Caregivers in New York’s self-directed Medicaid home care program have filed for a union election to be represented by 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East.

If the workers vote to unionize, 190,000 caregivers who provide home care through New York’s Consumer-Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) would join the union.  

“Being a CDPAP caregiver can be a lonely and frustrating experience,” reads a statement on the 1199 SEIU website. “That’s why we’re creating a community of home care workers so we can come together, talk about the issues affecting us, and take action to improve our industry.” 

1199SEIU represents more than 75,000 home care workers in New York City.

A union election is triggered when 30% of workers eligible to vote have signed cards asking for an election, according to the union. The union said that well over 30% of workers submitted cards.

Next, the National Labor Relations Board will work with the union and the employer to set the rules and timeline for the election.

According to the 1199SEIU’s website, the CDPAP workers are filing to unionize because of issues with insurance coverage disruptions, administrative hurdles and other issues since CDPAP transitioned to a single fiscal intermediary: Public Partnerships LLC (PPL).

The transition has been troubled by several deadline extensions, lawsuits, protests and a restraining order. In July, a federal judge preliminarily approved a $162 million class action settlement to approximately 200,000 CDPAP workers. The same month, PPL sought to dismiss the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) lawsuit over PPL’s administration of CDPAP, alleging fraud.

PPL previously told Home Health Care News that the company has a long history of rooting out fraud, waste, and abuse in state Medicaid programs and has saved New York taxpayers more than $1 billion.