# Summary of H.R. 8541, Long-Term Care Workforce Support Act
H.R. 8541 is a comprehensive federal workforce support bill designed to address a severe shortage of direct care workers in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, home health agencies, and community-based long-term care settings by improving compensation, working conditions, training opportunities, and legal protections. The bill provides roughly $110 billion in new federal funding through 2030, including a 10 percentage point increase in Medicaid reimbursement rates for states (2026-2035), a $100 billion grant program to boost worker wages and benefits, $400 million annually for direct care worker support services like loan repayment and childcare assistance, and funding for training programs, apprenticeships, diversity initiatives, and mental health support targeting the 5 million direct care professionals currently earning a median of $15.43 per hour with high turnover rates. The bill establishes new workplace protections including written employment agreements, paid sick leave requirements (minimum 1 hour per 30 hours worked), temporary schedule change accommodations, anti-retaliation safeguards, wage theft prevention and recovery programs, and comprehensive workplace violence prevention standards with federal enforcement authority through the Department of Labor. Implementation begins in 2025-2026 with regulations due within 180 days, and the bill requires extensive outcome reporting through 2040 to measure impacts on worker recruitment, retention, wages, mental health, and access to long-term care services.