MACSP ACTION ALERT - Contact Governor Mills Today Re CARES Act funds to Keep DSPs on the Frontlines

MACSP ACTION ALERT
 
Contact Governor Mills Today!
 
Call, Tweet, Email, Submit feedback through her website!
 
Ask Governor Mills to utilize CARES Act funds to Keep Direct Support Professionals on the Frontlines Caring for Mainers with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. 
 
 The Basic Ask: Please use CARES Act funds

to develop a Direct Support Professional Stabilization Program as proposed by MACSP.  This program would provide time-limited monthly direct incentive payments of $1200 to each full-time and $600 to each part-time workers who have remained on the job caring

and supporting adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities during the pandemic. The 12,000+ frontline hidden hero DSPs, and the thousands of vulnerable Mainers they care for, need your support!

Background
Governor Mills is close to expending Maine's $1.25 billion dollars of the federal CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund that was given to the state to help address the extraordinary

needs and costs associated with this public health emergency. On August 12th, MACSP requested that the Governor develop a Direct Support Stabilization Program providing each DSP with a monthly incentive stipend. 

Letter Here.

As she considers where to direct the last of the funds it is important that she hears from the I/DD community (consumers, guardians, DSPs, and providers alike) who understand the vital role that DSPs have in keeping vulnerable and high-risk Mainers safe through the pandemic.

Disproportionately represented by women, New Mainers, and people of color, DSPs have remained on the frontline throughout the pandemic, risking their safety and,

in turn, the safety of their families to provide daily support and care to some of Maine's most vulnerable, medically fragile, and high-risk individuals. Their exceptional commitment, compassion, and effort have been credited by the Department for Health and Human Services staff for reducing the spread of COVID-19 among people with I/DD and saving lives. 
Five months on, the public health crisis has only deepened the pre-existing workforce crisis in this field.

State Medicaid reimbursement rates for residential service wages remain below minimum wage.

​Without additional hazard or incentive stipends that they deserve, fatigued and underpaid DSPs will continue to leave their jobs for lower risk and higher-paying positions, jeopardizing the quality of care and access to services that people with I/DD need and deserve.

A DSP incentive program is critically needed to stabilize the existing workforce who are working day and night to protect adults with intellectual and developmental

disabilities from the spread of infection throughout the pandemic, all while providing daily personal care and support. 

Contact Governor Mills today!    Email:
governor@maine.gov  

Phone: 207-287-3531  
Click Here For Easy Action Steps!
Examples of Social Media Communications
 
Tweet:

Please use CARES Act funds for incentive payments to #Maine 's 12,000+ Direct Support Professionals as they continue to provide care to ppl w/ #disabiliites during #COVID-19. Thank you for your consideration!
 
Facebook Post: 

As Governor Mills decides how to use the CARES Act funds, make your voice heard.  Urge her to provide incentive payments to Maine's 12,000+ Direct Support Professionals as they continue to provide care and support to people with intellectual and developmental

disabilities during this pandemic. Contact Governor Mills today and Advocate for Maine's DSPs! 
Email:

governor@maine.gov  Phone: 207-287-3531 

  Follow these Easy Action steps.