1199SEIU, AARP Partner with Senator Vin Gopal to Protect Aging Veterans

1199SEIU and AARP New Jersey have joined with New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal on Veteran’s Day to urge passage of legislation to establish a minimum, safe certified nursing aide staffing ratio in New Jersey nursing homes.

“Our veterans deserve to know that they will be taken care of in their old age, said Senator Gopal, who represents the 11^th legislative district and chairs the Military and Veterans’ Affairs Committee.  “Certified nursing assistants have such an important job as caretakers of our veterans in nursing facilities, and they deserve to have the necessary support to do their job properly.”

“New Jersey nursing homes are experiencing a staffing crisis—leaving our veterans without the care they deserve,” said Milly Silva, 1199SEIU Executive Vice President for New Jersey and the Nursing Home Division.  “Our aging veterans deserve better. We need to ensure safe staffing levels in New Jersey nursing facilities so that we can take better care of the generations who took care of us.”

“We depend on nursing homes to provide the scope of care and services that will ensure that the well-being of our veterans—and all our loved ones—is maintained,” said Ev Liebman, Director of Advocacy for AARP New Jersey. “On Veteran’s Day, we are urging the Assembly to take action to protect the New Jersey men and women who risked their lives for our country.”

According to the US Veteran’s Administration, the number of veterans in its health care system age 70 and older is projected to increase by 30 percent, or by nearly one million additional veterans, by 2026. Among these aging veterans, 80 percent are projected to develop a need for long-term care services and support.  New Jersey has three state-run long term care facilities for veterans, though fewer than 1,000 veterans and spouses live here, according to the State Department of Military and Veteran Affairs. The vast majority of New Jersey veterans needing nursing facility care reside in private facilities across the state.

New Jersey’s nursing homes are already “woefully understaffed” and ranked 45^th in the nation for their direct care services per resident, according to the non-profit advocacy group Families for Better Care.  Understaffing can often prevent facilities from providing even the most basic care for residents, including assistance with bathing and eating. New Jersey certifies nursing aides (CNAs) report they often have upwards of a dozen patients, including veterans, to clean, feed, and change during a shift, and sometimes many more if a co-worker is out sick or injured.

The State Senate passed CNA-specific legislation (S1612) last year, and the Assembly version has been pending since then.