AHCA/NCAL: 94% of Nursing Homes Face Staffing Shortages

A recent survey from the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) has found that 94% of nursing home providers have had a shortage of staff members in the last month. In assisted living communities, 81% said they have had similar shortages.

More than half of nursing home and assisted living providers lost key members of their staff last year during the pandemic due to workers quitting, including among certified nursing assistants (CNAs) or direct caregivers and dietary staff. Further, around 75% of nursing homes and around 60% of assisted living communities said their overall workforce situation has gotten worse since 2020.

“The survey results clearly indicate that the long-term care workforce is facing serious challenges, and our country must make significant investments to help address these shortfalls,” said Mark Parkinson, president and CEO at AHCA/NCAL. “Lawmakers across the country must prioritize long term care to ensure the profession has the necessary resources to maintain a strong workforce. This begins with addressing chronic underfunding of Medicaid for nursing homes, which currently only covers 70 to 80 percent of the cost of care. We have laid out proposals in our Care For Our Seniors Act that would enable our providers to address staffing shortages, but without help from Congress and state legislators, this will not be possible.”