www.ohca.com Oregon Health Care Association 17 call the ‘induced’ impact of the sector. Further, the sector generates more than $1.5 billion in combined federal and state tax revenue, which includes over half a billion dollars in state tax revenue per year.32 Further, the long term care sector contributes more than $1 billion per biennium in general fund revenue for Oregon. This also means that the sector provides significant employment opportunities and living wage jobs. Oregon’s long term care service providers create more than 84,000 jobs. These jobs represent diverse occupations such as nurses, personal care aides, social workers, cooks, and groundskeepers. Affordability of Care The affordability of long term care is an important equity and quality of life issue. Oregon has continued to support Medicaid increases over the last several years, which has enabled more access to long term care services for lowerincome Oregon seniors, however significant increases to the cost of care continue to drive up the cost of delivering that care to individuals not able to access Medicaid. These increases include inflationary costs to wages, food, medical supplies, and also significant technology, operational, and labor costs related to managing new regulations and improvements in care. Ultimately, most people who need long term care services and supports will rely on Medicaid at some point to help them pay for their care needs. However, stringent standards of eligibility mean that many middle-income Oregonians do not have adequate coverage or savings to fund their long term care needs and must spend down their savings to eventually meet Medicaid eligibility. As Oregon approaches one million adults 65 years of age and older, this raises many questions about access to care and affordability. DIRECT IMPACT $4.6 billion TOTAL IMPACT $9.5 billion FEDERAL TAX REVENUE GENERATED $1.05 billion STATE TAX REVENUE GENERATED $505 million TOTAL EMPLOYMENT 83,499 Economic Impact of Long Term Care Sector in Oregon Source: AHCA/NCAL Research Division (2024).
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