After being warned that as many as 35 nursing homes could close by year’s end without increased funding, Massachusetts legislators this week vowed to find solutions.
“This is a problem that didn’t come about immediately. It has been evolving over the last several years with Medicaid rates and Medicare rates and a whole host of other challenges,” Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr told rallying nursing home workers Tuesday. “But you know what? We’ve reached critical mass, and the time to do something about it is now … We have responded to your clarion call.”
Tarr said the Senate budget, being debated this week, tentatively includes an immediate investment of $15 million for nursing home stabilization. He also wants to create a group tasked with producing recommendations for long-term success by Nov. 30. Other senators have filed additional amendments in support of the flailing industry, according to State House News Service.
Tara Gregorio, president of Mass. Senior Care, has said Massachusetts is still reimbursing nursing homes at 2007 rates, leaving a gap of $38 per patient per day or $362 million in underfunding annually.
“We do not live in 2007,” Senate President Emerita Harriette Chandler (D) said at a rally on the statehouse steps. “We cannot continue to kick the can down the road.”
The announcement in Massachusetts follows a Monday pledge from Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) to increase funding by 4% by 2021. About 3,100 nursing home workers in that state have vowed to strike on June 3 if funding doesn’t translate into raises.
