Vice President Kamala Harris met with nursing home care workers in La Crosse, Wisconsin on Monday, to discuss the Joe Biden Administration’s efforts to support the industry. In a visit to a purple region of Wisconsin on Monday, Harris announced new rules for nursing home staffing and rallied voters around abortion as the race for the presidency remains extremely tight in the battleground state.

Quick Read

• Vice President Harris Focuses on Nursing Home Care and Abortion Rights in Wisconsin: Vice President Kamala Harris highlighted new federal initiatives for nursing home staffing and compensation during her visit to La Crosse, Wisconsin, emphasizing the administration’s commitment to improving conditions for care workers. Additionally, she used the platform to rally support for abortion rights, underlining its significance in the tight presidential race in this battleground state.
• New Federal Requirements Announced: Harris announced that Medicare- and Medicaid-funded nursing homes must provide 3.48 hours of service per resident per day, and at least 80% of Medicaid payments for home care services should go directly to workers’ wages to help reduce turnover and enhance care quality.
• Campaign Strategy in Key Swing State: The visit to La Crosse is part of a broader Democratic strategy to mobilize voters around foundational issues like abortion, especially targeting areas in Wisconsin that could swing either blue or red. Harris’s efforts also include frequent visits to Wisconsin’s Democratic strongholds and purple areas, aligning national policies with local voter concerns.
• Political Context and Polling: Harris’s visit comes at a critical time when President Joe Biden trails slightly behind former President Donald Trump in Wisconsin polls. Democrats are intensifying their campaign efforts, focusing on Trump’s Supreme Court appointments and their impact on abortion rights, contrasting their position with the Republicans’ state-level decisions on the issue.
• Community Engagement and Local Impact: During her visit, Harris engaged with local community leaders and healthcare professionals, discussing the direct impact of federal policies on local communities, and linking these discussions to broader national debates on healthcare, gender pay equity, and diversity initiatives.

The Associated Press has the story:

Vice President Kamala Harris meets with long-term care workers in La Crosse

Newslooks- La Crosse- Wisconsin (AP)

Vice President Kamala Harris met with nursing home care workers in La Crosse, Wisconsin on Monday, to discuss the Joe Biden Administration’s efforts to support the industry.

In a visit to a purple region of Wisconsin on Monday, Harris announced new rules for nursing home staffing and rallied voters around abortion as the race for the presidency remains extremely tight in the battleground state.

“This is a moment where we must stand up for foundational, fundamental values and principles,” Harris told supporters during a campaign event at the La Crosse Center. “Here’s the other piece that I will say: When we think about what is at stake, it is absolutely about freedom.”

The trip to La Crosse reflects Democrats’ efforts to make abortion a key factor in motivating turnout for President Joe Biden, including among voters in purple areas or even the traditionally red Milwaukee suburbs.

Women affected by abortion bans in other states campaigned for Biden in Waukesha County last week, and Harris brought a similar message to the area in January. Biden administration officials have also made frequent trips to Milwaukee and Madison this year, both Democratic strongholds.

Democrats have focused blame on former President Donald Trump, who has so far visited Wisconsin once this election cycle. Trump held a two percentage point lead over Biden in the most recent statewide poll by the Marquette University Law School, 51% to 49%, well within the poll’s margin of error. Trump in a video statement earlier this month said abortion restrictions should be left up to the states. Abortions are currently being provided in Wisconsin, but the state Supreme Court could soon weigh in.

There is a clear line between where we are now and who is to blame,” Harris said. “The former president was very clear with his intention — he would fill and appoint three members of the U.S. Supreme Court with the intention that they would overturn the protections of (Roe v. Wade).”

The vice president visited the Hmong Cultural and Community Center on the city’s South Side and was joined by Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure and Service Employees International Union Secretary-Treasurer April Verrett for the discussion.

Crowds gathered along the sidewalks as the motorcade moved down Highway 14 transporting the officials from La Crosse Regional Airport to and from the center.

Just prior to her arrival, Harris announced new federal requirements for nursing home staffing and compensation.

The requirements dictate all Medicare- and Medicaid-funded nursing homes provide 3.48 hours of service per resident per day. In a typical nursing home with 100 residents, this would require two to three registered nurses, 10 to 11 nurse aides and two additional nurse staff to maintain minimum staffing standards.

Harris also announced a rule that would increase home workers’ pay by requiring at least 80% of Medicaid payments for home care services to go to workers’ wages. A White House official said the hope is that higher compensation will reduce turnover rates within the industry and improve the quality of care.

“This is about dignity. It’s about the dignity that we as a society owe, to those in particular, those who care for the least,” Harris said at the roundtable.

She also tied the subject of health care workers’ pay to national issues in the gender pay gap.

“There are people in our country that are suggesting that focus on diversity, equity and inclusion is bad now. They may not want conversations like this to occur, which include the issue of pay equity based on gender,” Harris said. “Whether it be in the WNBA or recognizing that the traditional work of women — nurses and teachers — remains underpaid especially when you measure it based on the value of the work.”

This was Harris’ third visit to Wisconsin in 2024. In 2020, Biden and Harris won Wisconsin’s election by about 20,000 votes, narrowly hanging on to the swing state. In the April 2 state primary race, about 48,000 Democratic party members voted they were uncommitted to a candidate for the upcoming election.

In La Crosse County’s primary election, the Democratic Party won the presidential preference vote with 58% of votes cast in their favor. Within the party, Biden earned 88.94% of the vote for presidential candidate. Uninstructed delegation votes came in second at 7.46%.

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