The Governor’s Good News is Terrifying!

April 21, 2021

Governor Northam Announces Amazon to Build Robotics Fulfillment Center in Henrico County, Hiring Over 1,000 New Employees New state-of-the-art facility to bring new jobs with industry-leading pay and benefits

Since I receive all of the press bulletins from the Governor’s Office, I frequently get announcements with headlines such as the one above.  It is exhausting to read and terrifying to contemplate. As much as we applaud the Commonwealth’s efforts to attract new business and to create new jobs, we can’t compete.  For healthcare providers generally, whether they are state facilities, private sector or local government, the work is difficult, the hours a challenge and the pay is poor (or the anticipated burden of student loans to get the professional degree is a major deterrent). 

We look forward to the day when the Governor announces a dedicated funding stream to develop training at the high school level for entry level direct care staff, Medicaid rates that will support wages that are competitive, and the creation of 1000 new jobs to support individuals with developmental disabilities.   We will likely wait a very long time!