“The Nursing Facility Supplemental Payment Program contained within the Affordable Health Care for America Act, represents a first step in acknowledging the nation‘s chronic Medicaid underfunding crisis – which shortchanges seniors’ nursing home care more than $4 billion annually. We are pleased that Congressional leaders have recognized the Medicaid crisis, and encourage them to continue serious discussions as to the future of Medicaid funding. We are particularly encouraged that the bill’s sponsor Representative John Dingell (D-MI) and original cosponsors Representatives Andrews (D-NJ), Miller (D-CA), Pallone (D-NJ), Rangel (D-NY), Stark (D-CA), and Waxman (D-CA), understand the critical role Medicaid plays in the provision of long term care and included this provision that begins to address the program’s underfunding of care provided. Stability must be brought to the Medicaid program in order to protect the care of nursing home patients, and the jobs of frontline caregivers vital to the provision of quality care.
The $23.9 billion, ten-year cuts contained in the Affordable Health Care for America Act – coming on top of cuts of up to $16 billion to Medicare-funded nursing home care just put into effect by CMS on October 1, 2009 – will further destabilize our sector at a time when most Governors across America are being forced to cut or freeze seniors’ Medicaid benefits and services. Taken together, our sector, our patients and our workforce face an unprecedented cumulative threat that can only be resolved by significantly reducing the level of Medicare cuts contained in this new bill.
In the coming days and weeks, we will continue to focus attention on the key fact surrounding our sector’s funding crisis: Because facilities devote a full 70% of operating expenses to wages, benefits and other labor costs, Medicare and Medicaid funding stability from Washington equates to staffing stability and quality care locally. The bottom line is that the steep Medicare cuts in the House bill will mean lost jobs in addition to compromised eldercare.”
As the nation’s largest association of long term and post-acute care providers, the American Health Care Association (AHCA) advocates for quality care and services for frail, elderly and disabled Americans. Compassionate and caring employees provide essential care to one million individuals in our 11,000 not-for-profit and proprietary member facilities.