The Direct Care News 
For direct care workers and their allies August 21, 2012
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DCA Releases New Fact Sheet About Obamacare
|  A new DCA fact sheet answers frequently asked questions about the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the health reform act frequently referred to as Obamacare. The two-page document explains how the law is already benefiting millions of Americans and how it will help millions more--including more than a million direct care workers--after it is fully implemented in 2014.
As the fact sheet explains, "the reform makes health care more secure for low and middle-income families by increasing access to affordable care. It will also help control health care costs." It estimates that more than 1.1 million direct care workers who would otherwise be uninsured will be eligible for health insurance after the law is fully implemented, though some will still be left without coverage if their states choose not to implement the Medicaid expansion that is part of the law. Read more and download the fact sheet.
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Direct from Washington, DC
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Webinar to introduce national Alzheimer's plan: A webinar to be hosted today at 2 p.m. EDT by the U.S Administration on Aging will introduce key goals of the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease, as well as useful actions for those who provide home and community-based services for older adults and individuals with disabilities. The National Plan defines ways that federal and state governments and private and nonprofit organizations should work together on issues related to Alzheimer's disease. Register for the webinar or listen to an online recording afterward.
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Direct Care Workers Help Lead Movement to Earn Paid Sick Days
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 | | Mary Tillman |
Hundreds of thousands of direct care workers face impossible choices when they get sick. Should they stay home to heal but lose wages and risk losing their jobs, or work sick and risk infecting the people they assist? Fortunately, those who want to fight for their right to paid sick days can do so, thanks to a growing national movement to win paid sick time for all U.S. workers. And for those who want to do something now, 9to5 will host a National Day of Action on Sunday, August 26.
Mary Tillman, a personal care attendant from Boston, describes the conflict she experiences when forced to choose between her physical and financial well-being. "I have been a personal care attendant, caring for people with disabilities, for over 24 years," she says. "I have never had a paid sick day. I have gone to work sick on too many occasions and, on one occasion, I even had pneumonia." Read more and take action.
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