Urgent Advocacy Update: “The Statewide Campaign to Strengthen Human Services”

Latham Centers’ Adult Program and our human services colleagues across the state are at a critical juncture in our funding needs.

Last week, the Senate did not allocate any additional funds to the Chapter 257 line-item for Adult Services (“Rate Reserve”). Amendments are being filed by members of the Senate to put funding back in the budget! Please review this URGENT Action Item from our collaborative trade association:*

TODAY—right now—is the time to circle back with the senators who said they support funding human services.  Now is the time for them to go on record and do what they said they would do by co-sponsoring Amendment #466 summarized below in bullets. By Wednesday May 18th, please confirm with your senator and all the senators to whom you have reached out in the last few months that they will co-sponsor the following amendment.   To identify your senator, click here.  For a full list of senator phone numbers and emails, click here.

Amendment #466: Chapter 257 Rate Reserve (sponsored by Chair Adam Gomez; co-sponsors to date: Comerford, Chang-Diaz, DiZoglio, Edlridge and Velis) 

    • 34 Co-Sponsors Still Needed!

    • Funds increasing human services salary rates set from the 50th percentile BLS rates to the 75th percentile. 

    • The increase will make all salaries more competitive—including increasing direct support salaries from $16.79/hr to $20.30/hr—to fill unprecedented levels of staff vacancies. 

    • This is necessary to restore the pre-pandemic supports to 7,000 individuals still waiting to return to programs and fully staff residential homes and other supports. 

    • Individuals with IDD deserve to have safe and healthy lives with meaningful opportunities for community inclusion NOW.

*The Collaborative is comprised of the Association of Developmental Disabilities Providers (ADDP), the Association for Behavioral Healthcare (ABH), the Children’s League of Massachusetts, and the Providers’ CouncilOur previous Advocacy Focus blog (May 6th) with background information is available here: https://www.lathamcenters.org/blog/advocacy-focus-on-adult-services-program-rates/

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