The recent announcement of the impending closure of a Scarborough program for young people with intellectual disabilities highlights an important confluence of inequity, workforce crisis and the finer points of the legislative procedures that affect public policy. Gov. Janet Mills ought to call the Legislature back for a brief special session to address these issues.
The Scarborough program is closing because the Maine Department of Health and Human Services requires that direct care workers earn at least 125% of minimum wage – far below the going rate in today’s labor market (or even yesterday’s labor market). While 125% is a significant improvement over the reimbursement rate that prevailed in the early days of the pandemic, it was always clear that it was still below market. This perpetuates ongoing disparities impacting Mainers with disabilities.
The governor is correct that economic growth is outpacing Maine’s workforce, and state initiatives like child care expansion and integration of new Mainers more effectively into the workforce are important parts of the solution – but paying market rate is also essential, for reasons of both economic health and equity. There are other examples of longstanding inequities affecting Mainers with disabilities. L.
D. 1666 would have raised the modest state supplement to federal supplemental security income (SSI) payments for the first time in 50 years. Currently, the state pays only $10 per month to adult Mainers with signific.