Without better coverage for home care workers, our nation will not be able to attract a stable, qualified workforce to support elders and people with disabilities in their local communities.

Health coverage for the nation’s direct-care workforce remains unacceptably low.

More than one in four direct-care workers (around 900,000) lacked insurance coverage in 2009 and less than half of the workforce reported employer-sponsored coverage.

Inadequate health insurance jeopardizes the health of hundreds of thousands of direct-care workers.

In turn, illnesses and injuries sustained by direct-care workers result in lost workdays that can disrupt service delivery to longterm care consumers, thereby diminishing the continuity and quality of care.

Variation in rates of coverage is largely due to geographical differences in Medicaid eligibility and in the prevalence of collective-bargaining agreements that secure health insurance for workers.