Newsroom
WTVR-TV CBS Richmond: "How Do Cuts Affect Families?"
WTVR - Channel 6 in Richmond profiles VAPCA members, the Rice family, and how proposed cuts to consumer-directed home care will affect their daughter and their lives.
Click here to watch this moving tribute to families and the power of home care.
Richmond Times-Dispatch: "Rally-goers urge lawmakers to save healthcare jobs"
VAPCA Members - including Loretta Johnson, quoted in the Richmond Times-Dispatch story below - rallied outside of the General Assembly building, urging legislators to reject Governor McDonnell's proposal to eliminate consumer-directed home care.
As cuts to state health-care services loom, advocates are urging lawmakers to consider the individual and economic impact.
A rally yesterday at Capitol Square drew dozens of people worried about jobs and the human costs of cutting programs such as those that provide personal assistance to people with disabilities. Read more here.
The Virginian-Pilot: "Medicaid funding for disabled on chopping block"
VAPCA member Julia Newton is profiled by The Virginian-Pilot in this article, which puts a human face on the proposed devastating cuts to Home and Community-Based Waivers.
The budget reductions are doubly difficult for Norfolk resident Julia Newton, who has a 26-year-old son on the waiting list for a waiver for the mentally disabled. Newton also works as a personal care assistant for others who already have the waiver. Her pay will be cut by 5 percent under the proposed budget cuts, and she also worries the drop in respite care hours will result in less work for her. Read more - and see photos of Julia's family - by clicking here
Daily Press: "State Spending Cuts Get Human Face"
The Daily Press covered PCAs speaking out against state budget cuts in Portsmouth; one of the five Budget Hearings across the state where PCAs are rallying for home care.
Kim Johnson is a personal care assistant who provides one-on-one care for homebound individuals. She said the wage cuts and cuts to Medicaid rates would force people into more expensive nursing homes or other institutions. The health-care providers currently make $8.86 an hour and cuts would drag that to $8.42.
"It's a much better thing being inside the home," Johnson said. "Families want their loved ones to be at home, and it saves the state money." Read more
The Virginian-Pilot: "Proposed State Budget Cuts Draw Fire"
The Virginian-Pilot covered the Portsmouth state budget hearing, where VAPCA members (including Athena Jones, quoted below) and allies spoke out against dangerous cuts to Home and Community-Based Services.
"Proposals to cut hourly wages of personal health care providers, freeze waiting lists for people needing special care and reduce other services would force the most fragile Virginians to bear the greatest burden, several speakers said. "These are the people who need the money the most," said Athena Jones, a home health care worker. "These are the people who are trying to lead a life." Read more
WVIR-TV NBC Harrisonburg: "JMU Budget Hearing Focuses on Mental Health"
NBC affiliate WVIR-TV covers the state budget hearing in Harrisonburg where VAPCA members testified before members of Senate Finance and House Appropriations. The article notes that "state budget writers faced an auditorium full of voters. Many of them condemned cuts to home-based care for people with mental and physical disabilities."
VAPCA member and PCA Penny Jensen is quoted in the story, saying, "cuts to home care will push people into institutions that will cost the state even more." Read more and watch the clip.
Public News Service: "Home Care Advocates: Budget Cuts Will Force People Into Nursing Homes"
VA Public News Service highlights VAPCA member Julia Newton, and how proposed cuts to Home and Community-Based Services may force people into nursing homes and cost the state more money.
Julia Newton: "People would rather be at home where they can get quality care. You get better care at home, plus it saves the state a lot of money to keep people at home rather than to put them in a nursing home." Read more and listen to the story