State lawmakers discuss long-term care staffing help

Staffing shortages at long-term care facilities was part of the discussion at the state capitol Wednesday among lawmakers.

"This is a potential powder keg with a very short fuse for long-term care," said Kari Thurlow, V.P. of Advocacy with LeadingAge Minnesota.
A desperate plea for help from those who work with Minnesota’s aging population.

"I can’t urge you enough to work with us, our key focus has to be to retain as many staff as possible," Thurlow added.

A new national report reveals nursing homes are down 221-thousand jobs since the start of the pandemic, facing the worst job loss among all health care providers.

It’s a trend Minnesota is seeing as well.

"In the face of this we decided to close one of our programs knowing that we have some individuals that are going to have a hard time finding services elsewhere but unfortunately the resources for us to keep doing this in a safe manner don’t exist," said Alan Berner with The Phoenix Residence.

Nursing Home Administrator Natalia Zeleznikar described a bad staffing situation that will only get worse on December 4, 2021, when a federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate kicks in for healthcare workers, something she says many employees don’t want.

"After being in this field for 40 years who is hollering help me across the state, a new population, it’s our employees," Zeleznikar said.

State leaders say they’re looking at a number of possible solutions like additional funding to increase wages for long-term care workers and state or federal funds to allow facilities to partner and share staff.

But one lawmaker fired back saying these options were discussed a month ago, and there is still no plan.

"When we start seeing nursing homes come down and go into receivership this is going to be an emergency, so if you need legislative approval send us the language, honest to God, it has been a month," said Senator Michelle Benson, a republican from Ham Lake.

Those in the industry say time is of the essence.

"I would implore the committee to consider significant action to help statewide services that are essential to the livelihood of some of Minnesota’s most vulnerable citizens," Berner said.

The federal vaccine mandate for healthcare workers applies to more than 17 million workers at roughly 76,000 health care facilities including hospitals and long-term care facilities.