The House Higher Education Committee heard extensive testimony in support of House Bill 19-26, which would change the timeline and delivery model for home care aide (HCA) certification and testing in Washington state.

What the bill would change. Committee staff explained that the bill would remove the statutory requirement that long-term care workers become certified as home care aides within 200 calendar days of hire and instead direct the Department of Health (DOH) to consult with the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) to set a timeline by rule. The bill would also allow testing to be conducted at local training sites and require DOH to evaluate exam results for applicants who complete the exam in languages other than English.

Why supporters back it. Testimony came from unions, provider groups and employers who said current testing infrastructure creates hiring gaps. Maddie Fouch of SEIU 775 said the existing single-contractor testing model creates scheduling barriers: “People are calling over and over again trying to get connected with Prometric. They’re unable to get scheduled for a test.” Brookdale Senior Living’s Allison Lally described a Brookdale pilot adding five testing sites and said students who passed “hugged me with tears streaming down their faces” after receiving certificates, illustrating the human impact of timely testing.

Policy trade-offs and fiscal notes. Sponsor Rep. Joe Timmons said the bill aims to reduce barriers to hiring in a workforce-challenged sector and noted a line in the bill with a $6,500,000 appropriation that he planned to amend out because of budget concerns. Several witnesses supported prioritizing community and facility-based programs that already have capacity to run tests to limit costs.

Next steps and implementation. The bill would require DOH to contract with training partner affiliates and allow qualified facility and community trainers to conduct testing by July 1, 2028, subject to appropriation. Committee staff and witnesses referenced prior audit findings documenting testing delays and said the bill implements a targeted portion of those recommendations.