ISSUE BRIEF: Sequestration Would Have Huge Effect on Elders and Eldercare Workforce

A package of automatic spending cuts totaling $1.2 trillion over 10 years would have a huge impact on Medicare and other vital eldercare programs, an issue brief by the Eldercare Workforce Alliance (EWA) argues.

Medicare would be cut by 2 percent starting in 2013, the issue brief states. That cut would directly result in the loss of more than 200,000 fewer eldercare jobs.

Government administrations that are threatened by the cuts include  the Health Resources and Services Administration, which supports professionals who are training to work in eldercare, and the Administration for Community Living, which gives supportive services to family caregivers, sponsors elder-abuse prevention programs, and provides meals to elders.

The cuts are part of the 2011 Budget Control Act and are scheduled to take effect in January. They are part of the so-called fiscal cliff that threatens the U.S. economy early next year.

— by Matthew Ozga