A county in upstate New York will use $11 million in federal funds to expand two nursing workforce development programs to address staffing shortages in long-term care facilities.
Monroe County Executive Adam Bello announced Tuesday that $5.5 million from the municipality’s share of American Rescue Plan funding would go to Finger Lakes Performing Provider Systems’ Long-Term Care Workforce Program to create career pathways in skilled nursing facilities. Another $5.5 million from the same federal allotment will go toward a partnership with Monroe Community College to expand clinical nursing programs.
“County Executive Bello’s strategic investment in the long-term care workforce will improve care throughout Monroe County’s healthcare system,” said James W. Clyne, Jr., president and CEO of LeadingAge New York, in an email to McKnight’s Long-Term News on Friday.
In 2021, New York created a staffing minimum of 3.5 hours of direct care per patient per day with fines of up to $2,000 per day for being out of compliance. Although Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) initially suspended the law until April 2022, state officials had not conducted any enforcement activities until July 2023 after a statewide healthcare staffing emergency declared during the pandemic expired.
The state’s provider associations have said three-quarters of the 614 nursing homes have struggled to meet the staffing mandate. Four lawsuits have been filed against the mandate, although one was dismissed last year and refiled by the same law firm. Clyne and his counterpart at the New York State Health Facilities Association have had many harsh words for state lawmakers for not increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates, which are among the lowest in the country.
“The permanent solution to staffing issues in nursing homes is New York State finally stepping up and paying for the true cost of care for nursing home residents,” Clyne said.
“The only way New York’s long-term care workforce crisis will be resolved is through the establishment of partnerships between providers, government, educational institutions and labor,” Stephen B. Hanse, president of the New York State Health Facilities Association, also told McKnight’s on Friday.
Hanse also praised Monroe County’s efforts with the funding.
“Monroe County’s proactive approach in utilizing ARPA funds to address its nursing home workforce crisis is a great example of the type of forward thinking that is necessary both locally and on a statewide level to ensure continued access to essential long-term care services,” he said.
