Last week, Pennsylvania Congressman Fred Keller introduced the Strengthening Knowledge, Improving Learning, and Livelihoods (or SKILLS) Act. The legislation will be designed to guide individuals who were laid off during the pandemic in the retail and hospitality industries to new career opportunities in industries like long-term care, which desperately needs more qualified workers.
The Act would put these people on a career path and encourage advancement in the long-term care industry, but the details on how are sparse, at least right now. The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living fully supported the legislation and will now get to work getting it passed.
With Congress facing a potential government shutdown later this week and trying to pass both a budget and infrastructure bill that trillions of dollars, we’re not sure how much attention the SKILLS Act will capture in Washington in the coming months. But senior care facilities of all types struggling right now to attract and retain staff, so much so that even filling their long-empty units may not be possible. We’re happy to see the problem, in large part caused by the government, at least recognized by some in the government to be a problem. But we hope they act soon.
