Great things happen when we advocate together! After years of advocacy from BAYADA, our partners, and many parents and home care employees, the Maryland General Assembly recently passed two pieces of legislation that collectively will increase all Medicaid home and community-based services reimbursement rates by more than 30% over the next six years. Though initially met with opposition from Governor Larry Hogan, the Maryland General Assembly heard our voices and overwhelmingly voted to override his veto of one of the bills.

The first bill, the state’s annual budget, provides a rate increase of 3% that will go into effect July 1, 2019. The second bill, also effective July 1, 2019, contains an amendment which will increase reimbursement rates by 4% each year between July 1, 2020 and July 1, 2025.

Currently, Marylanders who rely on in-home nursing care have only 83% of their authorized hours filled, meaning that families struggle to fill their medically complex loved ones’ skilled home nursing care nearly 20% of the time! We have found that Medicaid rates have stagnated below the cost of living and below wages seen in other settings—such as hospitals and facilities—and surrounding states—and that families were struggling to fill these hours. We are hopeful that these access-to-care issues will be alleviated as providers will be able to recruit and retain nurses within the home care industry, and that more of Maryland’s most medically complex will be able to stay safe where they want to be—in their own homes.

This was a true team effort led by BAYADA and the Maryland National-Capital Area Home Care Association (MNCHA) and including MNCHA member providers, several individual families, parent advocacy organizations and disease-specific advocacy organizations. Special thanks to JoAnn Saxby, Patrick O’Malley, Eddie Dyer, Patty Watson, and Susan Ingalls who all played important parts in making this happen and to BAYADA Delaware employees Mandy Brady, Kristyn Kelsch, and Taylor Kosinski who went above and beyond to advocate in their sister state. Mike Sokoloski, Tara Montague, and Nicole Onofrio were instrumental in supporting two Town Halls and Legislative Day, and Alisa Fox coordinated timely articles in The Baltimore Sun, The Washington Post, and on WDVM TV in Western Maryland. Maggie Tracy managed countless logistical hurdles and supported direct lobbying and grassroots efforts.

Thank you to everyone who played a role in this major achievement! Advocacy cannot succeed if only one voice is heard, and your advocacy has contributed to the well-being of so many Marylanders in need of home care.

For more information on this increase, or how you can get involved in advocacy in Maryland, please contact Shannon Gahs at [email protected].