Two bills have been filed for consideration in the coming legislative session that could help fewer people get burned by WA Cares. House Bill 1025 and House Bill 1026, sponsored by Rep. Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia, and Rep. Joe Schmick, R-Colfax, are worthy of consideration, although limited. One of them could even end up helping the state. 

HB 1025 would reopen an exemption window for people who have or who purchase private long-term-care insurance (LTCI). They would need to have a plan before Nov. 1, 2027, and then need to apply for an exemption with the Employment Security Department by Dec. 31, 2028. Like the last time an exemption like this existed, you need to be 18 or older to exercise this option. 

Nearly 500,000 people escaped the program and its accompanying payroll tax in 2021 before the tax grab began because they already had or obtained a private plan. But the window was short-lived and closed before many Washingtonians got the memo. The state kept the exemption quiet. It was really only meant for people who already had LTCI.

Workers under 18 or people who moved into the state after the exemption window were also out of exemption-luck in 2021. Some people who tried to get a private plan with better benefits couldn’t even do so because of the twists and turns WA Cares’ intervention into the market brought LTCI sellers. 

That point was highlighted in a press release from the legislators. In it, Abbarno explains, “The rushed and confusing rollout of the opt-out process left workers behind.” He added, “An unnecessarily narrow timeline punished families who acted responsibly to plan for their long-term care needs. By reopening the exemption, we’re giving them another opportunity to make the right choice for their needs instead of being forced into an inadequate, one-size-fits-all program.” 

Schmick said of the idea, “It will give citizens more time to do their research and find what kind of long-term insurance works best for their individual needs.”

This type of exemption would — again — be available for just a limited time. It would let only current workers who are 18 or older and who have a private LTCI plan apply to get out. Lawmakers should hear this bill and go even further, offering the exemption for all time. People yet to enter the workforce and newcomers to the state should not be unable to choose a better LTCI policy over WA Cares participation. It’s bad enough some workers have only had the option between the inadequate state program and private LTCI. There are many other ways to plan for the possibility of needing long-term care.

Knowing how much more private plans can do for clients than WA Cares, however, and understanding how quality long-term-care plans can save state budgets should make the bill attractive to lawmakers. It could help keep people — especially those with means — off of Medicaid. (Even some people who do benefit from WA Cares one day will still seek out Medicaid funds when their inadequate WA Cares benefit of $36,500 runs out. Medicaid reform is needed to protect this safety net that already exists for people in need of financial help with long-term care.)

I will not be surprised to hear supporters of WA Cares say that HB 1025 is an attempt to end WA Cares, as they did with failed Initiative 2124. (The ballot measure would have made WA Cares optional for all time.) But even if everyone forced to be in WA Cares leaves the program, lawmakers could not close up shop. The exemption only applies to LTCI holders who apply by Dec. 31, 2028. Further, many people will remain. They would then eventually be joined by others who enter the workforce and new residents after this reopened exemption window closes. (Working the state out of a job that it shouldn’t have given itself to begin with would be great, of course.)

Because most people won’t qualify for program dollars for at least 10 years since they began paying into WA Cares and since the state is already sitting on more than $1.3 billion for WA Cares because of the taxes it already has taken from workers, HB 1025 wouldn’t kill WA Cares — not unless a new actuarial report is super wrong about its predictions. Also, lawmakers already know they can ratchet the WA Cares tax rate or lifetime benefit up or down to make the program solvent. 

Bottom line: This bill would give some people a choice about WA Cares — a choice that planners and legislative supporters of the state's LTC law don’t want Washington workers to have. That is why the program is mandatory. 

Sadly, helping individuals with LTC needs is only a sometimes-bonus with WA Cares, even though this is how the program is being marketed. Getting the state more money to spend and helping SEIU 775 see more paid caregivers in the state are the main goals of WA Cares. If the program was meant to help all Washingtonians in need of LTC, it would have been set up that way. It wasn’t. Many people, even those in financial and health need, won’t benefit from WA Cares. 

House Bill 1026 might have a better shot at being heard. It would allow workers to transfer their earned WA Cares benefits to a spouse needing long-term care. Under current law, benefits cannot be shared, even within households where one spouse has significant long-term care needs. 

“Families make long-term care decisions together, yet the current system treats them as if they’re planning alone,” said Abbarno. “This bill fixes that by allowing spouses to share benefits — something that aligns with how families plan for their future. It’s a small change that would make a big difference for many families.” 

The bill would cost the program, which could doom HB 1026 if it does receive a hearing and a vote. WA Cares does still have solvency concerns, even though actuarial reports suggest solvency is more likely than not for the period of time analyzed.

With voters failing I-2124, it is the right time to try to make this misguided program better. WA Cares will remain unfair to many workers, even with these bills, but HB 1025 and 1026 could make the worker penalty less bad for some.