Home health care agencies are the latest group to come out against Governor Cuomo’s plan to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
The Association of Health Care Providers, which represents around 350 home health care agencies across New York, says many of its members can’t afford to pay workers $15 an hour, which represents around a one third increase to the current average pay of between $10 dollars and $11.50 cents hour. The groups says the state should help by upping Medicaid allotments so that people won’t lose their home care services. Governor Cuomo says he’d consider helping those who truly need it. He says many companies would only be in jeopardy of “making less profit”.
“So those companies, I don’t have that much sympathy for,” Cuomo said. “But companies that would feel a financial strain, that’s something we would talk about”.
Cuomo spoke after a rally to raise the minimum wage, as part of a statewide campaign.
A spokeswoman for the home care group, Laura Haight, says “all the home care agencies in New York are financially hurting”.