We need your help to tell the story of senior living! Community visits with lawmakers are among the most effective ways to tell our story to those best positioned to advance our policy priorities.

Recently, U.S. Representative Jim McGovern toured a community in his district, meeting with residents and staff and seeing first-hand daily life in a community. He was also able to learn more about how our legislative priorities can help more seniors get the care they need, and shortly after his visit he signed on as a cosponsor of one of our bills!

These interactions are critical to our advocacy efforts, but we need your help as senior living advocates to do your part in hosting lawmakers, both at the federal and state levels. Argentum and our State Partners are here to help you plan and execute visits and will provide tools and guidance to ensure you are successful.

Please join us on Wednesday, May 31 at 2:00 p.m. ET for a special Argentum Advocates briefing webinar, offering a tutorial on how you can host lawmakers in your community and help tell the story of senior living.

Today marks the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), which was first activated in January 2020 and had been extended every 90 days by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The PHE provided the foundation for numerous programs and policies established in response to the pandemic, including requiring free rapid tests for private insurance and Medicare, telehealth services, and authorization of the PREP Act.

To help senior living stakeholders best understand the impact of the ending of the PHE, Argentum through its outside counsel Foley Hoag LLP, prepared a detailed summary of considerations, including implications for federal and state liability protections, temporary increases in Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) funding, and other issues. This memo has been updated from the previous version released in February, and is current as of today, May 11, 2023.

The Biden Administration announced yesterday that it would end the national health care worker vaccination mandate concurrently with the end of the public health emergency (PHE) on May 11. The administration terminated the separate COVID-19 national emergency on April 10, by enacting H.J. Res 7.

Argentum Advocates are invited to attend two upcoming webinar opportunities:

• Wednesday, April 26 at 2:00 pm ET: April Policy Briefing
• Tuesday, May 2 at 12:00 pm ET: Tax Credits for Senior Living
  

President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law last August, ushering in more than $400 billion in new federal spending. Among the law’s provisions are numerous tax credits and incentives to promote energy efficiency, including many that may be applicable to senior living communities. Tax credits can help offset the costs of:

Tomorrow at 2:00 pm ET, Argentum will present a member-exclusive briefing on the latest developments on public policy affecting senior living.

During this session, you will learn more about:

• Our requests as part of the annual appropriations process and the Biden Administration's 2024 budget priorities;
• Legislation to expand access of assisted living, with new legislation introduced yesterday;
• Updates to the forthcoming SENIOR Act;
• Other legislation, including the HCBS Access Act, the PRO Act, and health care workforce legislation;
• Regulatory updates, including union rules and the OSHA worker safety rule;
• Our latest reports: the Value of Senior Living and Workforce Projections for Senior Care;
• And how senior living stakeholders can take part in sharing our message at events throughout the country.

On behalf of Argentum’s board of directors, members, and staff, we extend our sincerest sympathy to the family, friends, and colleagues of George L. Chapman, chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder of Toledo, Ohio-based ReNew REIT, and a longtime leader in real estate investment trusts and the senior living industry.

Calling all Argentum Advocates: Today at 2:00 pm ET, Argentum will present its monthly member-exclusive policy briefing. Learn more about the recently reintroduced legislation to expand access to assisted living for Veterans. Learn more about a renewed version of the SENIOR Act. Learn more about recent hearings on the health care workforce shortage and oversight of the federal COVID-19 response. And learn more about regulatory updates, including the new rule on owner/operator transparency, the OSHA health care worker rule, and non-compete agreements.

Lawmakers are preparing to reintroduce legislation this week that would expand access to assisted living for veterans. The legislation renews the Expanding Veterans’ Options for Long Term Care Act, introduced in the last session of Congress by Senators Jon Tester (D-MT), Jerry Moran (R-KS), and Patty Murray (D-WA), to establish a pilot program for eligible veterans to receive assisted living care paid for by the Veterans Administration (VA).

There are growing indications that important legislation Argentum strongly supported last year will soon be reintroduced in the 118th Congress, likely by the end of this month.

Register now for this Wednesday's Argentum Advocates monthly policy briefing. 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.