Raising awareness about current in-home caregiver crisis in Idaho

by KLEW News staff Thursday, January 26th 2023

On Saturday, February 4, 2023, the Disability Action Center NW will hosting a free letter writing event to help people with disabilities tell their story to state legislators.

The event will be held in the Lewiston office located at 330 5th Street.

This advocacy campaign will raise awareness about the current in-home caregiver crisis in Idaho, DAC said in a press release.

“Many people with disabilities have trouble getting to the capitol to have their voice heard,” said DAC NW Advocate Kristin Graham. “We hope to help them tell their story through letters, emails and phone calls to get policy to change.”

DAC NW plans to hand-deliver the letters in person.

Graham said that several things have changed in recent years that is making it harder for a person with a disability to remain in their home. Some of those are decreased hours of care allowed, changing the rate of pay for individual services, and lagging in caregiver pay compared to other states have made the process more cumbersome and expensive.

“This has resulted in some people with disabilities in our community being institutionalized,” she said.

This letter writing event is open to Idahoans with a disability who use home and community-based services and direct care workers.