Florida long-term care associations sue state over minimal wage mandate – McKnight's Senior Residing

Florida long-term care associations and one supplier are difficult a requirement that, beginning Oct. 1, Medicaid suppliers — together with nursing houses, assisted dwelling communities and residential care companies — within the state pay employees a $15-per-hour minimal wage.

The state’s fiscal 12 months 2022-2023 funds supplied greater than $600 million to the state Company for Well being Care Administration to extend the minimal wage for workers of suppliers of care to Medicaid beneficiaries to a minimum of $15 per hour. The requirement applies to all long-term care employees, whether or not they’re workers or impartial contractors. 

Suppliers which might be unable to extend their minimal wage to $15 face consequences, together with recoupment of funds related to the wage improve and potential litigation from workers members, who can file civil actions towards their employers for noncompliance.

The teams that filed the lawsuit towards the state and Florida’s Company for Well being Care Administration embrace the Florida Assisted Living and Florida Ambulance associations, the Home Care Association of Florida and assisted dwelling facility Heather Haven III, Florida Politics reported. They contend that suppliers that contract with a managed care plan received’t see “the cash received’t stream from the well being plans to them rapidly sufficient for them to cowl the elevated wage prices,” in line with Florida Politics. Lengthy-term suppliers that contract with managed care plans could not see these additional dollars till Jan. 1.

In Sept. 9 letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), Florida Assisted Residing Affiliation President Veronica J. Catoe requested for the governor’s assist in acquiring clarification in regards to the minimal wage requirement on a number of key questions from Florida AHCA.

“How can a facility signal an attestation type now in the event that they don’t know if the elevated funds will actually be handed on to them or if they need to attempt to use their present working funds to attempt to provide you with funds for the wage improve?” Catoe wrote.

In the meantime, as Florida mandates that long-term care suppliers that contract with the managed care plans pay $15 an hour, the state’s minimal wage will go from $10 to $11 {dollars} per hour, with one other $1 improve coming Sept. 30, 2023, Politico reported.