Direct workforce shortages are greatly impacting access to care for those with disabilities
A significant number of direct service provider organizations offering care and services to those with disabilities are turning away new patients and clients. There aren’t enough staff members to meet the demands of the community.
This is according to the latest survey of the direct support workforce conducted by the American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR), a national advocacy group that represents provider organizations serving those with disabilities. ANCOR collected data from more than 580 organizations for its annual survey and these providers operate in 45 states and the District of Columbia. The 2023 numbers show:
- most organizations (95 percent of those surveyed) experienced moderate or severe staffing shortages in 2023.
- more than three quarters of the organizations surveyed (77 percent) turned away new referrals because of staffing shortages.
- organizations (72 percent) struggle to meet quality standards due to lack of staffing.
With such staffing shortages, 60 percent of the responding organizations told ANCOR they were considering cutting back or discontinuing services, posing a real threat to people living with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD).
“Shoring up the direct support workforce and, by extension, the network of community-based I/DD services, will undoubtedly require concerted effort and meaningful investments of resources,” the organization concluded. “Not only do people with disabilities deserve such investments—there simply isn’t another way forward.”
ANCOR concludes the biggest barrier to filling provider shortages is the ability to pay employees more. Low reimbursement rates from Medicaid are a large part of the problem, according to the organization. If more investment is not given to direct support workforce pay, more people with I/DD face the possibility of being denied services and the possibility they will not be able to live safely in their homes and communities.
Denying referrals is one of the more troubling data points, according to the report. And, the 77 percent denial rate would potentially be higher if there weren’t some states that do not allow providers to deny services, even if they lack the staff and resources to adequately provide care.
According to historical survey data, provider staffing shortages are not a new phenomenon. In fact, while better, things were still not going well prior to the onset of COVID-19.
“We do not, by any means, seek to suggest that a return to a workforce crisis like that of early 2020 would be a desirable outcome—even if it would be an improvement over where we are today,” the report states.
