State Rep. Zachary Dorholt (DFL – St. Cloud) joined State Rep. Tom Huntley (DFL – Duluth), chair of the Health and Human Services Finance committee, Rep. Patti Fritz (DFL – Faribault), a leader on long term care legislation, and other DFL legislators to announce a commitment from the House DFL leadership that long-term care workers would not see a reduction in funding this biennium. They announced that it is likely that long term care facilities would see an increase within the House Health and Human Services finance bill.
“This is good news for St. Cloud,” said Rep. Dorholt. “Long-term care facilities are in crisis and caregivers have had frozen wages for several years. This has resulted in high-turnover and less personal attention to the residents of these facilities. Nursing homes are vital to our community and we must fund them adequately to provide quality care to our seniors.”
The House budget targets include a $150 million reduction in HHS spending, but Rep. Dorholt and other DFL legislators have advocated strongly on behalf of nursing homes and long-term care workers.
“I understand that finding $150 million in Health and Human Services budget reductions won’t be easy given the cuts over the past decade,” continued Rep. Dorholt. “None of these cuts are easy, but I am hopeful that we can move forward to build a bipartisan budget that is balanced, protects our seniors and most vulnerable citizens, and strengthens the middle class.”
Rep. Dorholt can be reached by phone at (651) 296-6612 or by email at rep.zachary.dorholt@house.mn.
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