by organizations that are state-certified to provide home health services training. The organizations include home care providers, community health centers, faith-based organizations, labor organizations, and public housing agencies.
Under the Together We Care Act the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) would receive $2.5 million per year to support the pilot program. Grants would be made as early as fiscal year 2010 should the bill be enacted.
Thousands of Jobs Would Be Created
Velázquez estimated that the bill would create 6,000 jobs in New York City, where she announced the legislation among supporters from AARP, New York City Housing Authority, Service Employees International Union, and PHI.
“At the end of the day, it’s about neighbors helping neighbors,” said New York City Housing Authority chairman John Rhea.
PHI Director of New York State Policy Carol Rodat was among those who testified (pdf) in support of the current bill when it was first introduced in May.
The demand for home care and personal care workers is projected to increase nationally by 51 percent from 2006-2016, yet the number of women aged 25-54 — the main labor pool from which these workers are drawn — is projected to increase by less than 1 percent.
Velázquez introduced a similar bill in 2008. That bill, however, never made it out of committee.
