Advocates seek task force to address retention of Medicaid case managers and APS workers

Senate Bill 130, introduced to the Oregon Senate Committee on Human Services on Jan. 30, would establish a task force to study recruitment and retention for case managers and adult protective services (APS) workers who serve consumers of Medicaid-funded long-term care services. The measure, as presented to the committee, sets a membership, directs the task force to recommend ways to address barriers and best practices, requires a report to interim legislative committees by Dec. 15, 2026, appropriates an unspecified general fund amount to the Oregon Department of Human Services for the task force and sunsets the task force on Dec. 31, 2026; the bill also declares an emergency and an effective date of July 1, 2025.

Advocates and frontline workers told the committee that a rising volume of tasks, paperwork and layered policy changes have driven many…