Montana nursing homes will see an approximate 33% increase in Medicaid rates phased in over two years, said one of the sector’s leading advocates, but it remains to be seen whether even that will be enough to stabilize facilities.
The state has lost at least 12 nursing homes since February 2022, with one skilled nursing facility closing under “Immediate Jeopardy” for fear that the provider’s “noncompliance” with regulations could result in serious harm or death to a resident, according to the state’s Department of Public Health and Human Services. In November, the Daily Montanan reported there were 65 nursing homes in the state.
Rose M. Hughes, executive director of the Montana Health Care Association, said providers stepped up to make clear to lawmakers the depths of the problems facing the sector due to severe underfunding.
“There was a great deal of testimony and other communications from providers who did an excellent job explaining their ongoing struggles and families who talked about the difficulty of having a loved one in a facility that closed,” Hughes told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News on Friday.
Hughes told McKnight’s in an email that facilities will see an increase in their base Medicaid rate from $209 per resident per day to $268 in fiscal year 2024— about a 28% increase. Another increase from $268 to $278 per resident per day will come in fiscal 2025, she added. That would amount to about a net 33% increase over two years if form holds.
The daily cost of care, however, averages $349, Hughes told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. Its article cited large increases in government payments, but cited different figures.
“Now we have to wait and see if this is enough to stabilize our facilities,” Hughes said. “I think it will all depend on [the] workforce and how much difference these rates make on our ability to recruit and retain workers and reduce the use of contract labor.”
A coalition to which Hughes’ association belongs began advocating for the rate increase two years ago and successfully lobbied for an in-depth Medicaid provider rate study that was conducted last year. That, plus the number of facilities that closed last year, spurred lawmakers to act. Hughes said they hope more facilities won’t shutter but several are expected to see a change in ownership over the next few months.
Two bills that would have provided funding for communities to reopen closed facilities, and for families to assist with moving costs as well as backfilling financial losses incurred in the current fiscal year, died in the Senate, Hughes said.
