Earlier today, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education voted to advance drastic cuts to critical workforce development programs by favorably reporting out of the subcommittee its portion of the Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations bill. This legislation calls for eliminating Job Corps funding and reducing workforce program funding by nearly 30%, including for essential workforce grants and apprenticeship programs.

Argentum is deeply concerned about these funding cuts as they would impede progress to meet the workforce demands of our industry. 

According to our recently released report (Workforce Projections for Senior Care) there is currently a shortage of more than 400,000 workers, which is projected to grow to more than 20 million workers by 2040. Argentum is working to fill this gap through a federally funded workforce initiative that is on target to recruit thousands of new CNAs, LPNs, RNs, rehab technicians, nursing directors, and executive directors through the DOL’s Healthcare Apprenticeship Expansion Program. If the cuts proposed by House lawmakers go forward, our efforts are jeopardized.

We need your help! We are calling on all Argentum Advocates to join us by sending a letter to Congress urging them to oppose these cuts from moving forward. The annual appropriations process is long and complex, and there are several opportunities to stop this, but we need everyone to join together to get our message heard.

The Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs is holding a legislative hearing this afternoon on 19 pieces of legislation, including S. 495, the Expanding Veterans’ Options for Long Term Care Act. Argentum strongly supports this bill in demonstrating the value of assisted living and providing Veterans a choice in their long-term care.

Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Hearing
Wednesday, July 12, 2023
3:00 pm ET

In prior testimony, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) affirmed its support of the legislation, subject to some technical corrections, noting that, "VA supports the protections this bill would include to ensure that Veterans are protected and receiving safe and appropriate care." Additionally, prior testimony by Dr. Erica Scavella, MD, Assistant Under Secretary for Health for Clinical Services at the VA noted, “VA generally agrees that specific authority, particularly in the form of a pilot program, to furnish assisted living services would be a helpful addition to VA’s options for long-term care. VA has encountered difficulties in appropriately placing Veterans who may only require assisted living services because these Veterans do not qualify for nursing home care.”

U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL) visited Bowman Estates of Danville, a Gardant Management Solutions affordable assisted living community in Danville, Illinois.

Rep. Kelly had the opportunity to tour the community and talk with residents. They discussed the benefits of the Illinois Supportive Living program; the challenges of operating assisted living communities, especially staffing, the impact of inflation; and unrealistic rules being proposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid; and our support of legislation designed to expand veterans long-term care options.

Congresswoman Kelly represents the Eastern Illinois based 2nd District, and is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, including the Health subcommittee.

Last week, U.S. Representatives Tom Cole (R-OK) and Stephanie Bice (R-OK) visited communities in their respective Oklahoma City-based districts.

Representative Cole, who serves as Chairman of the House Rules Committee and Vice Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, visited Legend at Rivendell, a Legend Senior Living community located in southern Oklahoma City. During his visit, he met with residents and staff, including a resident who ran against him in an election for Congress many years ago! Congressman Cole was able to discuss his priorities, including efforts to secure funding for Alzheimer’s related initiatives, for which he has been a longtime champion.

Argentum submitted a comment letter last Monday in response to a proposed rule issued in May by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), intended to increase transparency and accountability, standardize data and monitoring, and create opportunities for states to promote active beneficiary engagement to improve access to care, including in home and community-based services (HCBS) programs.

We recommended that CMS withdraw the proposed rule and instead work with stakeholders to identify other approaches, particularly by addressing the inadequacy of state Medicaid reimbursement rates for assisted living and similar residential communities participating in HCBS programs.

Last week, U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA) had an opportunity to visit Windsong of Sonoma, an Integral Senior Living community in his district.

The visit featured a townhall with residents and staff and occurred during the community's monthly staff recognition meeting, where he was able to present certificates to staff with 15+ years at Windsong. Representative Huffman, a member of the House 21st Century Long Term Care Caucus, discussed his legislative priorities relating to prescription drug prices and health care for Veterans, and participated in a question and answer session.

Lawmakers are currently on a recess for the July 4 holiday, meeting with constituents and holding community events back in their states and districts. We need your help to be part of these discussions and to tell the story of senior living!

Calling all Argentum Advocates: Today at 2:00 pm ET, Argentum will present its monthly member-exclusive policy briefing. In this session, you will be able to learn more about the recent Congressional hearings on the Veterans assisted living pilot program legislation and our other policy priorities, along with an update on recent regulations affecting the industry. We will also share more information on how to get involved in our advocacy efforts as Congress prepares for its annual August recess.

Argentum Advocates are invited to these exclusive sessions to hear directly from Argentum’s federal lobbyists on our current federal and state public policy efforts.

Argentum Advocates Member Briefing
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
2:00 PM ET

Did you know that one of the most effective ways to tell the story of senior living—and to help advance public policies to support senior and caregivers—is by hosting lawmakers in a community?

Decisionmakers in Washington, D.C. and in state capitals across the country want to hear from YOU because ONLY YOU can provide the best perspective about how issues impact your business, your employees and your residents.

Telling our story about the value of assisted living, the impact on the lives of the seniors you serve and their families, is an opportunity to put a “face” to the senior living industry. These visits allow policymakers to hear directly from you, your employees and your residents, so they can better understand the challenges you face and see, firsthand, why strengthening the senior living model is so important to our nation’s aging population.

To help more senior living communities join in our grassroots advocacy efforts to educate and inform lawmakers on the value of senior living and our policy solutions, Argentum prepared a toolkit on hosting lawmakers for community visits.

Yesterday, President Biden signed into law the the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, legislation to raise the nation's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling through January 2025 in exchange for spending cuts and deficit reduction measures.

This culminates tense negotiations that began in earnest several weeks ago following the passage of the House Republicans' Limit, Save, Grow Act, with the final agreement passed just days before tomorrow's June 5 deadline set by U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen of when the government would no longer be able to meet all financial obligations (the debt ceiling had officially been reached in January, but the Treasury Department implemented "extraordinary measures" to avert a default since that time).

The legislation was brokered between the White House and House Republicans, with the House passing the bill on Wednesday by a vote of 314-117 (71 Republicans and 46 Democrats voted in opposition). The Senate followed suit on Thursday evening, voting 63-36 to pass the bill, after voting down 11 amendments to the bill (31 Senate Republicans and 5 Senate Democrats voted against the bill).

The deal sets non-defense discretionary spending effectively unchanged for 2024 and to increase by only 1% in 2025. Congress would also have to pass all 12 of its annual appropriations bills by the end of January or face a stopgap funding patch that would cut spending by 1% across the board. The deal also rescinds nearly $28 billion in unspent COVID-19 relief funding, of an estimated $80 billion in remaining unobligated funds. However, it does not impact Medicare, Medicaid, or Veterans funding, and it does not repeal or rescind any portions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which includes numerous tax credits and other incentives for energy efficiency for which senior living communities may be eligible.

Following months of negotiation and just days before a potential default on the nation's $31.4 trillion debt, the White House and House Republicans announced over the weekend that they reached a tentative agreement to raise the national debt limit.

Both the House and Senate must still vote to pass the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, which will require assembling a coalition of Democrats and Republicans in both chambers, as at least 60 House Republicans have already indicated they plan to vote against the package and many progressive Democrats have suggested similar opposition.

The House is expected to vote on the package as early as tomorrow, in keeping with rules adopted earlier this year to allow 72-hours for lawmakers to review legislation. The Senate will follow with just days to spare before the June 5 deadline announced by U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen of when the government would no longer be able to meet all financial obligations (the debt ceiling had officially been reached in January, but the Treasury Department implemented "extraordinary measures" to avert a default since that time).

The agreement represents a compromise from the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023, which narrowly passed the House in April on a 217-215 vote. That legislation called for raising the debt limit by an additional $1.5 trillion or suspend it through March 31, 2024. It would have also capped fiscal year 2024 discretionary spending at $1.47 trillion (representing an 8% cut from this year), along with rescinding unspent COVID-19 relief funds, repealing numerous provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), expanding Medicaid work requirements, and preventing the cancellation of student loans. The Biden Administration issued a Statement of Administration Policy that it would veto the bill should it be passed by Congress.

Ultimately, the agreement reached this weekend includes one of the largest ever rescissions of previously appropriated federal spending. This includes roughly $28 billion in unspent COVID-19 relief funding across the six major legislative packages enacted in response to the pandemic. Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee released a memo last week warning against the cuts, pointing to roughly $80 billion in unobligated funds ($3 billion of this is in the Provider Relief Fund).

Argentum Advocates are invited to join us for our monthly policy briefing on Wednesday, May 31 at 2:00 p.m. ET to learn more about the debt limit deal's impact on senior living, along with an update on our priority legislation and regulations impacting the industry.