HB1 - Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.
Last Name:TettertonOrganization:VA Assoc for Home Care and HospiceLocality:Providence Forge
The Virginia Association for Home Care and Hospice opposes this legislation as it will drive up the cost of Medicaid personal care in Virginia. As Virginia's minimum wage has increased over the past several years, the reimbursement rates for Medicaid personal care services have not kept pace with the cost of wage increases. Our workforce deserves better wages and benefits and that only happens when Medicaid reimbursement rates are improved. To put this in context the most recent report conducted by GuideHouse pursuant to the Appropriations Act recommended a 42% increase in Medicaid personal care reimbursement.
Last Name:NichollsLocality:Chesapeake
Too expensive for small business. Loses jobs.
Last Name:AlianiOrganization:Home Life Care LLC Locality:Fairfax
As small business owners in Virginia, including Home Life Care LLC, we support fair wages and respect the value of our employees. Many of us operate service-based businesses that rely heavily on hourly labor, tight margins, and reimbursement-based revenue models. For that reason, we are concerned about the impact of HB1’s mandated increase to $15 per hour on small employers across the Commonwealth.
Unlike large corporations, small businesses cannot easily absorb rapid increases in labor costs. For many of us—especially in healthcare, home care, non-profits, and service industries—rates are often set by contracts, insurance reimbursements, or government programs that do not automatically adjust to higher wage mandates. When labor costs rise faster than revenue, businesses are left with limited options.
The likely outcomes are not higher prosperity, but difficult tradeoffs: reduced hiring, fewer entry-level opportunities, reduced hours, delayed expansion, or higher prices passed on to consumers and families who already struggle with rising costs. In rural areas and smaller communities, where margins are even thinner, these effects are amplified.
Our concern is not with workers earning more—we want our employees to succeed. Our concern is with a one-size-fits-all mandate that does not account for industry differences, regional cost variations, or the realities facing small employers who are still recovering from inflation, workforce shortages, and rising operating expenses.
We respectfully urge lawmakers to consider the real-world impact of HB1 on small businesses, caregivers, and local service providers who form the backbone of Virginia’s economy. Any changes to wage policy should include flexibility, exemptions, or support mechanisms that prevent unintended harm to the very communities and workers the policy is meant to help.
Last Name:AchinLocality:Prince William
This is an excellent plan to continue raising the wages of people who often cannot find adequate employment, such as those convicted of felonies and the intellectually disabled, who struggle most of all in an economy which is merciless toward them.
HB1 - Minimum wage; increases incrementally to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2028.
The Virginia Association for Home Care and Hospice opposes this legislation as it will drive up the cost of Medicaid personal care in Virginia. As Virginia's minimum wage has increased over the past several years, the reimbursement rates for Medicaid personal care services have not kept pace with the cost of wage increases. Our workforce deserves better wages and benefits and that only happens when Medicaid reimbursement rates are improved. To put this in context the most recent report conducted by GuideHouse pursuant to the Appropriations Act recommended a 42% increase in Medicaid personal care reimbursement.
Too expensive for small business. Loses jobs.
As small business owners in Virginia, including Home Life Care LLC, we support fair wages and respect the value of our employees. Many of us operate service-based businesses that rely heavily on hourly labor, tight margins, and reimbursement-based revenue models. For that reason, we are concerned about the impact of HB1’s mandated increase to $15 per hour on small employers across the Commonwealth. Unlike large corporations, small businesses cannot easily absorb rapid increases in labor costs. For many of us—especially in healthcare, home care, non-profits, and service industries—rates are often set by contracts, insurance reimbursements, or government programs that do not automatically adjust to higher wage mandates. When labor costs rise faster than revenue, businesses are left with limited options. The likely outcomes are not higher prosperity, but difficult tradeoffs: reduced hiring, fewer entry-level opportunities, reduced hours, delayed expansion, or higher prices passed on to consumers and families who already struggle with rising costs. In rural areas and smaller communities, where margins are even thinner, these effects are amplified. Our concern is not with workers earning more—we want our employees to succeed. Our concern is with a one-size-fits-all mandate that does not account for industry differences, regional cost variations, or the realities facing small employers who are still recovering from inflation, workforce shortages, and rising operating expenses. We respectfully urge lawmakers to consider the real-world impact of HB1 on small businesses, caregivers, and local service providers who form the backbone of Virginia’s economy. Any changes to wage policy should include flexibility, exemptions, or support mechanisms that prevent unintended harm to the very communities and workers the policy is meant to help.
This is an excellent plan to continue raising the wages of people who often cannot find adequate employment, such as those convicted of felonies and the intellectually disabled, who struggle most of all in an economy which is merciless toward them.