Kaine Introduces Legislation to Support Direct Care Workforce, Family Caregivers

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, introduced the Supporting Our Direct Care Workforce and Family Caregivers Act, legislation that would provide funding to states and other eligible entities to support direct care workers and family caregivers, who provide essential daily care and support for many older adults and people with disabilities.

"I first introduced this bill five years ago, and since then, millions more Americans have begun caring for family members, and direct care workforce shortages have only gotten more severe," said Kaine. "This legislation would support and bolster the direct care workforce so older folks and people with disabilities can receive the care they need, improve training and retention for these critical professionals, and take some of the pressure off of the millions of Americans who care for loved ones. I'm going to keep doing everything I can to get this bill in front of the full Senate for a vote."

As of 2024, the United States was home to 60 million seniors and more than 45 million people living with disabilities-but at the same time, the direct care workforce (e.g., home health aides and other professionals who assist with the activities of daily living) is suffering from a growing labor shortage. This, in turn, often puts pressure on family caregivers; as of 2025, 59 million Americans cared for an adult family member in the home, up from 48 million in 2020.

Specifically, the Supporting Our Direct Care Workforce and Family Caregivers Act would:

• Direct the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Administration for Community Living (ACL), to award grants to states or other eligible entities for initiatives to build, retain, train, and promote the direct care workforce and to provide grants for states or other entities for educational and training support for both paid and unpaid family caregivers.
• Codify ACL's technical assistance center to support direct care workforce-development and family caregivers. ACL established this center in 2022 through agency authority. This provision codifies the center and expands its work to include supporting family caregivers. The assistance at the center includes:

• Working with states, key stakeholders, and other entities to establish career development and advancement strategies for direct care professionals, including national standards, recruitment campaigns, on-the-job training opportunities, apprenticeship programs, and certifications.
• Analyzing national data gaps, workforce shortage areas, and data collection strategies for direct care professionals.
• Developing recommendations and disseminating best practices for the direct care workforce and family caregivers.

The Supporting Our Direct Care Workforce and Family Caregivers Act is supported by the American Association on Health and Disability, American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR), the Arc of the United States, A Better Balance, Care in Action, Caring Across Generations, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), Cure SMA, Economic Policy Institute, Family Values @ Work, Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Network, Justice in Aging, Lakeshore Foundation, the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals, Inc. (NADSP), PHI, Main Street Alliance, National Disability Rights Network, the National Domestic Workers Alliance, National Women's Law Center, and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

The legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Tina Smith (D-MN), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), and Jack Reed (D-RI).

Full bill text is available here.

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