MADISON, WIS. – The Wisconsin Assisted Living Association commends Governor Tony Evers for signing an executive order today establishing the Governor’s Task Force on Caregiving.
The task force will be charged with identifying strategies to attract and retain a strong direct care workforce, supporting families providing care for their loved ones, assessing compensation and fringe benefits for paid caregivers and developing a plan to implement recruitment and retention programs to expand the pool of providers, among other items.
“The workforce crisis continues to be a significant concern for our members,” stated Michael Pochowski, CEO of WALA. “We greatly appreciate Governor Evers taking this important step of creating this task force.”
Wisconsin continues to experience high levels of caregiver vacancy rates in long-term care programs. According to “The Long-Term Care Workforce Crisis: A 2018 Report,” one in five direct caregiver positions in Wisconsin’s nursing homes and assisted living facilities are vacant, or about 16,500 positions. Meanwhile, the demand for caregivers continues to grow as Wisconsin’s population ages. More than 90,400 Wisconsin residents live in long-term care and residential care facilities, a 23 percent increase in the past 15 years.
View “The Long-Term Care Workforce Crsis: A 2018 Report”
About the Wisconsin Assisted Living Association (WALA)
WALA – Wisconsin Assisted Living Association is the premier statewide association for Wisconsin’s assisted living industry. WALA represents the majority of Wisconsin’s assisted living providers and their residents, with over 1,500 members. WALA promotes standards of quality care and provides valuable member services to organizations providing assisted living services. WALA leads the profession with educational programs, professional products and tools, and other member quality resources.
Wisconsin Assisted Living Association’s mission is to support providers in enhancing the best quality of life for residents in assisted living in Wisconsin through advocacy, education, communication, and quality initiatives.
