State proposes cutting paid caregiving hours from 112 to 56 per week for Colorado families

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — Parents of children with disabilities are expressing deep concern over a proposed state policy that would cut their paid caregiving hours nearly in half, from 112 hours per week to 56 hours.

The change, set to take effect this spring, stems from an executive order by Governor Polis and is being implemented by the Department of Healthcare Policy and Financing. Officials say the cap is designed to prevent caregiver burnout and ensure better health outcomes.

"I don't know where they are getting these fictional people that they think are going to fill these hours," said Susan Root, who cares for her 24 year old daughter Amy.

Amy was hit by a car when she was 8 years old. From that day on, Root says she has been taking care of her daughter.

"She can't talk, she can't eat, she can't scratch her nose," said Root.

Root currently works up to 112 hours per week caring for Amy.

"It's not because I chose to do that, it's because there is no staffing," Root said.

The 56-hour cap means families would need to find additional in-home caregivers to cover remaining hours. However, parents say the existing nursing shortage makes this nearly impossible.

Paisley Cawiezell, who cares for her 6-year-old daughter, Marisela, worries the change will force her to seek additional employment to make ends meet.

"It will force me to have to go work another job, and that's gonna indirectly affect my daughter because it's taking away my time from her whether I'm paid or not, I won't be able to care for her at the same level," Cawiezell said.

"We already have a shortage in health care already, so this is just putting everyone more at risk," she added.

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Cawiezell tells News5 her daughter is her whole world. Marisela is blind and needs her mother for care 24/7.

"There's nothing that I haven't done that is not for my daughter. She comes first and she's the most important thing to me," she said, "Over my dead body will anyone ever have the decision to take away her care."

Division director Bonnie Silva with the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing defended the change, saying it will benefit families by protecting them from burnout.

"I wanted to make sure that we were proactively implementing some limits that would better ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the person being served," Silva said.

The original benefit, implemented July 1, allowed individual caretakers to receive payment for up to 112 hours per week.

"What I am positioned to do is to make sure that my policies promote the best possible outcome possible, which is not allowing over 100 hours of care to be delivered by a singular person in a given week," Silva said.

Parents dispute the state's reasoning behind the change.

"They say they're doing it to prevent caregiver burnout, but that is not true. These parents, family members, would love to have staffed hours. It's not a possibility," Susan Root said.

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