New Jersey nursing home providers would receive $30 million to boost wages for its workers under a new budget proposal by Gov. Phil Murphy (D).
The governor on Tuesday released his proposed budget for fiscal year 2023, which is sent to begin in July. The proposal includes $211.2 million to boost wages for direct care workers, including nursing home employees, home health aides and personal care assistants.
Of that $211.2 million, $30 million would go toward increasing wages for nursing home workers and the funding would be split evenly between the federal government and state if approved.
The governor has also proposed $7.8 million to boost pay for private duty nurses; $270,000 for home health aides under its Personal Assistant Services program; and $157,000 for home health aides serving seniors under the Jersey Assistance for Community Caregiving program.
“This workforce is the backbone of our state’s care economy and we’re grateful for their commitment to supporting individuals and families each and every day,” Sarah Adelman, New Jersey’s human services coordinator, said in a statement Tuesday. She added this is the fifth consecutive year the governor’s budget has called for increasing wages for the direct care workforce.
