
How the Healthcare Workforce Is Responding to New Aging Policies | Age-Friendly Health Series
From A Health Podyssey by Health Affairs
May 20, 2026 · 30 min
About this episode
This episode discusses the healthcare workforce's response to new aging policies, focusing on direct care workers and related challenges.
Welcome to a new, limited podcast series exploring major policy changes affecting older adults. This episode is part of our Age-Friendly Health series, which explores topics at the intersection of aging, health, health care, and health policy. In our second episode, host Katherine Ornstein welcomes Bianca Frogner, director of the Center for Health Workforce Studies at the University of Washington to discuss the role of direct care workers in long‑term care, workforce shortages, policy shifts affecting Medicaid, immigration, labor standards, and more. Support for the Age-Friendly Health series is provided by The John A. Hartford Foundation . Related Links Health Care Workforce Pay Gaps: COVID-19 Modestly Compressed Wage Disparities, 2015–24 The AWARD Network PHI
People in this episode
Host: Katherine Ornstein
Guest: Bianca Frogner
Topics covered
- healthcare workforce
- aging policies
- long-term care
- Medicaid
- labor standards
- workforce shortages
Keywords
- healthcare workforce
- aging policies
- long-term care
- Medicaid
- labor standards
- workforce shortages
- direct care workers
Sponsors
The John A. Hartford Foundation
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Center for Health Workforce Studies, University of Washington
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