tired worker slumping against a wall

(Credit: Gpointstudio / Getty Images)

Assisted living communities are experiencing a worse labor crisis than any other healthcare sector, according to a new report from the American Health Care Association / National Center for Assisted Living. 

Assisted living communities have seen industry employment levels drop by 38,000 jobs (an 8.2% loss) since the beginning of the pandemic, according to October employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Although hospitals (1.6% job loss), physicians’ offices (0.8% job gains), outpatient care centers (1.5% job gains) and other healthcare facilities have reached or surpassed pre-pandemic staffing levels, long-term care continues to experience “substantial job losses,” according to AHCA / NCAL.

As caregivers report feeling “burned out” by the pandemic, they are leaving the field for other healthcare settings or other industries altogether, AHCA / NCAL President and CEO Mark Parkinson said.

“Chronic Medicaid underfunding, combined with the billions of dollars providers have spent to fight the pandemic, have left long-term care providers struggling to compete for qualified staff,” he noted. “We desperately need the help of policymakers to attract and retain more caregivers so that our nation’s most vulnerable have access to the long-term care they need.”

A survey of providers released in September showed that the worsening labor crisis already was hurting access to services and care.

According to that survey, 77% of assisted living providers said their workforce situation had deteriorated in recent months, and 61% of assisted living communities expressed concerns that workforce challenges might force facilities closures.